The Longitudinal Association Between Self-Esteem and Social Relationships Among Chinese Adolescents: Roles of Developmental Stages and Gender

Yangu Pan, Meiki Maggie Chan, Guangzeng Liu, Song Li and Xiangshu Deng ()
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Yangu Pan: Southwestern University of Finance and Economics
Meiki Maggie Chan: Utah State University
Guangzeng Liu: Southwest Minzu University
Song Li: Southwest University
Xiangshu Deng: Southwestern University of Finance and Economics

Journal of Happiness Studies, 2024, vol. 25, issue 7, No 23, 25 pages

Abstract: Abstract There is robust evidence that social relationships are positively associated with self-esteem, but little is known about how changes in social relationships and self-esteem are associated within individuals. This longitudinal study examined the within-person association between social relationships and self-esteem and the association across developmental stages and gender. A total of 1,240 middle and high school Chinese students (636 girls; initial Mage = 13.4 years) completed measures of self-esteem and paternal, maternal, peer attachment, and teacher-student relationship three times over one year (five-month and six-month interval). Random intercept cross-lagged panel models indicated that bidirectional, within-person association between social relationships and self-esteem among adolescents varied depending on relationship sources, developmental stages, and gender. Specifically, within-person effects indicated that increases in social relationships predicted increases in self-esteem among early adolescents, while increases in self-esteem predicted increases in social relationships among middle adolescents. Moreover, within-person effects suggested that increases in maternal attachment and teacher-student relationship predicted increases in self-esteem among early male adolescents, while increases in teacher-student relationships and paternal attachment predicted increases in self-esteem among early female adolescents. These findings have important theoretical implications regarding the association between self-esteem and social relationships in adolescents and practical implications for improving adolescents’ self-esteem and social relationships.

Keywords: Self-esteem; Parental attachment; Teacher-student relationship; Chinese adolescents; RI-CLPM (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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DOI: 10.1007/s10902-024-00802-2

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