Skip to main content
Log in

Emotion Regulation as a Transdiagnostic Feature in Children with Neurodevelopmental Disorders

  • Comorbidities (D Dewey, Section Editor)
  • Published:
Current Developmental Disorders Reports Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Purpose of Review

Emotion regulation is recognized as a core underlying dimension common across psychiatric disorders and could be conceptualized as a transdiagnostic feature (i.e., mechanism underlying comorbidity). This review highlights recent research examining emotion regulation in children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

Recent Findings

Difficulties with emotion regulation are increasingly recognized as common deficits in children with ADHD and ASD. Research indicates that emotion regulation transmits risk for co-occurring disorders within a diagnostic grouping (i.e., neurodevelopment disorders; homotypic comorbidity) and across different diagnostic groupings (i.e., neurodevelopmental disorder–mood disorder; heterotypic comorbidity) in children with ADHD and ASD.

Summary

While this review provides support for the conceptualization of emotion regulation as a transdiagnostic feature in ADHD and ASD, further research examining emotion regulation in children with other neurodevelopmental disorders is needed. The field of neurodevelopmental disorders should examine emotion regulation from a developmental perspective and needs to develop valid assessments of emotion regulation.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Subscribe and save

Springer+ Basic
$34.99 /Month
  • Get 10 units per month
  • Download Article/Chapter or eBook
  • 1 Unit = 1 Article or 1 Chapter
  • Cancel anytime
Subscribe now

Buy Now

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Similar content being viewed by others

References

Papers of particular interest, published recently, have been highlighted as: • Of importance •• Of major importance

  1. Boivin MJ, Kakooza AM, Warf BC, Davidson LL, Grigorenko EL. Reducing neurodevelopmental disorders and disability through research and interventions. Nature. 2015;527(7578):S155–60.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  2. Thapar A, Cooper M, Rutter M. Neurodevelopmental disorders. Lancet Psychiatry. 2017;4(4):339–46.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  3. American Psychiatric Association. Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders: DSM-5. American Psychiatric Association; 2013.

  4. Cleaton MAM, Kirby A. Why do we find it so hard to calculate the burden of neurodevelopmental disorders. J Child Dev Disord. 2018;4:10.

    Google Scholar 

  5. Leitner Y. The co-occurrence of autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in children- what do we know? Front Hum Neurosci. 2014;8:268.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  6. King BH. Psychiatric comorbidities in neurodevelopmental disorders. Curr Opin Neurol. 2016;29(2):113–7.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  7. • Sloan E, Hall K, Moulding R, Bryce S, Mildred H, Staiger PK. Emotion regulation as a transdiagnostic treatment construct across anxiety, depression, substance, eating and borderline personality disorders: a systematic review. Clin Psychol Rev 2017:57:141–63. This systematic review provides evidence that emotion regulation is a mechanism underlying the development and maintenance of psychiatric disorders.

  8. •• Ros R, Graziano PA. A transdiagnostic examination of self-regulation: comparisons across preschoolers with ASD, ADHD, and typically developing children. J Clin Child Adolesc Psychol 2019:48:1–16. This study examined profiles of self-regulation (i.e., executive function, emotion regulation) in preschool children with ASD, ADHD, and typically developing preschool children. Results revealed that symptoms of ASD and ADHD predicted membership in the moderate emotion regulation deficits profile and symptoms of ADHD predicted membership in the high emotion regulation deficits profile. These results highlight that emotion regulation deficits are found in children with ASD and ADHD and suggest that emotion regulation may be a transdiagnostic feature in neurodevelopmental disorders.

  9. Angold A, Costello EJ, Erkanli A. Comorbidity. J Child Psychol Psychiatry. 1999;40:57–87.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  10. Black MM, Lawn JE. Early childhood developmental disabilities– data still needed. Lancet Glob Heal. 2018;6(10):e1050–1.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  11. Newman CJ. Clinical guidelines in neurodevelopmental disorders: following the line. Dev Med Child Neurol. 2019;61(3):241.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  12. Jan YW, Yang CM, Huang YS. Comorbidity and confounding factors in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and sleep disorders in children. Psychol Res Behav. 2011;4:139–50.

