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Prevalence and relationships of dating application usage, cyber-fraud and mental health among emerging adults in Hong Kong

Chee-kit Chan ; Xin Wang ; Xue Yang (2024) — Psychiatry Research Communications 4, 100197

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DOI: 10.1016/j.psycom.2024.100197 (opens in a new tab)

Country:   Hong Kong
Tags:   Cyber Fraud, Dating Applications, Emerging Adults, Financial Loss, Hong Kong, Mental Health, Online Survey, Personal Information Loss
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Synopsis

            
This study examined how common dating-app use and cyber-fraud are among emerging adults in Hong Kong and how these experiences relate to mental health. Using an online, self-administered survey, the researchers recruited 401 participants aged 18–35 through NGOs, local schools, and tertiary institutions. The authors aimed to quantify the prevalence of cyber-fraud among dating-app users and to compare mental health across three groups: non-users, users who had not encountered cyber-fraud, and users who had encountered cyber-fraud. Key findings indicate that dating-app use was substantial in the past year, with a majority of participants reporting engagement in dating apps. Among dating-app users, 32% reported experiencing cyber-fraud within the last two weeks. Mental health status differed across groups: victims of cyber-fraud exhibited higher levels of depression, anxiety, and sleep disturbance than non-victims and non-users. In the victim group, about four in ten reported financial losses, and many reported losses of personal information such as phone numbers or private photos/videos. The study also identified factors associated with cyber-fraud–related mental health problems, including being female, having a higher education level, possessing more leisure money, and leakage of personal identifiers (e.g., full name and phone number). The authors conclude that there is an urgent need for education programs and supporting services to raise awareness and improve internet security and privacy management among dating-app users. They acknowledge limitations related to convenience sampling and self-reported data, noting that larger, more representative studies are warranted to confirm these associations and to further explore protective measures for youth. Overall, the article highlights the potential mental health impact of cyber-fraud experiences within the context of dating-app use in Hong Kong.

          

        
                  

            
Identified Gaps

            
The paper identifies an absence of prior research on dating-app cyber-fraud and mental health in Chinese populations. It also notes uncertainty about causal direction and how long mental-health effects persist. Potentially relevant factors, including attitudes toward dating apps and social support, were not measured.

          

        
                  

            
Methods

            
Anonymous online cross-sectional survey of 401 Hong Kong residents aged 18–35 recruited through NGOs, volunteer groups, secondary schools, and tertiary institutions. Participants reported dating-app use, cyber-fraud encounters and losses in the prior two weeks. Depression, anxiety, and sleep quality were measured with Chinese PHQ-9, GAD-7, and PSQI scales. ANOVA/post hoc comparisons contrasted victims, non-victim users, and non-users; stepwise linear regressions identified correlates of victim mental health.

          

        
                  

            
Limitations

            
Cross-sectional data cannot establish whether cyber-fraud causes poorer mental health or whether poor mental health increases victimization risk. Convenience sampling and the small sample may bias prevalence estimates and limit generalizability. Self-reported measures may produce reporting bias, and dating-app use, fraud encounters, and financial losses may be underestimated. The study did not measure potentially relevant factors such as attitudes toward dating apps and social support.

          

        
                  

            
Future Work

            
Use larger representative samples; conduct in-depth interviews with higher-risk groups to understand their experiences and concerns; examine unmeasured factors such as attitudes toward dating apps and social support; and validate the findings. Longitudinal research is also needed to clarify directionality and duration of mental-health effects.

          

              

    
    

        
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