The Longitudinal Relationship Between Self-Esteem and Peer Relationship in Adolescence: Using Autoregressive Cross-Lagged Modeling

Abstract

Objective This study focused on the longitudinal associations between self-esteem and peer relationships in Korean adolescents while considering gender and timing—early and late adolescence—differences. Methods The study made use of data from the Korean Children and Youth Panel Survey. Three waves of data collected from 2,351 adolescents were analyzed by means of autoregressive cross-lagged modeling. Results The results indicated that self-esteem predicted subsequent changes in peer relationship but not vice versa. Further, the results that longitudinal associations between self-esteem and peer relationships differed between male and female adolescents and between early and late adolescence. Conclusion The findings revaluated the longitudinal relationship between self-esteem and peer relationships. Both gender and timing should be considered when planning interventions related issues about self-esteem and peer relationships in adolescence. Keywords: adolescence, self-esteem, peer relationships, autoregressive cross-lagged modeling