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The role of caregiver emotion regulation in youth mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic: A longitudinal study

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  04 October 2024

Stephanie Gyuri Kim*
Affiliation:
Department of Human Development and Family Studies, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, USA
Alexandra M. Rodman
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, Northeastern University, Boston, MA, USA
Maya L. Rosen
Affiliation:
Program in Neuroscience, Smith College, Northampton, MA, USA
Steven W. Kasparek
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
Makeda Mayes
Affiliation:
Institute for Learning & Brain Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
Liliana J. Lengua
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
Andrew N. Meltzoff
Affiliation:
Institute for Learning & Brain Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA Department of Psychology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
Katie A. McLaughlin
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA Ballmer Institute, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR, USA
*
Corresponding author: Stephanie Gyuri Kim; Email: sgkim5@illinois.edu

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has presented youth and families with a broad spectrum of unique stressors. Given that adolescents are at increased risk for mental health and emotional difficulties, it is critical to explore family processes that confer resilience for youth in the face of stress. The current study investigated caregiver emotion regulation (ER) as a familial factor contributing to youth ER and risk for psychopathology following stressful life events. In a longitudinal sample of 224 youth (Mage = 12.65 years) and their caregivers, we examined whether caregiver and youth engagement in ER strategies early in the pandemic mediated the associations of pandemic-related stress with youth internalizing and externalizing symptoms six months later. Leveraging serial mediation analysis, we demonstrated that caregiver and youth rumination, but not expressive suppression or cognitive reappraisal, mediated the prospective associations of pandemic-related stress with youth internalizing and externalizing symptoms. Greater exposure to pandemic-related stressors was associated with greater caregiver rumination, which, in turn, related to greater rumination in youth, and higher levels of youth internalizing and externalizing symptoms thereafter. Family interventions that target caregiver ER, specifically rumination, may buffer against the consequences of stress on youth engagement in maladaptive ER strategies and risk for psychopathology.

Information

Type
Regular Article
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2024. Published by Cambridge University Press

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