The main purposes of this study were to examine the direct effects of, and indirect effects of parent attachment through peer attachment and romantic relationship on adolescents' life satisfaction, and to examine the gender difference in the model. A ...
The main purposes of this study were to examine the direct effects of, and indirect effects of parent attachment through peer attachment and romantic relationship on adolescents' life satisfaction, and to examine the gender difference in the model. A total of 221 high school students who had been in a romantic relationship for more than 3 months (117 boys and 104 girls) in the three high schools located in the Jeollanam Province responded to questionnaires, which included items related to parent attachment, peer attachment, romantic relationship, and life satisfaction. The data were analyzed by t-test, correlations, and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) using SPSS 19.0 and Amos 18.0 program.
The primary results of this study were as follows:
First, father attachment and mother attachment have direct effects on adolescents' life satisfaction. Adolescents who perceived positive parent attachment showed higher levels of life satisfaction.
Second, only mother attachment had an indirect effect on adolescents' life satisfaction through peer attachment. When adolescents reported affirmative mother attachment, they acknowledged their peer attachment positively, and which, in turn, led to higher levels of life satisfaction.
Third, only father attachment had an indirect effect on adolescents' life satisfaction through romantic relationship. Adolescents who formed affirmative father attachment reported their romantic relationship positively, and which, in turn, led to higher levels of life satisfaction.
Fourth, only mother attachment had a indirect effect on adolescents' life satisfaction through peer attachment and romantic relationship. When adolescents reported higher levels of mother attachment, they perceived their peer attachment positively, it led to affirmative romantic relationship and which, in turn, led to higher levels of life satisfaction.
Finally, there were no gender differences in direct and indirect effects of parent attachment on adolescents' life satisfaction.
In summary, the results from this study indicated that parent attachment, peer attachment, and romantic relationship played significant roles in adolescents' life satisfaction. Especially, this study highlights effects of father's role in adolescents' life satisfaction. Futhermore, the research verifies that adolescents' peer relationship takes a important role in improving their life satisfaction. These findings have implications for future research and practice in improving adolescents' life satisfaction.