학령 후기 아동의 비사교성과 내재화 문제의 관계에서 또래지지, 친구관계의 질, 교사지지의 병렬다중매개효과

The present study aimed to examine the parallel multiple mediation effects of perceived peer support, friendship quality, and teacher support in the relationship between unsociability and internalizing problems (i.e., depression, social anxiety, and loneliness) among children in late childhood. A self-report survey was administered to 734 fifth and sixth grade elementary school students in South Korea. Applying a parallel multiple mediation model, the key findings of the study are as follows. First, unsociability significantly predicted depression, social anxiety, and loneliness, even after controlling for shyness and gender. Second, both peer support and teacher support significantly mediated the relationship between unsociability and internalizing problems, whereas friendship quality did not exhibit a significant mediating effect. Third, pairwise contrasts of indirect effects revealed that the mediating effect of peer support was significantly greater than that of teacher support across all internalizing outcomes. These findings suggest that, for children in late childhood, social support from the broader peer group and teachers plays a more critical role than the quality of dyadic friendships in explaining the emotional difficulties associated with unsociability.