Linking shyness to loneliness in Chinese adolescents: The mediating role of core self-evaluation and social support

This study examined the validity of two models predicting the relationship between shyness and loneliness: the cognitive bias and social network mediation models. Four hundred and eighty adolescents, with their age range between 14 and 18 years, were administered the Cheek and Buss Shyness Scale, Core Self-Evaluation Scale, Multi-dimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support and Emotional and Social Loneliness Scale. Structural equation modeling showed that core self-evaluation and social support partially mediated the association between shyness and loneliness, and the mediating effect of social support was larger than that of core self-evaluation. In addition, a multiple-group analysis found that the paths for the mediation model did not differ between males and females, providing preparatory support to its robustness. The results are discussed in terms of the conceptional context.