The Relationship Between Parent‐Child Attachment and Peer Attachment and Depression in College Students: A Moderated Polynomial Regression With Response Surface Analyses

Previous research has established a strong link between parental attachment and depression in youth. However, the nuances of paternal-maternal attachment congruence and its relationship with depressive symptoms, as well as the roles of gender differences and peer attachment in this context, remain unclear. This study aimed to explore these associations among emerging adults. Attachment and depressive symptoms were assessed in 1564 college students using the Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment (IPPA) and the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), respectively. Polynomial regression and response surface analysis were utilized for data analysis. The results revealed that when paternal and maternal attachment were congruent, students with average-range levels of parental attachment (i.e., scores near the IPPA mean) exhibited the least depressive symptoms. Conversely, greater discrepancies between paternal and maternal attachment were associated with more pronounced depressive symptoms, while this effect was buffered by higher levels of peer attachment. In addition, incongruent paternal and maternal attachments were not significantly associated with depressive symptoms in sons, whereas insecure maternal attachment was more closely related to daughters' depressive symptoms. In conclusion, this study highlights the importance of parental attachment (in)congruence in college students' depressive symptoms and the moderating roles of gender and peer attachment.