title: Relationships among emotion regulation and symptoms during trauma-focused CBT for school-aged children.
abstract: This study examined improvement in emotion regulation throughout Trauma-Focused Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT) and the degree to which improvement in emotion regulation predicted improvement in symptoms. Traumatized children, 7-12 years (69.9% female), received TF-CBT. Data from 4 time periods were used: pre-assessment (n=107), pre-treatment (n=78), post-treatment (n=58), and 6-month follow-up (n=44). Questionnaires measured emotion regulation in the form of inhibition and dysregulation (Children's Emotion Management Scales) and lability/negativity and emotion regulation skill (Emotion Regulation Checklist), as well as child-reported (Trauma Symptom Checklist for Children) and parent-reported (Trauma Symptom Checklist for Young Children) posttraumatic stress, and internalizing and externalizing problems (Child Behaviuor Checklist). To the extent that children's dysregulation and lability/negativity improved, their parents reported fewer symptoms following therapy. Improvements in inhibition best predicted improvements in child-reported posttraumatic stress (PTS) during clinical services, but change in dysregulation and lability/negativity best predicted improvement in child-reported PTS symptoms at 6-month follow-up. Moreover, statistically significant improvements of small effect size were found following therapy, for inhibition, dysregulation, and lability/negativity, but not emotion regulation skill. These findings suggest that emotion regulation is a worthy target of intervention and that improvements in emotion regulation can be made. Suggestions for future research are discussed.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, York University, 4700 Keele Street, Toronto, Ontario M3J 1P3, Canada.
authors.forename: Kristin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Thornback
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, York University, 4700 Keele Street, Toronto, Ontario M3J 1P3, Canada.
authors.forename: Robert T
authors.initials: RT
authors.lastname: Muller
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002648:Child; D002649:Child Abuse / Q000523:psychology*; D015928:Cognitive Behavioral Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D004644:Emotions; D000069581:Exposure to Violence; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy*; D016896:Treatment Outcome
keywords: Emotion regulation; Maltreatment; Therapy outcome; Trauma; Trauma treatment