Peer-reviewed article
The prospective associations between parent and adolescent emotional reactivity and adolescent psychopathology
Shou‐Chun Chiang, Shi‐Jane Ting, Wan Chen Chen ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-sonnet-5-5This study followed 237 Taiwanese parent–adolescent pairs. Over 10 days they reported on daily conflict and their emotions, and adolescents reported depressive symptoms, anxiety symptoms and externalizing problems at baseline and six months later. Stronger emotional reactions to daily conflict, by adolescents and by parents, were linked to more adolescent mental health problems at follow-up. Parent negative reactivity was linked to more depressive symptoms and externalizing problems in adolescents. Parent reactivity was linked to anxiety only among younger adolescents.
Key points
- Greater adolescent negative emotional reactivity predicted higher depressive symptoms (β = .17) and anxiety symptoms (β = .21).
- Adolescent positive emotional reactivity predicted higher depressive symptoms (β = .13), anxiety symptoms (β = .19) and externalizing problems (β = .17).
- Parent negative emotional reactivity predicted higher adolescent depressive symptoms (β = .29) and externalizing problems (β = .15).
- Age moderated the links between parent reactivity and anxiety: higher parent negative and positive reactivity were associated with greater anxiety only among younger adolescents.
- The authors describe parent reactivity as a distinct risk process, especially consequential for anxiety in early adolescence.
Limitations
The abstract describes an observational study of a community sample in Taiwan with a six-month follow-up, so it cannot show that reactivity causes psychopathology or that the results apply to other settings. Adolescent psychopathology is based on adolescent self-report, and no intervention is tested.
Abstract
Abstract This study examined how adolescent and parent emotional reactivity to daily parent–adolescent conflict is associated with adolescent psychopathology over time. A community sample of 237 Taiwanese parent–adolescent dyads (adolescents: M age = 14.80, SD age = 2.08; 58% female; parents: M age = 42.36, SD age = 8.57; 68% female) completed 10 days of daily reports on parent–adolescent conflict and emotions, and adolescents reported depressive symptoms, anxiety symptoms, and externalizing problems at baseline and six-month follow-up. The results showed that greater adolescent negative emotional (NE) reactivity predicted higher depressive ( β = .17) and anxiety symptoms ( β = .21), and adolescent positive emotional (PE) reactivity predicted higher depressive symptoms ( β = .13), anxiety symptoms ( β = .19), and externalizing problems ( β = .17). Parent NE reactivity predicted higher adolescent depressive symptoms ( β = .29) and externalizing problems ( β = .15). Age moderated the associations between parent reactivity and anxiety symptoms, such that higher parent NE and PE reactivity were associated with greater anxiety only among younger adolescents. Findings highlight that daily emotional reactivity to parent–adolescent conflict is associated with adolescent psychopathology and underscore that parent reactivity represents a distinct risk process, especially consequential for anxiety in early adolescence.