The establishment of relationships with peers, in the context of institutionalization, is an important emotional support and facilitates the adaptation process in the transition to adulthood. The goal of this study was to analyze the importance of the relational quality with peers and their predictive effect on the coping strategies of adolescents. We also tested the effects of family configurations and genders on the association between the relationship quality with peers and coping strategies. The participants were 311 adolescents, 145 institutionalized and 166 from traditional families, 14 to 18 aged from both genders. Data was collected trough Rosenberg Self-esteem Scale ( Rosenberg, 1965), Inventory of Peer and Parental Attachment (Armsden & Greenberg, 1987) and COPE Inventory (Carver, Weintraub & Scheider, 1989). The results suggest that the quality of attachment to peers is relevant to predict coping strategies of adolescents, especially adaptive coping strategies (active coping activo and use of emotional social support).
Institutionalization; attachment; coping
