Stability and changes in loneliness profiles across adolescence: The effects of intraindividual characteristics on the transitions across time

Adopting a person-centered approach with longitudinal data, our study examined the stability and transitions of loneliness profiles across three consecutive years, during adolescence. We also explored the lasting effects of loneliness and the role of intraindividual characteristics—sex, self-worth, social acceptance, friendships competence, and social withdrawal—in predicting transitions between profiles. Data were collected from an initial sample of Portuguese adolescents ( N = 721; 47.9% boys). Latent transition analyses revealed four loneliness profiles: Non-lonely (most stable), Highly lonely (least stable), Peer-related lonely (increasingly stable), and Family-related lonely (decreasingly stable). Most adolescents transitioned to profiles with lower loneliness, except those in the Family-related profile , who tended to move toward the Highly lonely profile . Our findings also suggest lasting effects, as adolescents with a history of loneliness were more likely to report feeling lonely again later. Intraindividual characteristics also impacted on the transitions among profiles. Overall, these findings highlight the importance of recognizing loneliness as a multidimensional experience with a potentially discontinuous developmental trajectory.