The Developmental Trajectory of Social Adjustment Among Left-Behind Children in China: The Predictive Role of Gender, Left-Behind Status and Parent-Child Cohesion.

Yadong Sun, Yile Li, Jiamei Li, Zhi Wang, Jingjin Shao

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Article in Developmental science, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors.

Yadong SunFaculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4931-9173

Yile LiFaculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China.

Jiamei LiDepartment of Social Work, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7911-1181

Zhi WangFaculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9324-1772

Jingjin ShaoFaculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8931-5871

Funding

Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities SWU2109224Social Science Fund of Chongqing 2022NDYB85

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Few studies have systematically examined social adjustment of left-behind children. A longitudinal study with three waves was conducted on 512 Chinese left-behind children to address the gaps. The unconditional latent growth curve model revealed a linear decline in problem behaviors over time, whereas prosocial behaviors and school engagement showed an increasing trend. The conditional latent growth curve model indicated significant differences by gender and left-behind status in the initial levels of problem behavior, prosocial behavior, and school engagement. Children with different left-behind statuses exhibited distinct developmental patterns of prosocial behaviors. Parent-child cohesion played a protective role in problem behaviors, prosocial behaviors, and school engagement. These findings underline the protective role of parent-child cohesion and highlight the importance of providing targeted social services for different types of left behind children.

Indexed as

Child DevelopmentParent-Child RelationsSocial AdjustmentChildChild, PreschoolChinaFemaleHumansLongitudinal StudiesMaleSex FactorsSocial BehaviorUnaccompanied Minorsleft‐behind childrenlongitudinal studyparental migrationsocial adjustment

Identifiers

PMID42605881

DOI10.1111/desc.70268

PMCPMC13479396

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.