A longitudinal examination of alcohol use and emotion dysregulation in adolescence.

Abstract

Underage drinking is a serious public health concern with magnified physical and psychological risks. Previous research suggests that emotion dysregulation is one factor linked to alcohol use. Limited research has examined emotion dysregulation and alcohol use in adolescent populations, thus the present study aimed to examine the links by assessing the role of emotion dysregulation and its subscales in adolescent alcohol use over time. Participants were 695 high school students, with 309 students having completed Time 2 data collection at a 6-month follow-up. Participants completed measures that assessed Alcohol Use, Emotion Dysregulation, and Emotion Dysregulation subscales. In a negative binomial hurdle model, adolescents with greater emotion regulation difficulties at baseline had significantly greater odds of endorsing any alcohol use at baseline. Greater emotion dysregulation did not significantly predict drinking status or drinking level 6 months later when controlling for baseline alcohol use. Adolescents who reported greater emotional clarity difficulties at baseline were more likely to report any alcohol use at baseline. Among adolescents who drink, reporting greater difficulties accessing emotion regulation strategies was associated with greater alcohol use at baseline and 6 months later. These findings indicate that emotion dysregulation is a cross-sectional marker of alcohol use in adolescents; however, results did not show emotion dysregulation to be a prospective predictor of greater alcohol use. Future research is needed to replicate findings in a more diverse sample of adolescents.

The development of emotion regulation in adolescence: What do we know and where to go next?

“…Indeed, many adolescents experience heightened emotional sensitivity along with an immaturity of their regulatory processes, often accompanied by risk‐taking behaviors (e.g., Casey, 2015). Emotion regulation is crucial for adolescents’ psychosocial adjustment given its consequences for social relationships, well‐being, psychopathology, and maladaptive behaviors (e.g., Eichengreen et al., 2022; King et al., 2022; McRae, Jacobs et al., 2012; Nelis et al., 2011; Nolen‐Hoeksema, 2012; Zyberaj, 2022).…”