ECPN Student Poster Contestant: Developmental Pathways to Trajectories of Social Withdrawal across Adolescence and Its Influence on Depression in Emerging Adulthood

Introduction: Adolescents’ social withdrawal is closely associated with various maladaptive outcomes. Recent prospective studies have shown that adolescents with higher levels of social withdrawal are particularly vulnerable for developing depression. Studies have suggested several risk factors and mechanisms associated with withdrawal trajectories, including parents’ controlling behavior and adolescents’ low self-esteem. Given the strong emphasis on academic achievement and high adolescent suicide rates in Korea, intrusive parenting and adolescents’ poor self-esteem are serious concerns. Despite such significance, few studies have systematically examined developmental trajectories of social withdrawal in Korean youth using longitudinal data. The present study examined (1) developmental trajectories of withdrawal during adolescence, (2) predictive effects of intrusive parenting and adolescents’ self-esteem; and (3) effects of withdrawal trajectories on depression during emerging adulthood.

Method: The present study used the Korean Children and Youth Panel Survey, a national survey conducted between 2010 and 2016 in Korea. The present sample included 1,881 adolescents (female = 954) who were annually assessed across 7 years (ages 13 to 19, waves 1 to 7). The adolescents reported on their parents’ parenting behavior as well as on their own self-esteem, withdrawal, and depression. Intrusive parenting and self-esteem measured at age 13, withdrawal at ages 14, 16, and 18 and depression at age 19 were used. Data were analyzed using latent growth curve modeling in Mplus.

Results: On average, levels of social withdrawal tended to increase across ages 14 through 18 years. Additionally, higher levels of intrusive parenting predicted lower levels of self-esteem in early adolescence, which then led to higher levels of withdrawal at age 14 and greater increases in withdrawal over time. Higher levels of the initial level and change in withdrawal trajectories predicted higher levels of depression at age 19 (b=0.562, p<.001 ; b=0.995, p<.001, respectively). Lower levels of self-esteem at age 13 were also directly associated with higher levels of depression at age 19 (b=-0.158, p<.001; full model-χ²(5)=10.54, CFI=.997, TLI=.991, RMSEA=.02).

Conclusions: Findings evidenced significantly increasing trajectories of social withdrawal in Korean youth, which was significantly associated with depression during emerging adulthood. Findings also highlight long-lasting implications of parents’ intrusive behavior and significant mediating effects of youth’s self-esteem for their subsequent adjustment across adolescence through emerging adulthood. This suggests that preventive intervention programs that are specifically aimed at reducing intrusive parenting behavior and promoting youth’s self-esteem can effectively prevent negative trajectories of social withdrawal and subsequent depression in Korean youth.