Methodological implications of the affect revolution: A 35-year review of emotion regulation assessment in children

The correlation between brain structure characteristics and emotion regulation ability in children at high risk of autism spectrum disorder

As indicated by longitudinal observation, autism has difficulty controlling emotions to a certain extent in early childhood, and most children's emotional and behavioral problems are further aggravated with the growth of age. This study aimed at exploring the correlation between white matter and white matter fiber bundle connectivity characteristics and their emotional regulation ability in children with autism using machine learning methods, which can lay an empirical basis for early clinical intervention of autism. Fifty-five high risk of autism spectrum disorder (HR-ASD) children and 52 typical development (TD) children were selected to complete the skull 3D-T1 structure and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI). The emotional regulation ability of the two groups was compared using the still-face paradigm (SFP). The classification and regression models of white matter characteristics and white matter fiber bundle connections of emotion regulation ability in the HR-ASD group were built based on the machine learning method. The volume of the right amygdala (R2 = 0.245) and the volume of the right hippocampus (R2 = 0.197) affected constructive emotion regulation strategies. FA (R2 = 0.32) and MD (R2 = 0.34) had the predictive effect on self-stimulating behaviour. White matter fiber bundle connection predicted constructive regulation strategies (positive edging R2 = 0.333, negative edging R2 = 0.334) and mother-seeking behaviors (positive edging R2 = 0.667, negative edging R2 = 0.363). The emotional regulation ability of HR-ASD children is significantly correlated with the connections of multiple white matter fiber bundles, which is a potential neuro-biomarker of emotional regulation ability.

Emotion Regulation Flexibility in Adolescents: A Systematic Review from Conceptualization to Methodology

Considerable attention has been devoted to the concept of flexible emotion regulation, which de-emphasizes the importance of any specific regulatory strategy in favor of the flexible deployment of strategies in response to specific situational challenges. The bulk of research in this area has been conducted on adult samples. Research on emotion regulation flexibility (ERF) in youth has been documented in only a limited number of studies and using various definitions. This systematic review aims to gather and summarize different conceptualizations and methodological approaches of adolescent ERF. We incorporate these findings into a general framework to understand ERF and its role in adolescents' emotional, behavioral and social functioning. Adhering to the PRISMA guidelines, 11 studies were included in the review. While ERF has been defined in various and inconsistent ways, the included studies utilized conceptualizations from two overarching domains: the regulation of expressed emotion and the repertoire of emotion regulation strategies. Promising approaches and future directions will be highlighted.

Emotion regulation as a complex system: A multi-contextual and multi- level approach to understanding emotion expression and cortisol reactivity among Chinese and US preschoolers

Are children from "Eastern" cultures less emotionally expressive and reactive than children from "Western" cultures? To answer this, we used a multi-level and multi-contextual approach to understand variations in emotion displays and cortisol reactivity among preschoolers living in China and the United States. One hundred two preschoolers from China (N = 58; 55% males) and the United States (N = 44, 48% males) completed three (i.e., control, interpersonal-related, and achievement-related) emotion-challenging paradigms over 3 days. Behavioral emotion expressions were coded, and salivary cortisol was sampled 30 minutes before and across 90 minutes post-task. Without considering context, Chinese preschoolers displayed fewer levels of positive and negative emotion expressions relative to their United States counterparts. However, Chinese preschoolers displayed similar levels of expressions as their United States counterparts during an achievement-related challenge that is more salient to their sociocultural emphases and showed higher negative emotion expressions in this challenge, relative to other contexts. Moreover, only the achievement-related challenge elicited increased cortisol levels among Chinese preschoolers, and this was correlated with higher levels of negative expressions. For US preschoolers, no cortisol increase was observed in any challenging paradigms, nor was cortisol associated with emotional expressions. Findings counter prior notions that East Asian children are generally less emotionally expressive. Instead, an achievement-related challenge elicited higher emotion expression and cortisol reactivity among Chinese preschoolers, suggesting that children's emotion expression and biological reactivity may be most responsive to contexts salient to their socio-cultural environments. We discuss the importance of considering cultural contexts when studying emotion regulation. RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS: Chinese preschoolers displayed lower overall positive and negative expressions relative to their US counterparts without considering situational contexts. Chinese preschoolers displayed similar levels of emotion expressions as their US counterparts during an achievement-related challenge salient to their social-cultural environment. Chinese preschoolers are particularly responsive to achievement-related challenges, relative to other emotion-challenging situations that are less culturally salient. No cortisol increase was observed in any of the emotion-challenging paradigms among US preschoolers. Children's emotion expression and biological reactivity may be most responsive to challenges relevant to their socio-cultural environments.

Transgenerational transmission of psychopathology: when are adaptive emotion regulation strategies protective in children?

BACKGROUND

Children of parents with a mental illness (COPMI) have multiple psychological and developmental risks, including an increased lifetime risk of developing a mental illness themselves. Emotion regulation (ER) has been identified as a potential underlying mechanism of the transgenerational transmission of mental disorders. This study compares ER strategies in parents with and without a mental illness and their children. Further, it aims to examine the relationship between parents and children's psychopathology with a focus on the role of parental and child ER.

METHODS

Participants were 96 COPMI (77% female) and 99 children of parents without mental illness (COPWMI, 83% female) aged 4-16 years and their parents. Psychopathology and ER strategies of parents and children were assessed with a series of questionnaires.

RESULTS

Both COPMI and their parents showed significantly more psychopathology and more maladaptive and adaptive ER strategies in comparison with COPWMI and their parents. Parent and child adaptive ER strategies mediated the relationship between the psychopathology of parents and children only when child maladaptive ER strategies were low.

CONCLUSIONS

The findings further our understanding of the processes by which parental psychopathology affects child outcomes. Our findings highlight the importance of implementing preventive programs that specifically target the reduction of maladaptive ER in children to interrupt the transgenerational transmission of psychopathological symptoms.

Understanding emotion dysregulation from infancy to toddlerhood with a multilevel perspective: The buffering effect of maternal sensitivity

Challenges with childhood emotion regulation may have origins in infancy and forecast later social and cognitive developmental delays, academic difficulties, and psychopathology. This study tested whether markers of emotion dysregulation in infancy predict emotion dysregulation in toddlerhood, and whether those associations depended on maternal sensitivity. When children (N = 111) were 7 months, baseline respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA), RSA withdrawal, and distress were collected during the Still Face Paradigm (SFP). Mothers' reports of infant regulation and orientation and maternal sensitivity were also collected at that time. Mothers' reports of toddlers' dysregulation were collected at 18 months. A set of hierarchical regressions indicated that low baseline RSA and less change in RSA from baseline to stressor predicted greater dysregulation at 18 months, but only for infants who experienced low maternal sensitivity. Baseline RSA and RSA withdrawal were not significantly associated with later dysregulation for infants with highly sensitive mothers. Infants who exhibited low distress during the SFP and who had lower regulatory and orienting abilities at 7 months had higher dysregulation at 18 months regardless of maternal sensitivity. Altogether, these results suggest that risk for dysregulation in toddlerhood has biobehavioral origins in infancy but may be buffered by sensitive caregiving.

