Top

Gepubliceerd in:

27-10-2022 | Original Paper

Loneliness Profiles in Adolescence: Associations with Sex and Social Adjustment to the Peer Group

Auteurs: Olívia Ribeiro, Miguel Freitas, Kenneth H. Rubin, António J. Santos

Gepubliceerd in: Journal of Child and Family Studies | Uitgave 4/2023

Abstract

Loneliness is a complex feeling associated with socio-emotional adjustment difficulties, particularly during adolescence. Such construct is often treated as unidimensional rather than multidimensional, moreover, studies consisting of both peer and family contexts, are very scarce. Adopting a multidimensional and person-centered approach, our study aimed to identify distinct clusters of adolescents with similar patterns of social and emotional loneliness with peers and family and to examine their differences in peer reported social adjustment, controlling for sex. Self-report and peer nomination data were collected from 691 participants (48.36% boys) aged between 11 and 16 years (M = 12.95, SD = 1.15). After controlling for age and preference for solitude, results revealed four clusters with specific configurations of loneliness forms and with different associations with positive or negative features of social adjustment to peer group. Two clusters exhibited adaptive profiles (lower vulnerability to maladjustment): less-lonely, and family-related loneliness profile, in which adolescents were viewed by peers as exhibiting more prosocial behaviors. The other two clusters displayed maladaptive profiles (higher vulnerability to maladjustment): more-lonely, and peer-related loneliness profile, in which adolescents were more likely viewed by their peers as socially withdrawn, peer-excluded, and peer-victimized. Additionally, our results revealed sex differences, with girls in the more-lonely profile showing significant higher social loneliness related to peer group, and higher social and emotional loneliness in family context. Our results highlight the importance of recognizing different forms of loneliness given the differences in adjustment to social contexts observed, shedding further light on this complex construct.

vorige artikel Cigarette Smoking in Male High School Students in Myanmar: Developmental Differences in Risk and Promotive Factors

volgende artikel How Perceived Detrimental Parenting Relates to Adolescents’ Intrinsic and Extrinsic Values

Bowker, J. C., & Raja, R. (2011). Social withdrawal subtypes during early adolescence in India. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 39, 201–212. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10802-010-9461-7.CrossRefPubMed

Burgess, K. B., Wojslawowicz, J. C., Rubin, K. H., Rose-Krasnor, L., & Booth-LaForce, C. (2006). Social information processing and coping strategies of shy/withdrawn and aggressive children: Does friendship matter. Child Development, 77, 371–383. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8624.2006.00876.x.CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

Cacioppo, J., Ernst, J., Burleson, M., McClintock, M., Malarkey, W., Hawkley, L., Kowalewski, R., Paulsen, A., Hobson, J., Hugdahl, K., Spiegel, D., & Berntson, G. (2000). Lonely traits and concomitant physiological processes: The MacArthur social neuroscience studies. International Journal of Psychophysiology, 35, 143–154. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0167-8760(99)00049-5.CrossRefPubMed

Cassidy, J., & Asher, S. R. (1992). Loneliness and peer relations in young children. Child Development, 63(2), 350–365. https://doi.org/10.2307/1131484.CrossRefPubMed

Correia, J. V., Santos, A. J., Freitas, M., Rosado, A., & Rubin, K. H. (2014). Análise fatorial confirmatória do Extended Class Play numa amostra portuguesa de jovens adolescentes [Confirmatory factor analysis of the Extended Class Play on a sample of Portuguese young adolescents]. Psicologia: Reflexão e Crítica, 27, 462–471. https://doi.org/10.1590/1678-7153.201427306.CrossRef

Danneel, S., Maes, M., Vanhalst, P., Bijttebier, P., & Goossens, L. (2018). Developmental change in loneliness and attitudes toward aloneness in adolescence. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 47, 148–161. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-017-0685-5.CrossRefPubMed

De Jong Gierveld, J., & Van Tilburg, T. (2010). The De Jong Gierveld short scales for emotional and social loneliness: Tested on data from 7 countries in the UN generations and gender surveys. European Journal of Ageing, 7, 121–130. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10433-010-0144-6.CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

Freitas, M., Santos, A. J., Ribeiro, O., Daniel, J., & Rubin, K. (2019). Prosocial behavior and friendship quality as moderators of the association between anxious withdrawal and peer experiences in Portuguese young adolescents. Frontiers in Psychology, 9(1-13), 2783 https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2018.02783.CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

Gifford-Smith, M. E., & Brownell, C. A. (2003). Childhood peer relationships: Social acceptance, friendships, and peer networks. Journal of School Psychology, 41(4), 235–284. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0022-4405(03)00048-7.CrossRef

Goossens, L., & Beyers, W. (2002). Comparing measures of childhood loneliness: Internal consistency and confirmatory factor analysis. Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, 31, 252–262. https://doi.org/10.1207/S15374424JCCP3102_10.CrossRefPubMed

Goossens, L., & Marcoen, A. (1999). Adolescent loneliness, self-reflection, and identity: From individual differences to developmental processes. In K. Rotenberg & S. Hymel (Eds.), Loneliness in childhood and adolescence 225–243. Cambridge University Press.CrossRef

Goossens, L., Lasgaard, M., Luyckx, K., Vanhalst, J., Mathias, S., & Masyc, E. (2009). Loneliness and solitude in adolescence: A confirmatory factor analysis of alternative models. Personality and Individual Differences, 47(8), 890–894. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2009.07.011.CrossRef

Hair, J. F., & Black, W. C. (2000). Cluster analysis. In L. Grimm & P. R. Yarnold (Eds.), Reading and understanding more multivariate statistics 147–205. American Psychological Association.

