Abstract: Developmental tasks have long been a key concept in the field of developmental psychology,which not only provide a better understanding of human development but also guide education policy development and direct school education.Based on a three-year longitudinal dataset from 3837 Chinese high school students,the current study used the personal-centered approach to identify the patterns of the attainment of developmental tasks and examine the links between these patterns and the trajectories of depressive and anxiety symptoms.Four meaningful patterns have emerged.Students in the high attainment group experienced a steadily low level of depression over time compared to those in the low and relatively low attainment groups.These findings revealed the evolution of adjustment process when certain developmental milestones are met.

Key words: developmental tasks, depression, latent profile analysis, high school students, five domains