Empathy and psychopathology in children and adolescents: the role of parental mental illness and emotion regulation

Objective

Although empathy is known to be a strength, recent studies suggest that empathy can be a risk factor for psychopathology under certain conditions in children. This study examines parental mental illness as such a condition. Further, it aims to investigate whether maladaptive emotion regulation (ER) mediates the relationship between empathy and psychopathological symptoms of children.

Methods

Participants were 100 children of parents with a mental illness (55% female) and 87 children of parents without a mental illness (50% female) aged 6 - 16 years and their parents.

Results

Greater cognitive empathy was related to more psychopathological symptoms in COPMI, but not in COPWMI. In addition, in COPMI maladaptive ER mediated this relationship. In contrast, greater affective empathy was associated with more psychopathological symptoms regardless of whether parents had a mental illness.

Conclusion

Our findings highlight the importance of implementing preventive programs for COPMI that specifically target the reduction of maladaptive ER.

Evidence Base Update on the Assessment of Irritability, Anger, and Aggression in Youth

OBJECTIVE

Irritability, anger, and aggression have garnered significant attention from youth mental health researchers and clinicians; however, fundamental challenges of conceptualization and measurement persist. This article reviews the evidence base for assessing these transdiagnostic constructs in children and adolescents.

METHOD

We conducted a preregistered systematic review of the evidence behind instruments used to measure irritability, anger, aggression, and related problems in youth. Searches were conducted in PsycINFO and PubMed, identifying 4,664 unique articles. Eligibility criteria focused on self- and proxy-report measures with peer-reviewed psychometric evidence from studies in English with youths ages 3-18. Additional measures were found through ancillary search strategies (e.g. book chapters, review articles, test publishers). Measures were screened and coded by multiple raters with acceptable reliability.

RESULTS

Overall, 68 instruments met criteria for inclusion, with scales covering irritability (n = 15), anger (n = 19), aggression (n = 45), and/or general overt externalizing problems (n = 27). Regarding overall psychometric support, 6 measures (8.8%) were classified as Excellent, 46 (67.6%) were Good, and 16 (23.5%) were Adequate. Descriptive information (e.g. informants, scales, availability, translations) and psychometric properties (e.g. reliability, validity, norms) are summarized.

CONCLUSIONS

Numerous instruments for youth irritability, anger, and aggression exist with varying degrees of empirical support for specific applications. Although some measures were especially strong, none had uniformly excellent properties across all dimensions, signaling the need for further research in particular areas. Findings promote conceptual clarity while also producing a well-characterized toolkit for researchers and clinicians addressing transdiagnostic problems affecting youth.

Adolescents' Emotion Regulation Strategies Questionnaire-Extended: Further Development and Associations With Mental Health Problems in Adolescence

Emotion regulation (ER) is implicated in a range of psychopathologies and behavioral problems that are prevalent or have their initial onset in adolescence. In this study, we aim to evaluate the psychometric properties (factor structure, internal consistency, and construct validity) of the Adolescents' Emotion Regulation Strategies Questionnaire-Extended (AERSQ-E), a modified and extended version of an ER instrument developed by Zhou et al. Across six sub-studies using data from different Swedish adolescent community samples (1,104 students in total), we generated and validated a 23-item version containing six subscales: rumination/negative thinking, positive reorientation, creative expression, aggressive outlet, social support, and distraction. Assessing test-retest reliability, internal consistency, measurement invariance as well as convergent and discriminant validity, we could establish, with some limitations, the general reliability and validity of the AERSQ-E as a valid measure of ER strategies for use in adolescence.

Emotion Dysregulation Mediates the Relationship Between Sensory Processing and Behavior Problems in Young Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Preliminary Study

Emotion dysregulation is one of the challenges that children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and their families face. It is unclear whether emotion dysregulation plays a mediating role in the relationship between sensory processing patterns and problem behaviors among these children. This study examined the relations between emotion dysregulation, behavioral problems, and sensory processing patterns among fifty-seven young children with ASD. Behavioral problems and sensory processing patterns were moderately to strongly correlated with emotion dysregulation. The relationship between sensory processing patterns and behavioral problems was significant with emotion dysregulation as a mediator. These findings help identify the relationship between emotion dysregulation, sensory processing patterns, and behavioral problems to facilitate the planning of intervention strategies for young children with ASD.

Expressive suppression moderates the relationship between PTSD from COVID-19 and somatization and validation of the Arabic version of Patient Health Questionnaire-15 (PHQ-15)

BACKGROUND

Lebanese adults have been crippled for years by several crises, including the lately COVID-19 pandemic. These massive civilian traumas have increased the risk of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in this population. Extensive literature pointed to the association between PTSD and somatization; however, the nature of this relationship remains unknown. We sought to contribute further to work in this area by testing the moderating role of emotion regulation in the relationship between COVID-19- related PTSD and somatization. As a secondary objective, we aimed to examine the psychometric properties of an Arabic translation of the somatization measure Patient Health Questionnaire-15 (PHQ-15) in terms of factorial validity and internal consistency before its use in the present study.

METHODS

This cross-sectional study was conducted between September and October 2021. A total of 403 Lebanese adults residing in Lebanon were recruited. Eligible participants received an online link to the survey. The Patient Health Questionnaire-15 was used to assess somatization, PTSD Checklist-Civilian Version for PTSD and Emotion Regulation Questionnaire for emotion regulation.

RESULTS

The results of the exploratory factor analysis (EFA) revealed a three-factor solution explaining 48.79% of the common variance. Confirmatory Factor Analysis results of the three-factor model obtained in the EFA indicated a good fit with a significant CFI of 0.98, TLI 0.98 and a GFI of .97, a RMSEA of .04 [90% CI .01, .06]. Higher PTSD symptoms were associated with somatization. In addition, we found that one specific ER component, i.e. expressive suppression, significantly moderated the relationship between PTSD from the COVID pandemic and somatization. In particular, the interaction PTSD from the COVID-19 pandemic by expressive suppression was significantly associated with somatization; at low, medium and high levels of expressive suppression, higher PTSD from the COVID-19 pandemic was significantly associated with higher somatization scores. As for our secondary objective, findings revealed that the Arabic version of the PHQ-15 exhibited good psychometric properties. In particular, the scale yielded a three-factor structure, and good internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha = 0.87).

CONCLUSION

The moderating role of expressive suppression on the link between PTSD and somatization presents a novel finding in the field of trauma. Additionally, making a psychometrically sound Arabic version of the PHQ-15 available is a valuable addition to the literature.

