Adolescent depressed mood and difficulties with emotion regulation: Concurrent trajectories of change

Abstract

Introduction: Adolescent depression is a signiicant mental health concern. Emotion regulation dificulties have been associated with subsequent depressive symptoms, though different facets of emotion regulation are rarely compared. This study examined the degree to which trajectories of change in different facets of emotion regulation (goal-directed behavior, impulse control, and regulation strategies) and depressive symptoms were associated across twelve months in a clinical adolescent sample. Methods: Participants included 110 adolescents from the US who were enrolled in a randomized trial that tested a cognitive-behavioral treatment for youth with co-occurring mental health and substance use concerns (M age = 15.71 years; 57.3% male). Assessments were conducted at baseline, 3-, 6-, and 12-month follow-ups. Three separate bivariate latent basis growth curve analyses were conducted. Correlations between latent intercepts and latent slopes, as well as overall model it, were examined. Results: Impulse control and goal-directed behavior were each associated with depressive symptoms at baseline. Additionally, change in impulse control over time was signiicantly associated with change in depressive symptoms. However, the same was not true for goal-directed behavior. Overall it indices for models of emotion regulation strategies were below acceptable levels and thus could not be interpreted. Conclusions: Findings from the present study indicate that adolescents' depressive symptoms appear to improve as their perceived ability to control impulses improves. These results suggest that addressing impulse control dificulties may be an important step in treating adolescent depression and co-occurring disorders.

Effect of Group Impromptu Music Therapy on Emotional Regulation and Depressive Symptoms of College Students: A Randomized Controlled Study

“…These changes can reduce stress, enhance positive emotional experience, improve impulse control ability, and finally improve emotional regulation and depressive symptoms. These findings also explain the conclusions of Annamarie et al from a physiological level ( Defayette et al, 2021 ).…”

“…The improvement of emotional regulation and depression in the experimental group may be related to the improvement of impulse control ability. Annamarie et al found that enhancing impulse control ability was a key factor in the treatment of depression ( Defayette et al, 2021 ). Our findings also indicated that GIMT may be more suitable for the emotional expression characteristics of girls as the improvement of impulse control, total emotional regulation, and depression of girls were significantly higher than those of boys in the experimental group.…”

Co-development of internalizing symptoms and regulatory emotional self-efficacy in adolescence: Time-varying effects of COVID-19-related stress and social support

“…A prospective study of 390 adolescents, for example, showed that self-efficacy beliefs about negative emotion regulation were related to depression both concurrently and across time, up through age 20 (Caprara et al, 2010). Other research with adolescents ( M age = 15) enrolled in a randomized controlled trial found that as the perceived ability to control impulses improved, depressive symptoms decreased (Defayette et al, 2021). The ability to regulate negative emotions and self-efficacy beliefs tied to an individual’s skill in doing so are important parts of adolescent development.…”

The amplitude of low-frequency fluctuation characteristics in depressed adolescents with suicide attempts: a resting-state fMRI study

“…Emotion dysregulation refers to the inability to identify, understand, and manage one's own emotions in an adaptive way (10,11). Several studies have suggested that emotion dysregulation plays a significant role in developing and maintaining depression and suicide-related behaviors in adolescents (12)(13)(14), which confers prospective vulnerability to psychopathology in adulthood. However, existing studies have predominantly focused on examining emotion dysregulation as a broad risk factor for suicidal behavior, overlooking the potential neurobiological underpinnings of suicide, especially alterations in brain functioning as detected through imaging techniques (15, 16).…”