Self-regulation as a predictor of developmental trajectories of internalising symptoms in the course of middle childhood to adolescence

内化症状，如焦虑、抑郁、戒断和躯体症状是青春期最常见的心理症状，具有高度的稳定性，并与受影响的人的严重障碍有关。在这些症状发生的背景下，自我调节的各个方面已经成为科学关注的焦点，表明自我调节能力较低与较高的内化症状相关。然而，仍然存在一些研究空白：首先，以前的研究往往局限于自我调节的个别方面。其次，青春期的研究数量明显低于儿童期。第三，没有研究将自我调节的不同方面作为内化症状的不同轨迹的预测因素。鉴于从儿童到青春期的内化症状增加，成年后有慢化的风险，调查自我调节的各个方面作为不利轨迹的潜在预测因素，例如，增加或稳定的高度内化症状，是非常相关的。为了填补这些研究空白，本项目将在已有的三个儿童期中期(T1：6-10，T2：7-11，T3：9-13岁)测量点的纵向数据集的基础上，在第四个测量点对1000多名15-20岁的青少年进行调查。将重新审查自我调节的各种基本方面(例如，执行功能、情绪反应、心率变异性)和复杂方面(例如，情绪调节、计划行为)，以及内化症状(和特定的焦虑和抑郁症状)和已经确立的内化症状的风险因素(例如，低社会经济地位)。它将分析1)自我调节的不同方面在多大程度上预测内化症状的不利轨迹，2)即使包括其他风险因素，自我调节是否对这些轨迹的预测起到递增的作用，3)自我调节方面相互作用的程度以及在预测内化症状的过程中与其他风险因素的相互作用，以及4)自我调节方面与内化症状之间的横向和纵向联系及其从儿童期中期到青春期的相互关系。因此，关于特定自我调节方面的预测价值的研究结果可以为促进心理社会健康发展的预防和干预提供起点。

Internalising symptoms, such as anxiety, depression, withdrawal and somatic symptoms are among the most common psychological symptoms in adolescence, are highly stable and are associated with severe impairments for those affected. In the context of the genesis of these symptoms, various facets of self-regulation have come into scientific focus showing that a lower capacity for self-regulation is associated with higher internalising symptoms. However, there are still some research gaps: First, previous studies have often been limited to individual facets of self-regulation. Secondly, the number of studies in adolescence is significantly lower than in childhood. Thirdly, there are no studies that have investigated different facets of self-regulation as predictors of differential trajectories of internalising symptoms. Given the increase in internalising symptoms from childhood to adolescence with the risk of chronification in adulthood, the investigation of various facets of self-regulation as potential predictors of unfavourable trajectories e.g. with increasing or stable high internalising symptoms is highly relevant. In order to fill these research gaps, the present project will build on an already existing longitudinal data set with three measurement points in middle childhood (T1: 6-10, T2: 7-11, T3: 9-13 years) to investigate more than 1000 adolescents aged 15-20 years at a fourth measurement point. A variety of basal (e.g., executive functions, emotional reactivity, heart rate variability) and complex (e.g., emotional regulation, planning behaviour) facets of self-regulation, as well as internalising symptoms (and specific anxiety and depressive symptoms) and already established risk factors of internalising symptoms (e.g., low socioeconomic status,) will be re-examined. It will be analysed 1) to what extent different facets of self-regulation predict unfavourable trajectories of internalising symptoms, 2) whether self-regulation makes an incremental contribution to the prediction of these trajectories even when other risk factors are included, 3) the extent to which self-regulation facets interact with each other and with other risk factors in predicting the course of internalising symptoms, and 4) the cross-sectional and longitudinal associations between self-regulation facets and internalising symptoms and their reciprocal relations from middle childhood to adolescence. The findings on the predictive value of specific self-regulation facets can thus provide starting points for prevention and intervention to promote healthy psychosocial development.