Feasibility, Acceptability, and Usability of Physiology and Emotion Monitoring in Adults and Children Using the Novel Time2Feel Smartphone Application

The present study tests the feasibility, acceptability, and utility of the novel smartphone application-Time2Feel-to monitor family members' emotional experiences, at the experiential and physiological level, and their context. To our knowledge, Time2Feel is the first of its kind, having the capability to monitor multiple members' emotional experiences simultaneously and survey users' emotional experiences when experiencing an increase in physiological arousal. In this study, a total of 44 parents and children used Time2Feel along with the Empatica E4 wrist-wearable device for 10 days. Engagement rates were within the acceptable range and consistent with previous work using experience sampling methods. Perceived ease of use and satisfaction fell mostly in the moderate range, with users reporting challenges with connectivity. We further discuss how addressing connectivity would increase acceptability. Finally, Time2Feel was successful at identifying physiological deviations in electrodermal activity for parents and children alike, and even though responses to those deviation-generated surveys were largely consistent with random survey responses, some differences were noted for mothers and fathers. We discuss the implications of using Time2Feel for understanding families' emotional and stressful experiences day-to-day.

Systematic Review: Questionnaire-Based Measurement of Emotion Dysregulation in Children and Adolescents

OBJECTIVE

Emotion dysregulation, understood as a critical transdiagnostic factor in the etiology and maintenance of psychopathology, is among the most common reasons youth are referred for psychiatric care. The present systematic review examined 2 decades of questionnaires used to assess emotion (dys)regulation in youth.

METHOD

Using "emotion (dys)regulation," PsycINFO, PubMed, and Web of Science were searched for empirical, peer-reviewed journal studies published before May 2021 in clinical and/or nonclinical youth. A total of 510 studies met selection criteria and were included.

RESULTS

Across the literature, 115 distinct self-, parent-, or other informant-reported measures of emotion (dys)regulation were used in cross-sectional (67.1%), longitudinal (22.4%), intervention (9.0%), and mixed design (1.6%) studies. Out of 115 different questionnaires, a subset of 5 measures of emotion (dys)regulation were used in most of the literature (ie, 59.6% of studies). Moreover, reviewed studies examined emotion (dys)regulation in more than 20 distinct clinical groups, further supporting emotion dysregulation as a transdiagnostic construct.

CONCLUSION

Numerous themes emerged. Broadly, measures differed in their ability to capture internal vs external components of emotion dysregulation, the use of adaptive vs maladaptive responses, and subjective experiences more broadly vs particular affective states. These findings serve to guide researchers and clinicians in selecting appropriate measurement tools for assessing specific domains of child and adolescent emotion dysregulation.

Editorial: Adding Measures of Emotion Dysregulation to Our Toolkits

Emotion dysregulation is at the heart of our work with families. Learning to recognize and regulate emotions is among the most important developmental tasks. Culturally inappropriate displays of emotion are a major driver of clinical referrals for externalizing problems, but ineffective and maladaptive emotion regulation also contributes to internalizing problems; in fact, emotion dysregulation is central to most psychopathology. Given its ubiquity and importance, it is perhaps surprising that there have not been well-known and well-validated options for assessing it. That is changing. Freitag and Grassie et al.1 conducted a systematic review of emotion dysregulation questionnaires in children and adolescents. Searching 3 databases, they scanned more than 2,000 articles, retaining more than 500 in their review, capturing 115 different instruments. They found an 8-fold increase in published research comparing the first and second decades of this millennium, and a quadrupling of the number of measures available from 30 to 115.2 A recent narrative review by Althoff and Ametti3 of measures of irritability and dysregulation included several neighboring scales outside the scope of Freitag and Grassie et al.'s review.1.

Structural model of resilience based on parental support: the mediating role of hope and active coping

Resilience is an essential trait in the academic and non-academic lives of students that has been associated with positive psychological and non-psychological outcomes. Given the importance and role of resilience, the main goal of this study was to create a structural model of resilience based on parental support and emphasizing the mediating role of hope and coping. The research design was correlational in nature and used structural equation modeling (SEM). The population of this study included high school students in Tehran city in 2019-2020 school year, and the sample consisted of 560 students selected by cluster sampling method. By applying Spearman correlation analysis and structural equation modeling, a significant relationship between hope, coping, resilience, and parental support was found. Both the SEM measurement and structural models provided a good fit. The significant findings of the present study include the direct and significant effect of parental support on resilience. The indirect and significant effect of parental support on resilience through the mediating role of hope and coping was also confirmed. Overall, the results of this study show that the effect of parental support on resilience can be improved by promoting hope and coping styles.

Psychometric properties of an Arabic translation of the brief version of the difficulty in emotion regulation scale (DERS-16)

BACKGROUND

The current study aimed to examine the psychometric properties of an Arabic translation of the short form of the Difficulty in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS-16) in an Arabic-speaking population-based adult sample in Lebanon. In particular, the factorial structure, composite reliability, convergent validity and gender invariance were investigated.

METHODS

A total of 411 Lebanese adult participants (mean age of 32.86 ± 11.98 years, 75.4% females) took part of this cross-sectional web-based study. The forward and backward translation method was applied.

RESULTS

Findings revealed good internal consistency of the Arabic DERS-16 total scale and five subscales (McDonald's ω ranging from 0.81 to 0.95). Confirmatory factor analyses confirmed the five-factor solution of the scale and demonstrated strong measurement invariance across gender at the configural, metric, and scalar levels. No significant differences were found in all DERS-16 domains between men and women participants. Finally, the DERS-16 scores and sub-scores showed strong correlations with the Borderline Personality Questionnaire (r > .40), thus indicating its convergent validity.

CONCLUSION

Overall, the present findings suggest that the Arabic version of the DERS-16 may be a reliable and valid self-report measure that assesses ER difficulties as a multidimensional construct. Making the Arabic version of the DERS-16 available will hopefully strengthen its utilization for clinical and research purposes to benefit the millions of Arabic-speaking people worldwide.

Investigating the developmental timing of self-regulation in early childhood

Self-regulation often refers to the executive influence of cognitive resources to alter prepotent responses. The ability to engage cognitive resources as a form of executive process emerges and improves in the preschool-age years while the dominance of prepotent responses, such as emotional reactions, begins to decline from toddlerhood onward. However, little direct empirical evidence addresses the timing of an age-related increase in executive processes and a decrease in age-related prepotent responses over the course of early childhood. To address this gap, we examined children's individual trajectories of change in prepotent responses and executive processes over time. At four age points (24 months, 36 months, 48 months, and 5 years), we observed children (46% female) during a procedure in which mothers were busy with work and told their children they had to wait to open a gift. Prepotent responses included children's interest in and desire for the gift and their anger about the wait. Executive processes included children's use of focused distraction, which is the strategy considered optimal for self-regulation in a waiting task. We examined individual differences in the timing of age-related changes in the proportion of time spent expressing a prepotent response and engaging executive processes using a series of nonlinear (generalized logistic) growth models. As hypothesized, the average proportion of time children expressed prepotent responses decreased with age, and the average proportion of time engaged in executive processes increased with age. Individual differences in the developmental timing of changes in prepotent responses and executive process were correlated r = .35 such that the timing of decrease in proportion of time expressing prepotent responses was coupled with the timing of increase in proportion of time engaging executive processes.

