Dispositional Mindfulness as a Candidate Shared Resilience Factor Across Multiple Forms of Problematic Technology Use: A Two-Wave Cross-Lagged Panel Study

<title>Abstract</title> <p> <bold>Background and aims:</bold> Problematic technology use (PTU) is increasingly conceptualized as a family of related dysregulated behaviors sharing common psychological mechanisms. Shared vulnerability factors are well documented, but far less is known about resources that protect against multiple PTU forms. We examined whether dispositional mindfulness functions as a candidate shared resilience factor across generalized problematic internet, smartphone, social media, and pornography use, and tested reciprocal associations. <bold>Methods:</bold> A nationwide Polish quota sample completed baseline ( <italic>N</italic> = 2,122) and six-month follow-up ( <italic>n</italic> = 1,412) assessments. Two-wave cross-lagged panel models estimated bidirectional associations between mindfulness and each domain, adjusting for age, sex, education, and baseline levels. Longitudinal measurement invariance was established. Equality constraints in a single-system model tested whether prospective associations differed across domains. <bold>Results:</bold> Higher baseline mindfulness predicted lower follow-up levels of all four PTU forms (β = −.106 to −.186, all <italic>p</italic> &lt; .001). Magnitudes differed across domains, Δχ²(3) = 11.33, <italic>p</italic> = .010 (bootstrap Wald <italic>p</italic> = .008), with the strongest association for problematic smartphone use. In domain-specific models, internet, smartphone, and social media use also predicted lower subsequent mindfulness. Mindfulness further predicted greater well-being and life satisfaction and lower anxiety and depression. <bold>Discussion and conclusions:</bold> Dispositional mindfulness may constitute a candidate shared resilience factor across PTU domains. Associations were uniformly negative but unequal in magnitude, indicating a consistent protective direction rather than an invariant effect. Alongside evidence on shared vulnerability, these findings support a transdiagnostic account in which vulnerability and resilience are complementary components of self-regulation. </p>