Help seeking and social competence mediate the parental attachment–college student adjustment relation

Abstract This short‐term longitudinal study investigated whether attitudes about academic help seeking, social competence, and self‐compassion mediated the relations between parental attachment and college student adjustment. Two hundred and four first‐year students completed measures of parental attachment and the proposed mediators at the beginning of their first semester. At the end of the semester, students reported on their academic, social, and personal/emotional adjustment. Results showed that attitudes about academic help seeking mediated the attachment–academic adjustment relation and social competence mediated the attachment–social adjustment relation. Personal/emotional adjustment largely was predicted by initial personal/emotional adjustment. These findings suggest that help‐seeking attitudes and social competence could be fruitful targets of intervention for personnel working with college students who have strained parental relationships.