Emotion regulation mediates the relationship between family caregivers' pain-related beliefs and patients' coping strategies

Background: In order to tailor more effective interventions and minimize the burden of chronic pain, it is critical to identify the interaction and contribution of social and psychological factors in pain. One of the important psychological factors in pain management is related to the choice of pain coping strategies in chronic pain patients. Social resources, including family caregivers' pain attitudes-beliefs, can influence pain coping strategies in chronic pain patients. Moreover, one key factor that may intervene in the relationship between caregivers' pain attitudes-beliefs and the patients' coping strategies is the emotion regulation strategies. Therefore, the present study aimed to investigate the mediating role of emotion regulation strategies of chronic pain patients and their family caregivers on the association between caregivers' pain attitudes-beliefs and pain coping strategies of chronic pain patients. Methods: We recruited 200 chronic musculoskeletal pain patients and their family caregivers. Chronic pain patients responded to measures of pain coping and emotion regulation strategies while family caregivers completed questionnaires related to their attitude toward pain and emotion regulation of themselves. Results: There is an association between caregivers' pain attitudes-beliefs and pain coping strategies in patients with chronic musculoskeletal. Moreover, the structural equation modeling revealed that the emotion regulation of both patients and family caregivers mediate the relationship between the caregivers' pain attitudes-beliefs and pain coping strategies of patients with chronic musculoskeletal. Conclusions: The social context of pain, including the effect of family caregivers' responses to the patient's pain, is a critical pain source that is suggested to affect coping strategies in patients. These findings suggest an association between pain attitudes-beliefs in family caregivers and pain coping strategies in patients. Moreover, these results showed that the emotion regulation of both patients and their family caregivers mediates this association.

Translating core intervention strategies into action: Interpersonal validation among self-injuring adolescents and their mothers

INTRODUCTION

Most evidence-supported treatments for psychiatric problems teach clients skills to incorporate into their daily lives. Yet little research rigorously examines the extent to which individuals absorb these strategies and can competently apply them outside of the therapeutic relationship.

OBJECTIVES

The current study examined the degree to which self-injuring adolescents and their mothers (n = 30 dyads) and typical control mother-daughter dyads (n = 30) were able to utilize a multicomponent interpersonal validation-oriented skill from dialectical behavior therapy, after a single teaching. We also aimed to assess whether variance in Gentle, Interested, Validate, and Easy (GIVE) skill practice was associated with a physiological index of emotion regulation (respiratory sinus arrhythmia [RSA]).

METHOD

An observational coding system was developed to measure skill-related behavior across four key domains (be[ing] gentle, act[ing] interested, validation, and us[ing] an easy manner; GIVE) and applied during two family conflict discussions (pre- and postskills training). Mother and adolescent RSA data were collected at rest and across discussion tasks.

RESULTS

Behavioral indicators of skill use improved pre-to-post skills training across the entire sample, except in one GIVE domain (easy manner). Self-injuring youth and their mothers demonstrated greater improvements than control dyads with respect to being gentle. RSA reactivity scores predicted behavioral validation, such that higher RSA was associated with higher validation scores.

CONCLUSIONS

As a field, we currently have a limited understanding of how intervention skills are used, and what factors predict effective skill application. Results suggest self-injuring adolescents and their mothers can learn and improve on most aspects of a core intervention strategy after a single teaching and that better physiological regulation during conflict is associated with more validating behaviors.

Longitudinal Associations between Parental Warmth, Harsh Discipline, Child Emotion Regulation, and ODD Dimensions

Research has yet to investigate the mediating role of emotion regulation in the relation between parental warmth and harsh discipline with oppositional defiant disorder (ODD). Further, few studies have investigated ODD as both a unitary construct and as three distinct dimensions (anger, defiance, spitefulness). Thus, the present study aimed to investigate child emotion regulation (grade 2) as a mediator of the relation between parental warmth and harsh discipline (kindergarten, grade 1, grade 2) and ODD and its dimensions (grade 3). Participants included the high-risk and normative samples from the Fast Track project (N = 753, male = 58 %, Black = 46 %). Constructs were assessed using observation and parent and teacher reports. Although results demonstrated an absence of indirect effects, emotion regulation was negatively associated with overall ODD and anger and defiance, but not spitefulness. Findings illustrate how increased attention toward the study of ODD as distinct dimensions contributes to our ability to parse out heterogeneity among children with the disorder.

Parental warmth predicts more child pro-social behaviour in children with better emotion regulation

Parental warmth and child emotion regulation have each been implicated in the development of child pro-social behaviours; however, their interactive benefits remain unclear. In this multi-method, multi-cohort longitudinal study, we examined the effect of parental warmth on child pro-social behaviours at different levels of child emotion regulation. We collected data from 6- and 10-year-olds in Canada (N_T1  = 233; M_age  = 8.41; SD = 2.08) and their parents. Parental warmth, child emotion regulation, and child pro-social behaviours were assessed via parent report. Children's baseline respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA; an indicator of cardiac regulatory capacity) was assessed as a correlate of emotion regulation. Child pro-social behaviours were assessed concurrently and 1 year later. Results showed that higher parental warmth was related to higher concurrent prosocial behaviours and greater increases in prosocial behaviours over 1 year. These effects were strengthened for children with higher emotion regulation whether measured by parent report or RSA. We discuss implications for understanding pro-social development in middle childhood from a strengths-based perspective.

Emotional Self-Regulation in Everyday Life: A Systematic Review

Emotional self-regulation in childhood and adolescence constitutes a growing interest in the scientific community, highlighting in recent years the need to observe its development in their daily life. Therefore, the objective of this systematic review is to characterize publications referring to the development of emotional self-regulation of people under 18 years-old, in natural contexts. Based on the PRISMA guidelines, searches are carried out in the Web of Science, Scopus and PsycINFO databases, and in Google Scholar until May 2020. After reviewing the full text of 376 publications, 14 works are selected that are observed in their extrinsic, substantive and methodological characteristics based on the GREOM and MQCOM guidelines, by two independent evaluators. Most of the studies correspond to the last 20 years, increasing the interest in observing older children, in interaction with adults and/or in different cultures. They apply mixed methodologies, not always ascribing to a low intensity design. Strengths are observed regarding the collection and analysis of the quality of the data; and weaknesses related to the failure to record the duration and sequence of behaviors, highlighting the use of guidelines as guides for future research.

