Hechting aan ouders en leeftijdgenoten in relatie tot internaliserend probleemgedrag in de adolescentie.

Abstract

Background: The aim of this study was to examine the attachment relationship between adolescents, their parents and peers on the one hand and internalizing problem behavior on the other hand. This study also examined if the relation between attachment and internalizing problembehavior was moderated by gender or self-esteem of the adolescent. Method: In this longitudinal study, 650 adolescents of 13-14 years old (M = 13.36; SD = 0.55 jaar) from the Netherlands participated. They filled out the Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment, the Youth Self-Report and the Self-Perception Profile for Adolescents two times, with a one-year interval in between. Results: Low levels of attachment to parents were associated with high levels of internalizing problembehavior of adolescents. Low communication with both parents and for peers low levels of confidence are most effective for developing internalizing problem behavior. Gender did not moderate the relation between attachment to parents and internalizing problem behavior. Furthermore, adolescents showed higher levels of attachment to their mothers than to their fathers. Self-esteem did moderate the relation between communication with parents and internalizing problem behavior. Adolescents showing low levels of communication and self-esteem with both parents reported higher levels of physical symptoms. Conclusions: There is a relation between attachment to parents, peers and internalizing problembehavior, but not for all indicators of attachment. It is important to incorporate both gender of the adolescent and of parents in future studies. Furthermore, it is necessary to examine the importance of self-esteem in attachment relations between adolescents, their parents and peers.