Hayden-Thomson, L. K. (1989). Children’s loneliness. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada.

Heinrich, L. M., & Gullone, E. (2006). The clinical significance of loneliness. Clinical Psychology Review, 26, 695–718. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpr.2006.04.002.CrossRefPubMed

Howard, M., & Hoffman, M. E. (2017). Variable-centered, person-centered, and person-specific approaches: Where theory meets the method. Organizational Research Methods, XX(X), 1–31. https://doi.org/10.1177/1094428117744021.

Hyland, P., Shevlin, M., Cloitre, M., Karatzias, T., Vallières, F., McGinty, G., Fox, R., & Power, J. M. (2019). Quality not quantity: Loneliness subtypes, psychological trauma, and mental health in the US adult population. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 54(9), 1089–1099. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00127-018-1597-8.CrossRefPubMed

Hutten, E., Jongen, E., Verboon, P., Bos Arjan, E., Smeekens, S., & Cillessen, A. (2021). Trajectories of loneliness and psychosocial functioning. Frontiers in Psychology, 12, 2367 https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.689913CrossRef

Lafontana, K., & Cillessen, A. (2002). Children’s perceptions of popular and unpopular peers: A multimethod assessment. Developmental Psychology, 38(5), 635–647. https://doi.org/10.1037/0012-1649.38.5.635.CrossRefPubMed

Lasgaard, M., Armour, C., Bramsen, R., & Goossens, L. (2016). Major life events as predictors of loneliness in adolescence. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 25, 631–637. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-015-0243-2.CrossRef

Liu, J., Coplan, R. J., Chen, X., Li, D., Ding, X., & Zhou, Y. (2014). Unsociability and shyness in Chinese children: Concurrent and predictive relations with indices of adjustment. Social Development, 23(1), 119–136. https://doi.org/10.1111/sode.12034.CrossRef

Luhmann, M., & Hawkley, L. C. (2016). Age differences in loneliness from late adolescence to oldest old age. Developmental Psychology, 52(6), 943–959. https://doi.org/10.1037/dev0000117.CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

Maes, M., Klimstra, T., van den Noortgate, W., & Goossens, L. (2015). Factor structure and measurement invariance of a multidimensional loneliness scale: Comparisons across gender and age. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 24, 1829–1837. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-014-9986-4.CrossRef

Maes, M., Qualter, P., Vanhalst, J., van den Noortgate, W., & Goossens, L. (2019). Gender differences in Loneliness across the lifespan: A meta‐analysis. European Journal of Personality, 33(6), 642–654. https://doi.org/10.1002/per.2220.CrossRef

Maes, M., Vanhalst, J., Spithoven, A., van den Noortgate, W., & Goossens, L. (2016). Loneliness and attitudes toward aloneness in adolescence: A person-centered approach. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 45, 547–567. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-015-0354-5.CrossRefPubMed

Mahon, N., Yarcheski, A., Yarcheski, T., Cannella, B., & Hanks, M. (2006). A meta-analytic study of predictors for loneliness during adolescence. Nursing Research, 55(5), 308–315. https://doi.org/10.1097/00006199-200609000-00003.CrossRefPubMed

Majorano, M., Musetti, A., Brondino, M., & Corsano, P. (2015). Loneliness, emotional autonomy and motivation for solitary behavior during adolescence. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 24, 3436–3447. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-015-0145-3.CrossRef

Mund, M., Freuding, M., Mobius, K., Horn, N., & Neyer, F. (2020). The stability and change of loneliness across the life span: A meta-analysis of longitudinal studies. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 24(1), 24–52. https://doi.org/10.1177/1088868319850738.CrossRefPubMed

Musetti, A., Corsano, P., Majorano, M., & Mancini, T. (2012). Identity processes and experience of being alone during late adolescence. International Journal of Psychoanalysis and Education, 4, 44–65.

Parker, J. G., & Asher, S. R. (1993). Friendship and friendship quality in middle childhood: Links with peer group acceptance and feelings of loneliness and social dissatisfaction. Developmental Psychology, 29(4), 611–621. https://doi.org/10.1037/0012-1649.29.4.611.CrossRef

Peplau, L. A., & Perlman, D. (1982). Perspectives on loneliness. In L. A. Peplau & D. Perlman (Eds), Loneliness: A sourcebook of current theory, research and therapy 1–18. John Wiley & Sons.

