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Emotional Coregulation in Mexican-Origin Parent–Adolescent Dyads: Associations with Adolescent Mental Health

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Abstract

Research on the health benefits and consequences of close relationships has suggested the linkage in daily emotions (i.e., coregulation) between close partners is an important relationship dynamic. While the coupling of daily emotions among family members (parent–child and marital dyads) has been widely documented, research examining emotional coregulation among ethnic minority youth during adolescence, a period marked by heightened emotion and risk for psychopathology, remains an important area in need of exploration. This study examined correlates of emotional coregulation in a sample of Mexican-origin adolescents (Mage = 15.02, SD = .83) and their parents (Mage = 41.93, SD = 6.70). Dyads reported on daily levels of distress and happiness for 14 consecutive days across two waves of data collection a year apart (nwave1 = 428 dyads, nwave2 = 336 dyads). Dyads who reported getting along were more likely to coregulate their daily happiness. Importantly, coregulation of distress was only present in older adolescents who reported above average levels of internalizing symptoms. The results suggest coregulation of distress may shape or be shaped by poor mental health during the later years of adolescence, a time when youth may be establishing a degree of emotional autonomy from parents.

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Acknowledgements

The authors gratefully acknowledge the participating families without whom this project would not have been possible, Thomas Weisner for his contributions to the project, and Andy Lin for his consultation.

Authors’ Contributions

E.M. conceived of the research goals, performed the statistical analysis and interpretation of the data, and had primary responsibility for writing the manuscript. J.K. participated in data preparation and helped write and revise the manuscript. N.A.G. conceived of the study, participated in its design and coordination, and helped revise the manuscript. A.J.F. conceived of the study, and participated in its design and coordination, interpretation of the data, and helped draft the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript

Funding

Support for this research was provided by NIH (R01-HD057164) and the California Center for Population Research at UCLA (P2C-HD041022).

Data Sharing and Declaration

The data analyzed during the current study are not publicly available but are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA, USA

    Evelyn Mercado

  2. Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA

    Joanna Kim

  3. Department of Psychology, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA

    Nancy A. Gonzales

  4. Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA

    Andrew J. Fuligni

  5. Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA

    Andrew J. Fuligni

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  1. Evelyn Mercado
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Correspondence to Evelyn Mercado.

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Mercado, E., Kim, J., Gonzales, N.A. et al. Emotional Coregulation in Mexican-Origin Parent–Adolescent Dyads: Associations with Adolescent Mental Health. J Youth Adolescence 48, 1116–1130 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-019-01002-5

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