Gender, emotion regulation and internalising problems: a cross-sectional study

Abstract

Recently there has been an increase in reported anxiety and depression symptoms in Dutch youth. One possible contributing factor could be emotion regulation (ER). ER involves strategies to control ones’ emotion. Both adaptive and maladaptive ER strategies exists and studies show that maladaptive ER strategies correlate with more anxiety and depressive symptoms. A cross-sectional approach was used to determine the correlation between ER and anxiety and depression, and to define the moderating effect of gender. In the current study, 105 Dutch adolescents aged 12-18 were included and answered an online survey which included the SCARED-71, CDI-2 and the ERSQ. Firstly, no correlation was found between ER and anxiety. However, gender was a predictor for anxiety, meaning that girls scored higher on the SCARED-71 than boys. Secondly, a significant negative correlation between ER and depression was established, however no moderating effect of gender was present. Further research is necessary to determine the complete mental processes which contribute to the development of anxiety and depressive symptoms.