ABSTRACT
Objective:To explore the relation between parental cohesion,peer acceptance and the loneliness of left-behind children,and furthermore explore the mediation role of self-esteem.Methods:Totally 427 left-behind children in Hubei Province (275 males,152 females) were surveyed,and the Parental Cohesion Scale (PCS),Peer Nomination (PN),Self-Esteem Scale (SES) and Children Loneliness Scale (CLS) were used to assess parental cohesion,peer acceptance,self-esteem and loneliness respectively.The relation between parental cohesion,peer acceptance andthe loneliness of left-behind children,and the mediation role of self-esteem wereanalyzed.Results:The CLS scores in left-behind children were negatively correlated with the scores of PCS,PN,and SES (r =-0.31,-0.37,-0.50,P ＜ 0.01),the SES scoresplayed a mediation role in the relation between PN scores and CLS scores (95 ％ CI:-7.02--0.01),and between PCS scores and CLS scores (95 ％ CI:-0.18--0.09).Furthermore,the unique effect of the PN scores on the CLS scores (sr2 =0.10) was higher than that of PCS scores (sr2 =0.06).Conclusion:The current research indicates that the loneliness,parental cohesion,peer acceptance and self-esteem of the left behind children have a close relationship.Furthermore,it suggests that self-esteem may play partial mediating effects between parental cohesion,peer acceptance and the loneliness of left-behind children.