Associations between subtypes of social withdrawal and emotional eating during emerging adulthood

Article history: Received 19 October 2015 Received in revised form 14 March 2016 Accepted 18 March 2016 Available online xxxx While the psychosocial difficulties associated with one specific type of social withdrawal, shyness, have been extensively studied, less is known about the correlates of other subtypes, such as preference-for-solitude. Of the existing studies on withdrawal subtypes, few focus on the emerging adulthood developmental period, and none have examined possible physical health-related correlates and associated mechanisms. This study considered whether two withdrawal subtypes (shyness, preference-for-solitude) are associated with emotional eating vis-à-vis internalizing problems during emerging adulthood. Participants included 643 emerging adults (283males;Mage=19.61)who completedmeasures ofwithdrawal subtypes, emotional eating, and internalizing problems (depression, loneliness, social anxiety). Path models revealed that the associations between both shyness and preference-for-solitude and emotional eating were explained, in part, by depression and social anxiety. Findings suggest that withdrawing from peers during emerging adulthood, due to fear or preferencesfor-solitude, may have significant consequences for both physical health outcomes vis-à-vis psychological difficulties. © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.