Open Access

ARTICLE

The Developmental Trajectory of Family Functioning in Junior High School Students: Effects on Preference for Solitude and Social Avoidance

Liuyan Ren^1,2,#, Ruining Wang^3,#, Hohjin Im⁴, Baojuan Ye^1,*, Qi Dai¹

1 School of Psychology, Jiangxi Normal University, Nanchang, 330099, China
2 School of Educational Science, Henan Vocational University of Science and Technology, Zhoukou, 466000, China
3 School of Psychology, Central China Normal University, Wuhan, 430000, China
4 Department of Psychological Science, University of California, Irvine, CA 92697, USA

* Corresponding Author: Baojuan Ye. Email:
# These authors contributed equally to this work

(This article belongs to the Special Issue: Latent Profile Analysis in Mental Health Research: Exploring Heterogeneity through Person Centric Approach)

International Journal of Mental Health Promotion 2025, 27(6), 809-822. https://doi.org/10.32604/ijmhp.2025.065246

Received 07 March 2025; Accepted 28 May 2025; Issue published 30 June 2025

Abstract

Objectives: Positive family functioning (FF) is critical for adolescent development, yet only a few studies have examined this developmental trajectory pathway. This study aimed to identify different types of FF development trajectories during junior high school students, investigate their influence on social avoidance (SA), and further examine the mediating role of preference for solitude (PS) between them. Methods: A three-wave longitudinal study was used with six-month intervals. Questionnaire data were collected from 436 junior high school students in Jiangxi Province, China. Participants ranged in age from 11 to 14 years old (Mean = 12.89 years, SD = 1.08; 50.2% male). Results: Four heterogeneous types of FF trajectories were identified: (1) a high and increasing group (14.7%); (2) a consistently high group (36.24%); (3) a consistently moderate group (45.86%); and (4) a rapid growth group (3.2%). The developmental trajectories of FF among junior high students significantly varied in their levels of SA (F_(3,432) = 32.03, p < 0.001). Compared to the high and increasing groups, the consistently high, consistently medium, and rapid growth groups exhibited higher levels of SA. PS mediated the association between the developmental trajectory of FF and SA. Conclusion: There was a close relationship between the developmental trajectory of FF and SA. Interventions focusing on family system optimization and solitary preference management could effectively mitigate SA behaviors. These findings are important for promoting healthy socialization in adolescents.

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Supplementary Material

Supplementary Material File

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