Identifying self-report measures of emotion regulation and evaluating their psychometric properties: a protocol for a systematic review

INTRODUCTION

Successful emotion regulation (ER) is critical for psychological health. Disturbances in this ability are associated with several psychiatric disorders. There are several self-report questionnaires to assess ER. However, there are no studies synthesising the evidence on their psychometric properties. We aim to identify all available instruments addressing ER in adolescents or adults and to critically appraise, compare and summarise the quality of their psychometric properties. For this, we will use COnsensus-based Standards for the selection of health Measurement INstruments (COSMIN) criteria.

METHOD AND ANALYSIS

The search process to identify eligible studies will be conducted in April 2021 including the ProQuest, PubMed, Scopus and Web of Science databases with no restriction in terms of publication date. Eligibility criteria include peer-reviewed research articles written in English or Spanish by means of patient-reported outcome measures focused on ER among participants of 13 years or older. We will assess the quality of measures according to the COSMIN Risk of Bias Checklist. The psychometric properties will be assessed by the COSMIN updated criteria for good measurement. The available evidence will be addressed by the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development and Evaluations approach. Our findings will be synthesised independently for each measure, including information on their sample, theoretical model and psychometric properties when possible.

ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION

Ethical approval is not required, as this study does not involve any participants or collection of primary data. Results are expected to be published in a peer-reviewed journal in the field of youth mental health and presented at relevant meetings and conferences.

PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER

CRD42021249498.

Measuring Emotion Dysregulation in Children With Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder: Revisiting the Factor Structure of the Emotion Regulation Checklist

Emotion dysregulation (ED) is prevalent among youth with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and significantly impacts functioning. Nuanced measurement of ED is central to understanding its role in this disorder and informing treatment approaches. The present study examined the factor structure of the Emotion Regulation Checklist (ERC) among children with ADHD with and without Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD). Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) conducted in a sample of 328 youth (mean age = 6.08) with ADHD indicated a four-factor solution, comprised of the following factors: Negative Emotion Lability, Positive Emotion Lability, Socially Appropriate Affect, and Socially Incongruent Affect. The Negative and Positive Emotion Lability subscales assess the reactivity of negatively and positively valenced emotions, respectively. The Socially Appropriate and Socially Incongruent Affect subscales provide an assessment of social-emotional functioning. All subscales discriminated between children with ADHD only and ADHD with co-morbid ODD, such that children with ODD had greater emotional lability and social-emotional difficulties. This revised factor structure of the ERC facilitates a uniquely brief, yet multifaceted and specific, assessment of emotional difficulties in children with ADHD that can inform treatment planning and operationalize emotional reactivity and social-emotional functioning in future research efforts.

Emotion Regulation by Psychological Distance and Level of Abstraction: Two Meta-Analyses

Self-reflection is suggested to attenuate feelings, yet researchers disagree on whether adopting a distant or near perspective, or processing the experience abstractly or concretely, is more effective. Given the relationship between psychological distance and level of abstraction, we suggest the "construal-matching hypothesis": Psychological distance and abstraction differently influence emotion intensity, depending on whether the emotion's appraisal involves low-level or high-level construal. Two meta-analyses tested the effects of psychological distance (k = 230) and level-of-abstraction (k = 98) manipulations on emotional experience. A distant perspective attenuated emotional experience (g = 0.52) but with weaker effects for high-level (g = 0.29; for example, self-conscious emotions) than low-level emotions (g= 0.64; for example, basic emotions). Level of abstraction only attenuated the experience of low-level emotions (g = 0.2) and showed a reverse (nonsignificant) effect for high-level emotions (g = -0.13). These results highlight differences between distancing and level-of-abstraction manipulations and the importance of considering the type of emotion experienced in emotion regulation.

Using Virtual Reality to Examine the Association Between Respiratory Sinus Arrhythmia and Adolescent Substance Use

Early substance use is associated with long-term negative health outcomes. Emotion regulation (ER) plays an important role in reducing risk, but detecting those vulnerable because of ER deficits is challenging. Respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA), a biomarker of ER, may be useful for early identification of substance use risk. To examine this, we enrolled 23 adolescents (M_age = 14.0; 56% minority) with and without a history of substance use and collected RSA during a neutral baseline, virtual reality challenge scene, and neutral recovery. ANOVAs indicated that adolescents who reported having used a substance were not different from non-using peers on baseline or challenge RSA but demonstrated lower RSA during recovery. This suggests that adolescents with a history of substance use exhibit slower return to baseline RSA after experiencing a challenging situation compared to non-using peers. RSA, an index of ER, may be useful in identifying adolescents at risk for early substance use.

An In Situ, Child-Led Intervention to Promote Emotion Regulation Competence in Middle Childhood: Protocol for an Exploratory Randomized Controlled Trial

BACKGROUND

Emotion regulation is a key transdiagnostic risk factor for a range of psychopathologies, making it a prime target for both prevention and treatment interventions in childhood. Existing interventions predominantly rely on workshops or in-person therapy-based approaches, limiting the ability to promote emotion regulation competence for children in everyday settings and at scale. Purrble is a newly developed, inexpensive, socially assistive robot-in the form of an interactive plush toy-that uses haptic feedback to support in-the-moment emotion regulation. It is accessible to children as needed in their daily lives, without the need for a priori training. Although qualitative data from previous studies show high engagement in situ and anecdotal evidence of the robot being incorporated into children's emotion regulation routines, there is no quantitative evidence of the intervention's impact on child outcomes.

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study is to examine the efficacy of a new intervention model for child-led emotion regulation-Purrble-that can be deployed across prevention and treatment contexts.

METHODS

Overall, 134 children aged 8 to 10 years will be selected from an enriched nonclinical North American population; for inclusion, the cutoff for the parents' rating of child dysregulation will be ≥10 points in the total difficulties score on the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire. This cutoff was selected to obtain a measurable, but not necessarily clinical, level of the child's emotion regulatory difficulties. The selected families will be randomly assigned with .5 probability to receive either a Purrble or an active control (noninteractive plush toy). The primary outcome will be a daily ecological momentary assessment measure of child emotion regulation capability (as reported by parents) over a period of 4 weeks. Exploratory analyses will investigate the intervention impact on secondary outcomes of child emotion regulation, collected weekly over the same 4-week period, with follow-ups at 1 month and 6 months postdeployment. Quantitative data will be analyzed on an intent-to-treat basis. A proportion of families (approximately 30% of the sample) will be interviewed after deployment as part of the process analysis.

RESULTS

The study is funded by the UKRI Future Leaders Fellowship (MR/T041897/1) and an in-kind contribution from the Committee for Children. This study received ethical approval from the Pearl institutional review board (#18-CFC-101). Participant recruitment started in February 2021, with the 1-month deployment in April-May 2021. The results of this analysis will be published in 2022.

