TY - JOUR
T1 - Peer-related loneliness across early to late adolescence
T2 - Normative trends, intra-individual trajectories, and links with depressive symptoms
AU - Ladd, Gary
AU - Ettekal, Idean
N1 - Funding Information:
Portions of this study were conducted as part of the Pathways Project, a larger longitudinal investigation of children's social/psychological/scholastic adjustment in school contexts that was supported by the National Institutes of Health ( 1 RO1MH-49223 , 2-RO1MH-49223 , R01HD-045906 to Gary W. Ladd). Special appreciation is expressed to all the children and parents who made this study possible, and to members of the Pathways Project for assistance with data collection.
PY - 2013/12
Y1 - 2013/12
N2 - Study aims were to: (a) describe normative levels and person-oriented developmental trends in loneliness across adolescence, and (2) examine the association between loneliness and depressive symptoms during this same epoch. Participants included 478 youth (239 males and females; 80% Caucasian, 16% African American, and 4% other). Measures of loneliness and multiple indicators of depressive symptoms were gathered yearly across grades 6 through 12 (ages 12-18). Findings implied that most adolescents experience loneliness more strongly during early rather than later adolescence, but not all adolescents traverse the same loneliness trajectories. Youth followed one of five distinct trajectories, characterized as: (a) stable non-lonely, (b) stable low lonely, (c) stable high (chronic) lonely, (d) moderate decliners, and (e) steep decliners. Adolescents following stable high and moderate loneliness trajectories displayed the most depressive symptoms and, although informant differences were found, these youth also manifest the largest gains in depressive symptoms over time.
AB - Study aims were to: (a) describe normative levels and person-oriented developmental trends in loneliness across adolescence, and (2) examine the association between loneliness and depressive symptoms during this same epoch. Participants included 478 youth (239 males and females; 80% Caucasian, 16% African American, and 4% other). Measures of loneliness and multiple indicators of depressive symptoms were gathered yearly across grades 6 through 12 (ages 12-18). Findings implied that most adolescents experience loneliness more strongly during early rather than later adolescence, but not all adolescents traverse the same loneliness trajectories. Youth followed one of five distinct trajectories, characterized as: (a) stable non-lonely, (b) stable low lonely, (c) stable high (chronic) lonely, (d) moderate decliners, and (e) steep decliners. Adolescents following stable high and moderate loneliness trajectories displayed the most depressive symptoms and, although informant differences were found, these youth also manifest the largest gains in depressive symptoms over time.
KW - Adolescence
KW - Depressive symptoms
KW - Loneliness
KW - Peer relations
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U2 - 10.1016/j.adolescence.2013.05.004
DO - 10.1016/j.adolescence.2013.05.004
M3 - Article
C2 - 23787076
AN - SCOPUS:84887402535
SN - 0140-1971
VL - 36
SP - 1269
EP - 1282
JO - Journal of Adolescence
JF - Journal of Adolescence
IS - 6
ER -