Autonomy, attachment and psychosocial adjustment during adolescence: a double-edged sword?

Both autonomy and attachment are positively related to psychosocial adjustm ent during adolescence. The aim of the present study was to examine the ass umption that a high level of autonomy within a context of attachment provid es the best constellation for psychosocial adjustment. Subjects were 400 ad olescents. Attitudinal, emotional and functional autonomy were connected wi th attachment to father, mother and peers to predict indices of psychosocia l adjustment: social competence, academic competence, self esteem, problem behaviour and depressive mood. Only main effects of autonomy and attachment were found. There was no evidence for an extra positive effect of being bo th autonomous and strongly attached. (C) 1999 The Association for Professio nals in Services for Adolescents.