430 primary students from Grades 3 - 5 were investigated to examine the relationship of children' s loneliness with their social behavior, peer relationship, and self-perceived social competence. The results suggest that social behavior has impact on loneliness through the multiple mediating effects of peer relationship and self-perceived social competence, there is only an indirect relation between loneliness and social preference, and there are direct and indirect relations between loneliness and friendship quality; self-perceived social com...