Skip to main content
ABCT 2024 58th Annual Convention Main banner
Psychology Tools Ad
Final Program


Icon Legend
This session is not in your schedule.
This session is in your schedule. Click again to remove it.
Presentation Icons
Recorded Session
Recorded Session
Ticketed Session
Ticketed Session
Back

Child / Adolescent - Externalizing

The moderating role of emotion regulation difficulties in the links between dimensions of family functioning and adolescent rule-breaking behavior

(PS6-30) The Moderating Role of emotion Regulation Difficulties in the Links Between Dimensions of Family Functioning and Adolescent Rule-breaking Behavior

Friday, November 15, 2024
4:00 PM – 5:00 PM EST
Location: Franklin Hall, Level 4, Marriott Downtown
Abstract Text: Evidence suggests that family functioning is a significant predictor of adolescent externalizing behaviors, particularly rule-breaking behavior (Cordova et al., 2011). However, the factors that might exacerbate or ameliorate this association remain largely unknown. Emotion regulation has been identified as an important contributor to both family functioning and adolescent rule-breaking behaviors (East et al., 2018; Shafiq et al., 2023). Moreover, previous research found that family functioning and emotion regulation difficulties interacted to predict maladaptive behaviors in adolescents (Kelada et al., 2018). Taken together, existing research highlights the potential moderating influence of emotion regulation difficulties on the association between family functioning and adolescent rule-breaking behavior. We investigated whether difficulties in emotion regulation moderated the associations between family functioning dimensions and adolescent rule-breaking behaviors. Participants included 138 adolescents aged 13-18 years old (M = 15.22, SD = 1.47, 69.6% female) recruited from an inpatient psychiatric hospital. Participants completed the Youth Self Report, Family Assessment Device, and the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale. Behavior control was the only dimension of family functioning uniquely associated with rule-breaking behavior (β= .25, p= .01). Hierarchical linear regression analysis revealed that emotion regulation difficulties moderated the links between three family functioning dimensions (i.e., affective responsiveness, behavior control, and roles) and rule-breaking behavior. Specifically, affective responsiveness and behavior control were positively associated with rule-breaking behavior at higher levels of emotion regulation difficulties (β= .30, p= .01 and β= .37, p= .001, respectively), but not significantly related to rule-breaking behavior at lower levels of emotion regulation difficulties (β= -.05, p= .76 and β= .00, p= 1.00, respectively). Similarly, the positive association between roles and rule-breaking behavior trended toward significance at higher levels of emotion regulation difficulties (β= .22, p= .10), but this association was not statistically significant at lower levels of emotion regulation difficulties (β= -.08, p= .57). Results highlight emotional regulation as a modifiable risk factor in the association between specific domains of family functioning and rule-breaking behavior, underscoring its role in intervention and prevention efforts.