Mothers' responses to children's negative emotions and child emotion regulation: The moderating role of vagal suppression

Abstract

The current study examined the moderating effect of children’s cardiac vagal suppression on the association between maternal socialization of negative emotions (supportive and non-supportive responses) and children’s emotion regulation behaviors. One hundred and ninety-seven 4-year-olds and their mothers participated. Mothers reported on their reactions to children’s negative emotions and children’s regulatory behaviors. Observed distraction, an adaptive self-regulatory strategy, and vagal suppression were assessed during a laboratory task designed to elicit frustration. Results indicated that children’s vagal suppression moderated the association between mothers’ non-supportive emotion socialization and children’s emotion regulation behaviors such that non-supportive reactions to negative emotions predicted lower observed distraction and lower reported emotion regulation behaviors when children displayed lower levels of vagal suppression. No interaction was found between supportive maternal emotion socialization and vagal suppression for children’s emotion regulation behaviors. Results suggest physiological regulation may serve as a buffer against non-supportive emotion socialization.

Emotion socialization and families of children with and without ADHD.

“…Specifically, parents' supportive contingent reactions are associated with greater observed spontaneous expression of a range of emotions (Fabes et al, 2002), less intense observed negative affect during emotionally arousing events (e.g., being separated from their mothers; Denham, 1993), and higher parent-ratings of emotion regulation skills in preschoolers (Perry et al, 2011). These findings suggest that parents' supportive contingent reactions are associated with TD preschoolers' more effective emotion regulation during distressing events and greater comfort exploring and expressing a broader range of positive and negative emotions.…”

“…Not surprisingly, research and theory indicate that parents' supportive reactions to their children's negative emotions are related to TD children's more adaptive emotional expressivity, understanding, and regulatory skills (e.g., Denham, Zoller, & Couchoud, 1994b;Fabes et al, 2002;Perry et al, 2011), whereas nonsupportive reactions are related to poorer EC abilities (e.g., Denham, Mitchell-Copeland, Stranberg, Auerbach, & Blair, 1997;Fabes et al, 2002;Perry et al, 2011). Specifically, parents' supportive contingent reactions are associated with greater observed spontaneous expression of a range of emotions (Fabes et al, 2002), less intense observed negative affect during emotionally arousing events (e.g., being separated from their mothers; Denham, 1993), and higher parent-ratings of emotion regulation skills in preschoolers (Perry et al, 2011).…”

“…The association between nonsupportive contingent reactions and children's' more intense negative emotional expressivity is likely driven by their poorer regulatory skills. Indeed, several studies have found a negative association between nonsupportive contingent reactions and parent-ratings of preschool (Perry et al, 2011) and late elementary-aged (Gentzler et al, 2005;Shaffer et al, 2012;Suveg, Shaffer, Morelen, & Thomassin, 2011) children's emotional coping and regulation. However, all of these studies have been primarily based on parent-report of contingent reactions and children's emotion regulation; thus, it is possible that this link is a reflection of parents' general negative perspective of the child's behavior.…”

“…Furthermore, a large body of research (e.g., Eisenberg et al, 1998a;Fabes et al, 2002;Perry et al, 2011) has established that ES influences the development of EC in…”

“…Given that parental ES accounts for some of the variance in TD children's EC (Eisenberg et al, 1998a;Fabes, Poulin, Eisenberg, & Madden-Derdich, 2002;Perry, Calkins, Nelson, Leerkes, & Marcovitch, 2011), it is reasonable to assume ES may likewise account for some of the variance in EC demonstrated by children with ADHD.…”