Adolescents’ true-self behavior and adjustment: The role of family security and satisfaction of basic psychological needs

Associations between security within the family, satisfaction of basic psychological needs, true-self behavior, and knowledge of true self, as well as levels of adjustment, were explored in a sample of early adolescents and midadolescents in Israel (N = 302, mean age = 14.19 years). Both security within the family and needs satisfaction were found to be moderately associated with true-self variables with parents. Needs satisfaction was also associated with true-self variables with classmates. True-self behavior with parents, classmates, and knowledge of true self correlated negatively with various domains of maladjustment. True-self behavior with parents fully mediated the associations between security within the family and adolescents’ adjustment regardless of adolescents’ age. The findings highlight the role of true-self behaviors as a mechanism through which security in the family contributes to Israeli adolescents’ adjustment.