Emotional dysregulation in childhood and disordered eating and self-harm in adolescence : prospective associations and mediating pathways

© 2022 The Authors. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Association for Child and Adolescent Mental Health..

BACKGROUND: Emotional dysregulation may be a risk factor for disordered eating and self-harm in young people, but few prospective studies have assessed these associations long-term, or considered potential mediators. We examined prospective relationships between childhood emotional dysregulation and disordered eating and self-harm in adolescence; and social cognition, emotional recognition, and being bullied as mediators.

METHODS: We analysed Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children data on 3,453 males and 3,481 females. We examined associations between emotional dysregulation at 7 years and any disordered eating and any self-harm at 16 years with probit regression models. We also assessed whether social cognition (7 years), emotional recognition (8 years) and bullying victimisation (11 years) mediated these relationships.

RESULTS: Emotional dysregulation at age 7 years was associated with disordered eating [fully adjusted probit B (95% CI) = 0.082 (0.029, 0.134)] and self-harm [fully adjusted probit B (95% CI) = 0.093 (0.036, 0.150)] at age 16 years. There was no evidence of sex interactions or difference in effects between self-harm and disordered eating. Mediation models found social cognition was a key pathway to disordered eating (females 51.2%; males 27.0% of total effect) and self-harm (females 15.7%; males 10.8% of total effect). Bullying victimisation was an important pathway to disordered eating (females 17.1%; males 10.0% of total effect), but only to self-harm in females (15.7% of total effect). Indirect effects were stronger for disordered eating than self-harm.

CONCLUSIONS: In males and females, emotional dysregulation in early childhood is associated with disordered eating and self-harm in adolescence and may be a useful target for prevention and treatment. Mediating pathways appeared to differ by sex and outcome, but social cognition was a key mediating pathway for both disordered eating and self-harm.

Medienart:

E-Artikel

Erscheinungsjahr:

2023

Erschienen:

2023

Enthalten in:

Zur Gesamtaufnahme - volume:64

Enthalten in:

Journal of child psychology and psychiatry, and allied disciplines - 64(2023), 5 vom: 20. Mai, Seite 797-806

Sprache:

Englisch

Beteiligte Personen:

Warne, Naomi [VerfasserIn]
Heron, Jon [VerfasserIn]
Mars, Becky [VerfasserIn]
Solmi, Francesca [VerfasserIn]
Biddle, Lucy [VerfasserIn]
Gunnell, David [VerfasserIn]
Hammerton, Gemma [VerfasserIn]
Moran, Paul [VerfasserIn]
Munafò, Marcus [VerfasserIn]
Penton-Voak, Ian [VerfasserIn]
Skinner, Andy [VerfasserIn]
Stewart, Anne [VerfasserIn]
Bould, Helen [VerfasserIn]

Links:

Volltext

Themen:

ALSPAC
Disordered eating
Emotional regulation
Journal Article
Mediation
Prospective
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
Self-harm

Anmerkungen:

Date Completed 17.04.2023

Date Revised 14.02.2024

published: Print-Electronic

Citation Status MEDLINE

doi:

10.1111/jcpp.13738

funding:

Förderinstitution / Projekttitel:

PPN (Katalog-ID):

NLM350530580