    Google Scholar 

  13. • Waltereit R, Giller F, Ehrlich S, Roessner V. Affective dysregulation: a transdiagnostic research concept between ADHD, aggressive behavior conditions and borderline personality traits. Eur. Child Adolesc Psychiatry 2019:28:1551–3. This editorial briefly describes some of the recent research suggesting that affective dysregulation (i.e., excessive reactivity to negative emotional stimuli) may constitute a transdiagnostic feature across neurodevelopmental and psychiatric disorders.

  14. Thompson RAA. Emotion regulation: a theme in search of a definition. Monogr Soc Res Child Dev. 2008;59:25–52.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  15. Gross JJ, John OP. Individual differences in two emotion regulation processes: implications for affect, relationships, and well-being. J Pers Soc Psychol. 2003;85:348–62.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  16. • Mazefsky CA. Emotion regulation and emotional distress in autism spectrum disorder: foundations and considerations for future research. J Autism Dev Disord 2015:45:3405–8. This is an introduction to a special issue of the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders on emotion regulation in ASD. This paper discusses how to conceptualize emotion regulation in ASD and how intervention approaches targeting emotion regulation may be beneficial for children with ASD.

  17. • Shaw P, Stringaris A, Nigg J, Leibenluft E. Emotion dysregulation in attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Am J Psychiatry 2014:171:276–93. This review summarizes the research examining emotion regulation in ADHD. This paper provides in-depth information on how deficits with emotion regulation in ADHD are associated with the prefrontal cortical network and how novel therapeutic approaches should target emotion regulation in order to ameliorate a combination of symptoms.

  18. Gross JJ, Thompson RA. Emotion regulation: conceptual foundations. In: Gross JJ, editor. Handbook of emotion regulation. Guilford Press; 2007.

  19. •• Thompson RA. Emotion dysregulation: a theme in search of definition. Dev Psychopathol 2019:31(3):805–15. This paper provides a functionalist definition of emotion regulation and discusses how to study emotion regulation from a developmental perspective. Future research in the field of neurodevelopmental disorders is encouraged to adopt this multilevel approach to the study of emotion regulation.

  20. Saarni C. Emotional development in childhood. In: Trembley RE, Boivin M, Peters, RD, editors. Encyclopedia on early childhood development. Montreal, Quebec; 2011.

  21. • Beauchaine TP, Cicchetti D. Emotion dysregulation and emerging psychopathology: a transdiagnostic, transdisciplinary perspective. Dev Psychopathol 2019:31(3):799–804. This paper also provides a functionalist definition of emotion regulation and discusses the recognition of emotion regulation as a core underlying dimension common across psychiatric disorders.

  22. Shaw P, Malek M, Watson B, Sharp W, Evans A, Greenstein D. Development of cortical surface area and gyrification in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Biol Psychiatry. 2012;72:191–7.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  23. Mazefsky CA, Herrington J, Siegel M, Scarpa A, Maddox BB, Scahill L, et al. The role of emotion regulation in autism spectrum disorder. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 2013;52(7):679–88.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  24. • Graziano PA, Garcia A. Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder and children’s emotion dysregulation: a meta-analysis. Clin Psychol Rev 2016:46:106–23. This meta-analysis of 77 studies examines difficulties with emotion regulation in children with ADHD. Results revealed that youth with ADHD experience the greatest impairments in emotional reactivity and emotional lability.

  25. Sauer-Zavala S, Gutner CA, Farchione TJ, Boettcher HT, Bullis JR, Barlow DH. Current definitions of “transdiagnostic” in treatment development: a search for consensus. Behav Ther. 2017;48(1):128–38.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  26. Chu BC, Chen J, Mele C, Temkin A, Xue J. Transdiagnostic approaches to emotion regulation: basic mechanisms and treatment research. In: Essau CA, LeBlanc S, Ollendick TH, editors. Emotion regulation and psychopathology in children and adolescents. Oxford University Press: 2017.

  27. England-Mason G, Gonzalez A. Intervening to shape children’s emotion regulation: a review of emotion socialization parenting programs for young children. Emotion. 2020;20:98–104.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  28. • Reyes NM, Pickard K, Reaven J. Emotion regulation: a treatment target for autism spectrum disorder. Bull Menninger Clin 2019:83:205–34. This review summarizes the existing cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) and mindfulness-based treatments for individuals with ASD which include content on emotion regulation.

