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Updated: Aug 29, 2025

Psychophysiological Assessment of the Effectiveness of Emotion Regulation Strategies in Childhood
Published on: February 11, 2017
Internalizing and Externalizing Symptoms Moderate the Relationship Between Emotion Dysregulation and Suicide Ideation
Rebekah Clapham1, Amy Brausch2
1Department of Psychological Sciences, Western Kentucky University, 1906 College Heights Blvd., 42101, Bowling Green, KY, USA.
Abstract:
The relationship between emotion dysregulation and suicide ideation may depend on the level of internalizing and externalizing symptoms. It was expected that both internalizing and externalizing symptoms would moderate the relationship between emotion dysregulation and suicide ideation, such that greater symptoms would strengthen the relationship between emotion dysregulation and suicide ideation. Adolescent participants (n = 559, Mage = 15.40, 85.0% white, 57.2% female) completed self-report measures that assessed emotion dysregulation, internalizing and externalizing symptoms, and recent suicide ideation. Both internalizing and externalizing symptoms moderated the relationship between emotion dysregulation and suicide ideation; this relationship strengthened as internalizing and externalizing symptoms increased. The results of this study indicate that internalizing and externalizing symptoms may both affect the connection between emotion dysregulation and suicide ideation. Future research should focus on targeting both internalizing and externalizing symptoms in treatment to help reduce emotion dysregulation and suicide ideation in adolescents.
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