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Father-child attachment and externalizing problem behavior in early adolescence: A moderated mediation model

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Abstract

Previous research has documented that father-child attachment is positively associated with externalizing problem behavior of adolescents. However, little is known about the mediating and moderating mechanisms underlying this relation. This study tested the mediating effect of self-esteem in the association between father-child attachment and externalizing problem behavior and whether this mediating process was moderated by gender. The model in this study was examined using 639 Chinese adolescents. The results showed that: (1) Boys’ father-child attachment was significantly higher than that of girls, and boys’ self-esteem was significantly higher than that of girls. There was no significant difference between boys and girls in externalizing problem behavior, but the addiction tendency of boys was significantly higher than that of girls; (2) Father-child attachment significantly negatively predicted adolescent externalizing problem behavior, and self-esteem played a partial mediating role in the relationship between father-child attachment and externalizing problem behavior; (3) The moderated mediation model of father-child attachment influencing externalizing problem behavior was established, and the direct and the first half paths of the model were regulated by gender. Specifically, father-child attachment has a greater impact on self-esteem among girls, whereas father-child attachment has a greater impact on externalizing problem behavior among boys.

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Data Availability

The datasets generated during and/or analysed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Education, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430074, China

    Cong Peng, Jianwen Chen, Youguo Liao, Yan Liu, Huifen Wu & Xintong Zheng

  2. Mental Health Education Center, Minjiang University, Fuzhou, 350108, China

    Youguo Liao

  3. College of Technology, Hubei Engineering University, Xiaogan, 432000, China

    Zhenyun Zhang

  4. School of Education, Hunan University of Science and Technology, Xiangtan, 412001, China

    Yan Liu

Authors
  1. Cong Peng
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  2. Jianwen Chen
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  3. Youguo Liao
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  4. Zhenyun Zhang
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  5. Yan Liu
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  6. Huifen Wu
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  7. Xintong Zheng
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Contributions

Cong Peng and Jianwen Chen contributed to the design of the study. Youguo Liao, Yan Liu, Zhenyun Zhang, Huifen Wu, and Xintong Zheng organized and analyzed the data, wrote the different sections of the manuscript. All authors contributed to manuscript revision and read and approved the submitted version.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jianwen Chen.

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Human Participants and Animal Studies

The study involving human participants was reviewed and approved by the Ethical Committee of the School of Education of Huazhong University of Science and Technology.

Informed Consent

Written informed consent to participate in this study was provided by all individual participants’ legal guardians/next of kin.

Conflict of Interests

On behalf of all authors, the corresponding author states that there is no conflict of interest.

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Peng, C., Chen, J., Liao, Y. et al. Father-child attachment and externalizing problem behavior in early adolescence: A moderated mediation model. Curr Psychol 41, 4997–5010 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-022-03041-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-022-03041-x

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