Adolescents' Subtypes of Attachment Security with Fathers and Mothers and Self-Perceptions of Socioemotional Adjustment (Report‪)‬

Research studies on the adolescent developmental period have indicated a sharp increase in vulnerability, morbidity, and mortality related to a wide range of emotional, social, and behavioral problems (Dahl, 2004; Lee & Hankin, 2009; Muris, Meesters, & Van den Berg, 2003). Data from these studies revealed an inverted U-shape curve depicting adolescents' externalizing problems (e.g., aggression and delinquency), with prevalence peaking during the middle adolescent years and then declining (Lee & Hankin, 2009; Steinberg & Morris, 2001). Conversely, the prevalence rate for internalizing problems (e.g., depression, anxiety) showed an increase during adolescence that continued into adulthood (Lee & Hankin, 2009; Steinbeg & Morris, 2001). In exploring this marked increase in socioemotional difficulties, various theoretical approaches emphasized variables such as hormonal changes at puberty, the emergence of new cognitive abilities and coping mechanisms, the prevalence and nature of stressful life events, and the quality of close relationships and patterns of attachment with significant others (Dahl, 2004; Jackson & Goossens, 2006; Larson, 2000; Steinberg & Morris, 2001). Based on studies emphasizing attachment theory as a highly relevant and well-validated framework for explaining individual variations in adjustment across the lifespan (Grossmann, Grossmann, & Waters, 2006; Mikulincer & Shaver, 2007), adolescents' attachment to mothers and fathers served as the focus of the current study to examine socioemotional adjustment during the adolescent period. Adolescent-father attachment relationships received equal emphasis in the present study in light of the recent upsurge of interest in fathers' important role for their children's development and later adjustment (Marsiglio, Amato, Day, & Lamb, 2000; Parke, 2004), as well as based on findings highlighting possible differences in younger children's attachments to the mother and father (see Grossmann et al., 2002).