CONCLUSIONS

This study will be the first quantitative evaluation of the efficacy of an innovative, proof-of-concept intervention model for an in situ, child-led emotion regulation intervention. Insights into the trajectory of daily changes, complemented with weekly questionnaire batteries and postdeployment interviews, will result in an in-depth understanding of whether and how the hypothesized intervention logic model works, leading to further intervention optimization.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04810455; http://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04810455.

INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT IDENTIFIER (IRRID)

PRR1-10.2196/28914.

Longitudinal changes in young children's strategy use for emotion regulation

The development of strategies that support autonomous self-regulation of emotion is key for early childhood emotion regulation. Children are thought to transition from predominant reliance on more automatic or interpersonal strategies to reliance on more effortful, autonomous strategies as they develop cognitive skills that can be recruited for self-regulation. However, there are few longitudinal studies documenting age-related changes in different forms and dimensions of strategies. The current study tested predicted age-related changes in strategy use in a task requiring children to wait for something they want. Specifically, we examined the longitudinal trajectories of 3 strategies commonly observed in delayed reward tasks: self-soothing, seeking attention about the demands of waiting (bids), and distracting oneself. We followed a sample of 120 children (54% male, 93.3% white, from semirural and rural economically strained households) from ages 24 months to 5 years who participated in a waiting task each year. Using growth curve modeling, we found declines in self-soothing, rises and then declines in bidding, and increases in distraction from 24 months to 5 years. Next, we investigated whether strategy use trajectories predicted adult ratings of children's emotion regulation during the task, that is, whether children appeared calm and acted appropriately while waiting. Growth in duration and dominance of distraction use predicted judgments that children were well-regulated by age 5 years, whereas growth in dominance of bidding use negatively predicted being rated as well-regulated. We discuss implications for the understanding of strategy development and future directions, including understanding strategy effectiveness. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

Evidence Base Update for Questionnaires of Emotion Regulation and Reactivity for Children and Adolescents

Objective: Emotion regulation (ER) is a multi-faceted and dynamic process relevant to both normative emotional development and transdiagnostic emotional dysfunction for a range of psychological disorders. There has been tremendous growth in ER research over the past decade, including the development of numerous new measures to assess ER. This Evidence Base Update included a systematic review to identify self- and informant-report questionnaire measures of ER for children and adolescents, including measures of ER strategies and effectiveness (or emotion dysregulation).Methods: PubMed, PsycInfo, and Health and Psychosocial Instruments databases were searched using the terms emotion OR affect AND regulation OR control OR reactivity OR response, as well as terms related to questionnaires and psychometrics, restricted to articles on youth (< 18 years old). Each measure's psychometrics was evaluated based on modified criteria by De Los Reyes and Langer (2018).Results: Nine-hundred ninety-seven papers were identified yielding 87 measures that met inclusion for review. Although the majority (60%) of identified ER measures could not be recommended based on these criteria, 8% were Excellent, 14% were Good, and 17% were Adequate. The recommended measures included: 11 general ER measures (5 focused on strategies, 5 focused on dysregulation/ effectiveness), 13 measures of ER as it relates to specific emotions or contexts such as irritability or peer stress (4 focused on strategies, 9 focused on dysregulation/effectiveness), and 11 measures of other constructs that include an ER subscale (all focused on dysregulation). Conclusions: The characteristics, strengths, and weaknesses of the recommended ER measures are described in order to guide measure selection for clinical or research uses. A synthesis of themes identified during this review includes commonly observed areas of weakness and gaps in the literature to provide a foundation for future research and measure development.

Sadness regulation strategies and measurement: A scoping review

BACKGROUNDS

Accurate measurement and suitable strategies facilitate people regulate their sadness in an effective manner. Regulating or mitigating negative emotions, particularly sadness, is crucial mainly because constant negative emotions may lead to psychological disorders, such as depression and anxiety. This paper presents an overview of sadness regulation strategies and related measurement.

METHOD

Upon adhering to five-step scoping review, this study combed through articles that looked into sadness regulation retrieved from eight databases.

RESULTS

As a result of reviewing 40 selected articles, 110 strategies were identified to regulate emotions, particularly sadness. Some of the most commonly reported strategies include expressive suppression, cognitive reappraisal, distraction, seeking social or emotional support, and rumination. The four types of measures emerged from the review are self-reported, informant report (parents or peers), open-ended questions, and emotion regulation instructions. Notably, most studies had tested psychometric properties using Cronbach's alpha alone, while only a handful had assessed validity (construct and factorial validity) and reliability (Cronbach's alpha or test-retest) based on responses captured from questionnaire survey.

CONCLUSION

Several sadness regulation strategies appeared to vary based on gender, age, and use of strategy. Despite the general measurement of emotion regulation, only one measure was developed to measure sadness regulation exclusively for children. Future studies may develop a comprehensive battery of measures to assess sadness regulation using multi-component method.

Measures of emotion regulation: Convergence and psychometric properties of the difficulties in emotion regulation scale and emotion regulation questionnaire

OBJECTIVE

Investigating unique and shared aspects of measures of emotion regulation (ER) advances our understanding of ER as a multidimensional construct. This study aimed to investigate psychometric properties of three ER-measures: Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS-36), the abbreviated version DERS-16, and Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (ERQ).

METHODS

In a community sample (N = 843; 56% females) we investigated their internal consistency, factor structure, convergence, and association with symptoms of depression, anxiety, stress and substance abuse.

RESULTS

The proposed factor structures of the DERS-16 and the ERQ demonstrated an adequate fit. There were moderate correlations between the two DERS versions (36 and 16) and ERQ subscales Reappraisal and Suppression. Total scores of DERS-36 and DERS-16 demonstrated preferential associations with depression and anxiety. Corresponding associations between ERQ subscales and psychiatric symptoms were weak.

CONCLUSION

The results indicate that DERS-16 could be useful as an alternative, easily administered measure of ER difficulties.

Effectiveness of current psychological interventions to improve emotion regulation in youth: a meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

Research investigating the role of emotion regulation (ER) in the development and treatment of psychopathology has increased in recent years. Evidence suggests that an increased focus on ER in treatment can improve existing interventions. Most ER research has neglected young people, therefore the present meta-analysis summarizes the evidence for existing psychosocial intervention and their effectiveness to improve ER in youth. A systematic review and meta-analysis was conducted according to the PRISMA guidelines. Twenty-one randomized-control-trials (RCTs) assessed changes in ER following a psychological intervention in youth exhibiting various psychopathological symptoms. We found moderate effect sizes for current interventions to decrease emotion dysregulation in youth (g = - 0.46) and small effect sizes to improve emotion regulation (g = 0.36). Significant differences between studies including intervention components, ER measures and populations studied resulted in large heterogeneity. This is the first meta-analysis that summarizes the effectiveness for existing interventions to improve ER in youth. The results suggest that interventions can enhance ER in youth, and that these improvements correlate with improvements in psychopathology. More RCTs including larger sample sizes, different age groups and psychopathologies are needed to increase our understanding of what works for who and when.

