The Relationship Between Peer Attachment And Internalizing Problems In Adolescence

As one of the important subject in the field of psychology,internalizing problems points to the individuals'internal psychology and is characterized by emotional disorder,It has the characteristics of high incidence and concealment in adolescence,which brings serious harm to individual mental health and interpersonal communication.Peers are the important background of adolescent development,and peer relationship can affect individual internalizing problems.From the perspective of developmental psychology and mental health,this study explores the characteristics and development of peer attachment and internalizing problems in early adolescence,and further investigates the relationship model between peer attachment and internalization.To explore the dynamic interaction and gender differences between peer attachment and internalizing problems in adolescence,a longitudinal investigation was conducted among 981 junior high school adolescents from Wuhan over a three-year period.Results were as follows:(1)The level of peer attachment of female was significantly higher than that of male,and the level of depression of male was significantly higher than that of female.(2)The cross-lagged panel model(CLPM)shows that,in Wave 1,peer attachment is in an interactive relationship with depression,and anxiety can significantly predict peer attachment;in Wave 2,peer attachment is in an interactive relationship with anxiety,and depression can significantly predict peer attachment.The random intercept cross-lagged panel model(RI-CLPM)only found that anxiety could significantly predict peer attachment in Wave 2.The fit index of RI-CLPM was better than that of CLPM.(3)Compared with boys,girls' depression can significantly predict depression in Wave 2,while depression and anxiety can significantly predict peer attachment in Wave 1.It can be seen that there is a close relationship between peer attachment and internalization in early adolescence,so we should pay more attention to teenagers' close peer relationship and promote their positive development.