Abstract

MOTA, Catarina Pinheiro; FERREIRA, Tatiana  and  COSTA, Mónica. Attachment to parents and adolescent life aspirations: The mediating effect of depressive symptoms. Psicologia [online]. 2022, vol.36, n.1, pp.71-81.  Epub June 30, 2022. ISSN 0874-2049.  https://doi.org/10.17575/psicologia.1808.

The literature suggests that the relational quality of parent-child dyad may be assumed as a risk or protective factor in the development and projection of life aspirations and development of psychopathologic symptoms of depressive nature. The present study aims to analyze the role of quality of attachment to parents in the development of life aspirations of adolescents, testing the mediating effect of depression in the previous association. The sample consisted of 1326 participants, aged between 12 and 18 years. The results suggest that the dimensions of attachment to parents differentially predict the intrinsic and extrinsic life aspirations and depressive symptoms. It also notes that depressive symptoms have a positive mediator effect on the association between the quality of the emotional bond to the father and extrinsic life aspirations. The results were discussed in the light of the theory of attachment and self-determination.

Keywords : Attachment to parents; Life aspirations; Depressive symptoms; Adolescents.

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