2nd Edition of Parental Attachment and Adolescent Well-Being
A special issue of International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (ISSN 1660-4601). This special issue belongs to the section "Adolescents".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 September 2023) | Viewed by 41545
Special Issue Editor
Interests: attachment; cross-cultural studies in children and adolescents; personality assessment
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
During adolescence, a multi-system transitional process develops, involving progression from the immaturity and social dependency of childhood into adult life, with the goal and expectation of fulfilled developmental potential, personal agency, social accountability, and integration of self-identity and self-development. It is a challenging transition period of rapid and considerable developmental changes, which involves significant transformations in almost every domain of functioning. Significant transformations occur in biological development, in neurological structure and function, and in cognitive development, with an increasing capacity for abstract thinking and problem solving and in metacognitive and representational capacity. Alongside these rapid changes, adolescents enter a new social–psychological phase of life, with an increasing reliance on peers for intimacy and support, along with a growing investment in relationships toward becoming more autonomous and independent from family. During periods of rapid development, research shows that parental sensitivity and support are critical in ‘scaffolding’ children to the next level of functioning. For this reason, parents remain a fundamental source of emotional support for their adolescent children.
Adolescence is associated with the onset or exacerbation of a number of health-related problems, including depression, eating disorders, substance dependence, risky sexual abuse and behavior, antisocial and delinquent activity, and dropout from school. Moreover, increased mental health problems in adolescents compromise their development and future potential. Psychological studies have demonstrated that the context in which an individual develops is of great importance in understanding and conceptualizing child developmental constructs. Among the numerous factors which may contribute to adolescents’ mental health problems are family contextual factors in adolescent relationships, such as parenting styles, parenting practices, and attachment relationships. Positive, engaged, sensitive parenting has been uniquely associated with adolescents’ better emotional regulation, fewer conduct problems, and lower emotional distress. Positive parenting includes experiences shared among family members, expressed positive emotions, positive behaviors, expressed warmth, perceived closeness and cohesion, supportiveness, responsiveness, perceived acceptance, and parental attachment security. Specifically, parental attachment refers to an affectional bond with primary caregivers that develops in the early years of life (Bowlby, 1969), but it still continues to influence individual psychological adjustment during adolescence as demonstrated by the association between attachment security and the development of adolescent emotional and problem behaviors in adolescents. In addition, an extensive body of research highlights the links between attachment security in adolescents and their behavioral and psychosocial outcomes later in life. However, new contributions are needed.
This Special Issue of International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (IJERPH) focuses on the current state of knowledge on the links (a) between attachment and other family factors, and (b) between attachment, risk, and well-being in adolescence. New research papers, reviews, and methodological papers are welcome.
Prof. Dr. Adriana Lis
Guest Editor
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Keywords
- adolescents
- attachment
- emotions
- family assessment
- family cultural values and orientation
- family processes
- parenting styles
- psychological maladjustment
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