Elenda T. Hessel, David E. Szwedo, & Joseph P. Allen University of Virginia Copies of this and related research are available at:

 Replace parents as support  Contribute to self-concept and well-being  Buffer against adversity  Influence engagement in risk behaviors  Dating relationships emerge  Problematic peer relationships…

 To promote positive and prevent negative consequences, we must know what contributes to these relationships ◦ Parental/familial variables ◦ Psychopathology ◦ Expectations ◦ Previous peer relationships (cumulative continuity) ◦ Emotion regulation

 What is emotion regulation?  The process by which we act upon our emotions in order to influence our emotional experience.  What? When? How?

 Development of social competence ◦ Preschoolers ◦ Early Childhood  Deficits in emotion regulation  Maladaptive emotion regulation and social relationships ◦ Peer-Victimization ◦ Social Support  Effective emotion regulation may facilitate successful social functioning.

 Experimentation with different forms of emotion regulation strategies ◦ Traditional strategies ◦ Substance Use  Confidence in ability to regulate negative moods associated with conflict management  Conflict and aggression in relationships

 Problematic peer relationships leads to difficulties in adolescence  Emotion regulation plays an important role in facilitating successful peer relationships at other developmental period  Some research suggests it might play a role in adolescence….

 Goal: Examine the association between adolescents’ emotion regulation and the quality of their subsequent friendships and romantic relationships.

 Hypothesis 1: Emotion regulation at age 15 will predict change in teen’s relationships with best friends over time.  Hypothesis 2: Emotion regulation at age 15 will predict change in teen’s relationships with their peer group over time.  Hypothesis 3: Emotion regulation at age 15 will predict quality of teen’s relationships with romantic partners at age 17.

 Target Teens ◦ 171 adolescents ◦ 82 male, 89 female ◦ Age - T1 =15, T2 - Friends=16-17, Romantic Partners = M=18 ◦ 62% European-American, 27% African-American, 11% mixed/other race ◦ Median family income $20,000-$29,000  Peers and Romantic Partners ◦ best friends (N =124) ◦ Peripheral friend (N =87) ◦ Romantic partners (N =85)

 Emotion Regulation ◦ Trait Meta Mood Scale (TMMS; Salovey et al., 1995) ◦ Repair/Regulate Subscale  Measures adolescents propensity for repairing/regulating a negative mood.  Alpha = 0.82  “No matter how badly I feel, I try to think about pleasant things”

 Supportive Behavior Task – Overall Positivity ◦ Teen asks best friend for advice ◦ Overall Positivity of teen towards best friend  Valuing of Friend  Engagement  Demonstrated Satisfaction

Age 15 Age Gender & Income Baseline Positivity Positivity Emotion Regulation β =.28*** β =.26** Total R 2 =.20*** * p ≤.05, ** p <.01, *** p <.001

 Friendship Quality with Peripheral Friend ◦ Friendship Quality Questionnaire (Parker & Asher, 1993)  Total Friendship Quality  Measures companionship, conflict resolution, help and guidance, intimate exchange, & validation and caring  Alpha = 0.96  Conflict & Betrayal  Alpha = 0.89 ◦ Inventory of Peer and Parent Attachment (Armsden & Greenburg, 1989)  Total Attachment with Peer  Trust, communication, alienation*  Alpha = 0.94

Age 15 Gender & Income Baseline Quality Quality Emotion Regulation β =.18 † β =.20* Total R 2 =.11** * p ≤.05, ** p <.01, *** p <.001 Age 16-17

Age 15 Gender & Income Baseline Attachment Attachment Emotion Regulation β =.16 β =.25* Total R 2 =.18** * p ≤.05, ** p <.01, *** p <.001 Age 16-17

Age 15 Gender & Income Baseline Conflict & Betrayal Conflict and Betrayal Emotion Regulation β =.09 β =.24* Total R 2 =.09, NS * p ≤.05, ** p <.01, *** p <.001 Age 16-17

 Relationship Quality with Romantic Partner ◦ Romantic Experiences Questionnaire (Levesque, 1993)  Dyadic communication, Alpha = 0.89  Dyadic appreciation, Alpha = 0.89 ◦ Network of Relationships Inventory (Furman, 1996)  Criticism towards partner  Alpha = 0.79 ◦ Conflict in Relationships Questionnaire (Wolfe, Reitzel-Jaffe, Gough, & Wekerle, 1994)  Abusive and Blaming Behaviors  Alpha =.90

Age 15 Age 18 Gender & Income Communication β =.34 ** Total R 2 =.17** Emotion Regulation * p ≤.05, ** p <.01, *** p <.001

Age 15 Age 18 Gender & Income Appreciation β =.41 **** Total R 2 =.23*** Emotion Regulation * p ≤.05, ** p <.01, *** p <.001, ****p <.0001

Age 15 Age 18 Gender & Income Criticism β = -.28 ** Total R 2 =.13* † p =.05, * p ≤.05, ** p <.01, *** p ≤.001 Emotion Regulation

Age 15 Age 18 Gender & Income Abusive & Blaming Behavior β = -.26 * Total R 2 =.12* † p =.05, * p ≤.05, ** p <.01, *** p ≤.001 Emotion Regulation

 Emotion Regulation at age 15 predicts changes in friendship quality over time  Emotion Regulation at 15 predicts quality of later romantic relationships

 Emotion Regulation as crucial for development of quality friendships in adolescence  Deficits in emotion regulation may underlie problematic adolescent social relationships  Consequences for romantic relationships  Emotion Regulation as potential key point for intervention  Peer group as reporter of deficits

 Causality can not be inferred.  Longer term predictions?  Relationships with psychopathology?  Reciprocal influences?  Emotion Regulation as a mediator for attachment?

 Thank you to my co-authors, Joe Allen, Ph. D, and Dave Szwedo  Thanks to all of my lab collaborators: Joanna Chango Emily Loeb Megan Schad Ann Spilker Chris Hafen Caroline White Barbara Oudekerk  I would also like to thank the National Institute of Child Health & Human Development for funding awarded to Joseph P. Allen, PI, (Grant # 9 R01 HD A11) to conduct and write up this project. Copies of this and related research are available at: 