The impact of a mother-infant intervention on parenting and infant response to challenge: A pilot randomized controlled trial with adolescent mothers in El Salvador

A pilot randomized controlled trial (RCT) was conducted in El Salvador of an intervention ('Thula Sana') previously shown to enhance maternal sensitivity and infant security of attachment in a South African sample. In El Salvador, trained community workers delivered the intervention from late pregnancy to 6 months postpartum as part of a home-visiting programme. The sample comprised 64 pregnant adolescent women, aged 14-19 years, living in predominantly rural settings. They were randomised to receive either the intervention or normal care. Demographic information was collected at baseline and, immediately post-intervention, blind assessments were made of parental sensitivity and infant emotion regulation. The intervention was found to have a substantial positive impact on maternal sensitivity. Further, compared to control group, infants in the intervention group showed more regulated behaviour: in a social challenge task they showed more attempts to restore communication, and in a non-social challenge task they showed more social and goal-directed behaviour. This replication and extension of the South African findings in a small El Salvador sample shows promise and justifies the conduct of a large-scale RCT in a Central or South American context.

The Late Positive Potential as a Reliable Neural Marker of Cognitive Reappraisal in Children and Youth: A Brief Review of the Research Literature

The mental health of young people is a growing public health concern. With socio-emotional difficulties in youth often resulting in psychiatric disorders later in life and most with mental health conditions rather stabilizing in time, it is essential to support healthy socio-emotional development. With a comprehensive definition of mental health, since emotion regulation (ER) plays a critical role in prevention, it becomes imperative to better understand how children effectively manage their emotions from an early age. Determining effective use of ER skills relies on adequate measurements. Typical methods of data collection in children present consistent shortcomings. This review addresses research findings considering the suitability of the late positive potential measured through electroencephalogram as a neural indicator of ER in children and youth. There is growing evidence, as reported in this review, that indicates that the late positive potential may be a reliable neural indicator of children's cognitive reappraisal abilities more specifically. Results generally suggest that the late positive potential amplitudes are sensitive to directed reappraisal in children. However, given the scant research, questions remain regarding developmental trends, methodology, interindividual variability, reappraisal of various stimuli, and how the late positive potential may relate to more traditional measures of ER. Directions for future research are provided, which are expected to address unanswered research questions and fill literature gaps. Taken together, the findings reviewed indicate that the late positive potential is generally sensitive to directed cognitive reappraisal in children and that there is promise of establishing this neural marker as an indicator of ER.

Associations between physiological and self-reported indices of emotion dysregulation across varying levels of alcohol use among individuals with and without borderline personality disorder

Emotional functioning can be assessed across multiple levels of analysis (e.g., subjective, physiological). The degree of concordance/discordance across such indices may mark psychopathology risk. The current study assessed associations between physiological and subjective indices of emotional responding among drinkers, with (n = 39) and without (n = 42) borderline personality disorder. Subjective changes in affect were assessed by calculating difference scores on the Positive and Negative Affective Schedule, administered before and following a lab-based stress task. Physiological dysregulation was indexed by respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) reactivity. We created Discordance Index scores to examine the direction and magnitude of misalignment. More frequent alcohol use was associated with greater discordance between RSA and positive affect changes (β = -0.07, p-value = 0.009). Findings were confirmed with a response surface modeling analysis. Results highlight that individuals with greater discordance between indices of emotional responding may be at elevated risk for frequent alcohol use.

Digital Phenotyping of Emotion Dysregulation Across Lifespan Transitions to Better Understand Psychopathology Risk

Ethical and consensual digital phenotyping through smartphone activity (i. e., passive behavior monitoring) permits measurement of temporal risk trajectories unlike ever before. This data collection modality may be particularly well-suited for capturing emotion dysregulation, a transdiagnostic risk factor for psychopathology, across lifespan transitions. Adolescence, emerging adulthood, and perinatal transitions are particularly sensitive developmental periods, often marked by increased distress. These participant groups are typically assessed with laboratory-based methods that can be costly and burdensome. Passive monitoring presents a relatively cost-effective and unobtrusive way to gather rich and objective information about emotion dysregulation and risk behaviors. We first discuss key theoretically-driven concepts pertaining to emotion dysregulation and passive monitoring. We then identify variables that can be measured passively and hold promise for better understanding emotion dysregulation. For example, two strong markers of emotion dysregulation are sleep disturbance and problematic use of Internet/social media (i.e., use that prompts negative emotions/outcomes). Variables related to mobility are also potentially useful markers, though these variables should be tailored to fit unique features of each developmental stage. Finally, we offer our perspective on candidate digital variables that may prove useful for each developmental transition. Smartphone-based passive monitoring is a rigorous method that can elucidate psychopathology risk across human development. Nonetheless, its use requires researchers to weigh unique ethical considerations, examine relevant theory, and consider developmentally-specific lifespan features that may affect implementation.

Emotional Dysregulation in Children and Adolescents With Psychiatric Disorders. A Narrative Review

Background: Emotional dysregulation (ED) is a transdiagnostic construct defined as the inability to regulate the intensity and quality of emotions (such as, fear, anger, sadness), in order to generate an appropriate emotional response, to handle excitability, mood instability, and emotional overreactivity, and to come down to an emotional baseline. Because ED has not been defined as a clinical entity, and because ED plays a major role in child and adolescent psychopathology, we decided to summarize current knowledge on this topic based on a narrative review of the current literature. Methods: This narrative review is based on a literature search of peer-reviewed journals. We searched the databases ERIC, PsycARTICLES, PsycINFO and PSYNDEX on June 2, 2020 for peer reviewed articles published between 2000 and 2020 in English language for the preschool, school, and adolescent age (2-17 years) using the following search terms: "emotional dysregulation" OR "affect dysregulation," retrieving 943 articles. Results: The results of the literature search are presented in the following sections: the relationship between ED and psychiatric disorders (ADHD, Mood Disorders, Psychological Trauma, Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, Non-suicidal Self-Injury, Eating Disorders, Oppositional Defiant Disorder, Conduct Disorder, Disruptive Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder, Personality Disorders, Substance Use Disorder, Developmental Disorders, Autism Spectrum Disorder, Psychosis and Schizophrenia, and Gaming Disorder), prevention, and treatment of ED. Conclusion: Basic conditions of ED are genetic disposition, the experience of trauma, especially sexual or physical abuse, emotional neglect in childhood or adolescence, and personal stress. ED is a complex construct and a comprehensive concept, aggravating a number of various mental disorders. Differential treatment is mandatory for individual and social functioning.