Qualter, P., Vanhalst, J., Harris, R. A., Van Roekel, E., Lodder, G., Bangee, M., & Verhagen, M. (2015). Loneliness across the life span. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 10, 250–264. https://doi.org/10.1177/1745691615568999.CrossRefPubMed

Ramos, A., & Magalhães, P. (2021). The values of the Portuguese. Results of the European Values Study. https://gulbenkian.pt/en/publication/the-values-of-the-portuguese/.

Ribeiro, O., Santos, A. J., Freitas, M., Rosado, A., & Rubin, K. (2019). Loneliness in adolescence: Confirmatory factor analysis of the Relational Provisions Loneliness Questionnaire (RPLQ) in a Portuguese sample. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 43(5), 457–465. https://doi.org/10.1177/0165025419850893.CrossRef

Rose, A. J., & Rudolph, K. D. (2006). A review of sex differences in peer relationship processes: Potential trade-offs for the emotional and behavioral development of girls and boys. Psychological Bulletin, 132(1), 98–131. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.132.1.98.CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

Rubin, K. H., Bowker, J. C., & Kennedy, A. E. (2009). Avoiding and withdrawing from the peer group. In K. H. Rubin, W. M. Bukowski & B. L. Laursen (Eds), Handbook of Peer Interactions, Relationships, and Groups 303–321. Guilford Press.

Rubin, K. H., Bukowski, W. M., Parker, J. G., & Bowker, J. C. (2008). Peer interactions, relationships, and groups. In W. Damon & R. M. Lerner (Eds), Child and adolescent development: An advanced course 141–180. Wiley

Rubin, K. H, Bukowski, W. M. & Bowker, J. C. In: M. H. Bornstein, T. Leventhal R. M. Lerner, (eds.) 2015). Children in peer groups. Handbook of child psychology and developmental science: Ecological settings and processes. 4. (pp. 175–222). John Wiley & Sons Inc.

Shevlin, M., Murphy, S., & Murphy, J. (2014). Adolescent loneliness and psychiatric morbidity in the general population: Identifying “at risk” groups using latent class analysis. Nordic Journal of Psychiatry, 68, 633–639. https://doi.org/10.3109/08039488.2014.907342.CrossRefPubMed

Tabachnick, B. G., & Fidell, L. S. (2007). Using multivariate statistics (5^th ed.). Allyn and Bacon.

Terrell-Deutsch, B. (1999). The conceptualization and measurement of childhood loneliness. In K. Rotenberg & Hymel, S. (Eds.) Loneliness in childhood and adolescence (pp. 11–33). Cambridge University Press.

Vanhalst, J., Luyckx, K., & Goossens, L. (2014). Experiencing loneliness in adolescence: A matter of individual characteristics, negative peer experiences, or both? Social Development, 23, 100–118. https://doi.org/10.1111/sode.12019.CrossRef

Wang, J. M., Rubin, K. H., Laursen, B., Booth-LaForce, C., & Rose-Krasnor, L. (2013). Preference-for-solitude and adjustment difficulties in early and late adolescence. Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, 42(6), 834–842. https://doi.org/10.1080/15374416.2013.794700.CrossRefPubMed

Weeks, M. S., & Asher, S. R. (2012). Loneliness in childhood: Toward the next generation of assessment and research. Advances in Child Development and Behavior, 42, 1–39. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-394388-0.00001-0.CrossRefPubMed

Weiss, R. S. (1973). Loneliness: The experience of emotional and social isolation. MIT Press.

Woodhouse, S., Dykas, M., & Cassidy, J. (2012). Loneliness and peer relations in adolescence. Social Development, 21, 273–293. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9507.2011.00611.x.CrossRef

Zeller, M., Vannatta, K., Schafer, J., & Noll, R. B. (2003). Behavioral reputation: A cross-age perspective. Developmental Psychology, 39, 129–139. https://doi.org/10.1037/0012-1649.39.1.129.CrossRefPubMed

Titel: Loneliness Profiles in Adolescence: Associations with Sex and Social Adjustment to the Peer Group
Auteurs: Olívia Ribeiro
Miguel Freitas
Kenneth H. Rubin
António J. Santos
Publicatiedatum: 27-10-2022
Uitgeverij: Springer US
Gepubliceerd in: Journal of Child and Family Studies / Uitgave 4/2023
Print ISSN: 1062-1024
Elektronisch ISSN: 1573-2843
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-022-02472-1

Bohn Stafleu van Loghum

Deel dit onderdeel of sectie (kopieer de link)

Abstract

Log in om toegang te krijgen

Andere artikelen Uitgave 4/2023

How Perceived Detrimental Parenting Relates to Adolescents’ Intrinsic and Extrinsic Values

Parents’ Home-Safety Practices to Prevent Injuries During Infancy: From Sitting to Walking Independently

Parenting Self-Efficacy and Internalizing/Externalizing Problems: Child Age as a Moderator

Employed Parents of Children with Typical and Exceptional Care Responsibilities: Family Demands and Workplace Supports

Self-Esteem, Socially Prescribed Perfectionism, and Parental Burnout

Early Child-care Arrangements and Both Parents’ Subjective Well-being