Personality, peer relations, and self-confidence as predictors of happiness and loneliness

This study is set out to examine to what extent peer relations, self-confidence, and school performance correlated with self-rated happiness (OHI) and loneliness (UCLA LS) in adolescents. Personality traits (EPQ), self-confidence (PEI), friendship and school grades were all significantly oppositely correlated with happiness and loneliness. Regressional analysis revealed that extraversion and neuroticism were direct predictors of happiness and self-confidence, while psychoticism and extraversion were direct predictors of loneliness. The effect of sex on happiness and loneliness was moderated by friendship and neuroticism, and by neuroticism and psychoticism, respectively. Extraversion was also a significant predictor of general confidence and social interactions which directly influenced loneliness whilst psychoticism was a direct predictor of loneliness. Self-rated school performance was the only direct predictor of happiness whereas general confidence and social interactions were related to adolescents' self-reported loneliness. (C) 2002 The Association for Professionals in Services for Adolescents. Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.