Integrating Biosignals Measurement in Virtual Reality Environments for Anxiety Detection

This paper proposes a protocol for the acquisition and processing of biophysical signals in virtual reality applications, particularly in phobia therapy experiments. This protocol aims to ensure that the measurement and processing phases are performed effectively, to obtain clean data that can be used to estimate the users' anxiety levels. The protocol has been designed after analyzing the experimental data of seven subjects who have been exposed to heights in a virtual reality environment. The subjects' level of anxiety has been estimated based on the real-time evaluation of a nonlinear function that has as parameters various features extracted from the biophysical signals. The highest classification accuracy was obtained using a combination of seven heart rate and electrodermal activity features in the time domain and frequency domain.

Effectiveness of Conventional Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy and Its Computerized Version on Reduction in Pain Intensity, Depression, Anger, and Anxiety in Children with Cancer: A Randomized, Controlled Trial

Background: Experiencing painful procedures during life is inevitable. Poor pain management is associated with negative effects on the quality of life, remaining for a long time after the experience. Long-term negative effects of pain possess a significant cost burden on society. Nowadays, computers are globally available, and computerized psychological interventions can reduce negative emotions. Objectives: The present study aimed at examining the effectiveness of conventional cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) and its computerized version on reduction in pain intensity, depression, anger, and anxiety in children with cancer. Methods: The present randomized, controlled, clinical trial was performed on three groups of conventional CBT, computerized CBT (cCBT), and control. Children with cancer, referring to Shafa Hospital of Ahvaz, Iran, constituted the study samples. A total of 15 children aged 9 - 12 years were assigned to each group by using the lottery method. All three groups received routine medical treatments during the study, but the two intervention groups also received psychological interventions as a complementary treatment. The control group received routine medical treatment and underwent cCBT intervention after the study. The data-i e, pre- and post-tests, were collected by a masters’ student in clinical psychology that was blind to the study objectives. Data were analyzed by MANCOVA, ANOVA, and t-tests of differential scores. Results: The findings of the study indicated that both interventions could reduce negative emotions associated with cancer (i. e, pain, anger, anxiety, and depression) in children compared with the control group (P < 0.0001). In addition, there were no significant differences between the two intervention groups (P < 0.01). It means both interventions were useful to reduce pain and enhance adjustment. Conclusions: The cCBT can be utilized in case of no access to psychologists and psychological services.

The significance of early parent-child attachment for emerging regulation: A longitudinal investigation of processes and mechanisms from toddler age to preadolescence

Eisenberg, Cumberland, and Spinrad (1998; Eisenberg, Spinrad, & Cumberland, 1998) included parent-child attachment as a key dimension of the early emotion socialization environment. We examined processes linking children's early attachment with social regulation and adjustment in preadolescence in 102 community mothers, fathers, and children. Security of attachment, assessed at 2 years, using observers' Attachment Q-Set (Waters, 1987), was posited as a significant, although indirect, predictor of children's adaptive social regulation at 10 and 12 years. We proposed that security initiated paths to future social regulation by promoting children's capacities for emotion regulation in response to frustration at 3, 4.5, and 5.5 years: having to suppress a desired behavior, observed in delay tasks, to regulate anger, observed in parent-child control contexts, and a traitlike tendency to regulate anger when frustrated, rated by parents. We conceptualized adaptive social regulation at 10 and 12 years as encompassing regulation of negative emotional tone, observed in diverse parent-child interactions, parent-rated regulation of negativity in broad social interactions, and child-reported internalization of adults' values and standards of conduct. Multiple-mediation analyses documented two paths parallel for mother- and father-child relationships: From security to emotion regulation in delay tasks to internalization of adults' values, and from security to parent-rated traitlike regulation of anger to parent-rated regulation of negativity in broad social interactions. Two additional paths were present for mothers and children only. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

Psychometric Properties of the Emotion Dysregulation Inventory in a Nationally Representative Sample of Youth

Objective: The Emotion Dysregulation Inventory (EDI) is an informant questionnaire developed based on the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS®) Scientific Standards and refined through factor analyses and item response theory (IRT) analyses. Although it was developed to improve measurement of emotion dysregulation in youth with autism spectrum disorder, emotion dysregulation has transdiagnostic significance. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the EDI's psychometric properties and to establish IRT-based scores for a general population of youth.Methods: Data were collected from a sample of 1000 caregivers of 6- to 17-year-old youth matched to the US census on age, gender, race/ethnicity, years of education, and region. Confirmatory factor analyses and IRT analyses using the two-parameter graded response model were performed to evaluate the EDI's structure and psychometric properties.Results: Analyses supported the original two-factor structure of the EDI, reflecting factors for Reactivity and Dysphoria. Simulations of computerized adaptive testing supported use of the same items for a Reactivity short form as those that emerged as most informative in the original autism psychometric analyses. IRT co-calibration with commonly used measures of emotion regulation and irritability in child clinical or community samples indicated the EDI scales provide more information across a wider range of emotion dysregulation. Validity was supported by moderate correlations with measures of related constructs and expected known-group differences.Conclusions: The EDI is an efficient and precise measure of emotion dysregulation for use in general community and clinical samples as well as samples of youth with ASD.

Early life stress, cortisol, frontolimbic connectivity, and depressive symptoms during puberty

Early life stress (ELS) is a risk factor for the development of depression in adolescence; the mediating neurobiological mechanisms, however, are unknown. In this study, we examined in early pubertal youth the associations among ELS, cortisol stress responsivity, and white matter microstructure of the uncinate fasciculus and the fornix, two key frontolimbic tracts; we also tested whether and how these variables predicted depressive symptoms in later puberty. A total of 208 participants (117 females; M age = 11.37 years; M Tanner stage = 2.03) provided data across two or more assessment modalities: ELS; salivary cortisol levels during a psychosocial stress task; diffusion magnetic resonance imaging; and depressive symptoms. In early puberty there were significant associations between higher ELS and decreased cortisol production, and between decreased cortisol production and increased fractional anisotropy in the uncinate fasciculus. Further, increased fractional anisotropy in the uncinate fasciculus predicted higher depressive symptoms in later puberty, above and beyond earlier symptoms. In post hoc analyses, we found that sex moderated several additional associations. We discuss these findings within a broader conceptual model linking ELS, emotion dysregulation, and depression across the transition through puberty, and contend that brain circuits implicated in the control of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis function should be a focus of continued research.

Emotional Arousal During Social Stress in Young Adults With Autism: Insights From Heart Rate, Heart Rate Variability and Self-Report

In order to better understand which factors play a role in non-adaptive social behavior in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) we looked into physiological arousal and awareness of one's own emotions. Heart rate (HR) and heart rate variability (HRV) were measured during a public speaking task in 51 young adults with ASD and 28 typically developing (TD) controls. The results showed no significant group differences in baseline HR/HRV, HR reactivity (change from baseline to the speaking task) or self-reported emotional awareness. However, adults with ASD showed significantly lower HRV reactivity (p = .023, d = 0.6) compared to TD adults. These results suggest a mismatch between arousal regulation and emotional awareness, which may be related to problems in social adaptation in ASD.