Masters Thesis

Difficulty regulating emotion predicts depression and anxiety in Chinese adolescents: mindfulness moderates

Adolescence is a time of vast transition, both in social settings and by the means of biological restructuring initiated by the onset of puberty. Thus, it may not be surprising that adolescence is often a time in which symptoms of depression and anxiety first arise, in part stemming from difficulty regulating emotion. Mindfulness is a promising protective factor against symptomatology for Chinese adolescents considering its cultural and religious relevance. However, research on mindfulness in Chinese youth in scarce. In this study, I examined the effect of emotion regulation difficulty on depression and anxiety symptomatology in Chinese adolescents (ages 10 to 17) and I explored the extent that dispositional mindfulness may serve as a potential buffer to this association. It was found that (I) difficulty regulating emotion was positively associated with depression and anxiety, (2) mindfulness was negatively associated with depression and anxiety, and (3) mindfulness buffered the effect of difficulty regulating emotion on psychological symptomatology. Specifically, for those with high levels of difficulty regulating emotions, the presence of high levels of mindfulness was associated with lower levels of depression and anxiety symptomatology as compared to those with low levels of mindfulness. The present study supports the notion that emotion regulation difficulty is detrimental to mental health, and suggests that mindfulness may play an important mitigating role in this association. The broader implication of mindfulness as a tool for adolescent mental health across the world is discussed. In the future, examination of the specific modes of emotion regulation difficulties, and whether they differentially predict rates of depression and anxiety, would be worthwhile.

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