title: Preschool attachment, self-esteem and the development of preadolescent anxiety and depressive symptoms.
abstract: This study examined the longitudinal association between preschool attachment patterns, the development of anxiety and depression at preadolescence and the mediational role of self-esteem. Child-mother attachment classifications of 68 children (33 girls) were assessed between 3-4 years of age (M = 3.7 years, SD = 4.4 months) using the Separation-Reunion Procedure. At age 11-12 (M = 11.7 years, SD = 4.3 months), anxiety and depressive symptoms (Dominic Interactive Questionnaire), and self-esteem (Self-Perception Profile for Children) were also evaluated. Preadolescents who had shown disorganized attachment at preschool age scored higher on both anxiety and depression and lower on self-esteem than those who had shown secure and insecure-organized attachment strategies. Self-esteem was a partial mediator of the association between preschool disorganization and symptoms of preadolescent depression, but the model was not supported for anxiety. These findings support the idea that early attachment and self-esteem should be central themes in prevention programs with young children.
authors.affiliation: a Psychology Department , Université du Québec à Montréal , Montréal , Canada.
authors.forename: Vanessa
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Lecompte
authors.forename: Ellen
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Moss
authors.forename: Chantal
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Cyr
authors.forename: Katherine
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Pascuzzo
mesh_terms: D001007:Anxiety / Q000175:diagnosis*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003863:Depression / Q000175:diagnosis*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009034:Mother-Child Relations; D009769:Object Attachment; D011792:Quebec; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012649:Self Concept; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
keywords: anxiety; depression; parent–child attachment; preadolescence; self-esteem