  29. Huguet A, Izaguirre Eguren J, Miguel-Ruiz D, Vall Vallés X, Alda JA. Deficient emotional self-regulation in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder: mindfulness as a useful treatment modality. J Dev Behav Pediatr. 2019;40:425–31.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  30. Baurain C, Nader-Grosbois N, Dionne C. Socio-emotional regulation in children with intellectual disability and typically developing children, and teachers’ perceptions of their social adjustment. Res Dev Disabil. 2013;34(9):2774–87.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  31. Gregl A, Kirigin M, Ligutić RS, Bilać S. Emotional competence of mothers and psychopathology in preschool children with specific language impairment (SLI). Psychiatr Danub. 2014;26:261–70.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  32. Green D, Payne S. Understanding organisational ability and self-regulation in children with developmental coordination disorder. Curr Dev Disord Reports. 2018;5:34–42.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  33. Johnson KN, Walden TA, Conture EG, Karrass J. Spontaneous regulation of emotions in preschool children who stutter: preliminary findings. J Speech, Lang Hear Res. 2010;53:1478–95.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  34. Danielson ML, Bitsko RH, Ghandour RM, Holbrook JR, Kogan MD, Blumberg SJ. Prevalence of parent-reported ADHD diagnosis and associated treatment among U.S. children and adolescents, 2016. J Clin Child Adolesc Psychol. 2018;47:199–212.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  35. Bunford N, Evans SW, Wymbs F. ADHD and emotion dysregulation among children and adolescents. Clin Child Fam Psychol. 2015;18:185–217.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  36. Overgaard KR, Aase H, Torgersen S, Reichborn-Kjennerud T, Oerbeck B, Myhre A, et al. Continuity in features of anxiety and attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder in young preschool children. Eur Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 2014;23:743–52.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  37. Ambrosini PJ, Bennett DS, Elia J. Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder characteristics: II. Clinical correlates of irritable mood. J Affect Disord. 2013;145:70–6.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  38. Sjöwall D, Roth L, Lindqvist S, Thorell LB. Multiple deficits in ADHD: executive dysfunction, delay aversion, reaction time variability, and emotional deficits. J Child Psychol Psychiatry. 2013;54:619–27.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  39. Factor PI, Rosen PJ, Reyes RA. The relation of poor emotional awareness and externalizing behavior among children with ADHD. J Atten Disord. 2016;20:168–77.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  40. Morris SSJ, Musser ED, Tenenbaum RB, Ward AR, Martinez J, Raiker JS, et al. Emotion regulation via the autonomic nervous system in children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD): replication and extension. J Abnorm Child Psychol. 2019;48:361–73.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  41. •• van Stralen J. Emotional dysregulation in children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. ADHD Atten Deficit Hyperact Disord 2016:8:1–13. This systematic review provides a thorough overview of the research examining emotion regulation in children with ADHD. This review also discusses the neurological and physiological correlates of difficulties with emotion regulation in children with ADHD and how research needs to integrate emotion regulation into patient-oriented models of ADHD.

  42. Christiansen H, Hirsch O, Albrecht B, Chavanon ML. Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and emotion regulation over the life span. Curr Psychiatry Rep. 2019;21(3):17.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  43. Herbert S. Parent training for families of hyperactive preschool-aged children (unpublished doctoral dissertation). Amherst: University of Massachusetts; 2013.

    Google Scholar 

  44. Sánchez M, Lavigne R, Romero JF, Elósegui E. Emotion regulation in participants diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, before and after an emotion regulation intervention. Front Psychol. 2019;10:1092.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  45. Gau SSF, Ni HC, Shang CY, Soong WT, Wu YY, Lin LY, et al. Psychiatric comorbidity among children and adolescents with and without persistent attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder. Aust N Z J Psychiatry. 2010;44:135–43.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  46. Gnanavel S, Sharma P, Kaushal P, Hussain S. Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and comorbidity: a review of literature. World J Clin Cases. 2019;7(17):2420–6.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  47. • Steinberg EA, Drabick DAG. A developmental psychopathology perspective on ADHD and comorbid conditions: the role of emotion regulation. Child Psychiatry Hum 2015:46(6):951–66. This paper uses a developmental psychopathology approach to examine heterotypic comorbidities in children with ADHD and presents an integrated model of emotion regulation as a shared risk process that may underlie comorbidity in children with ADHD.

  48. • Waddington F, Hartman C, De Bruijn Y, Lappenschaar M, Oerlemans A, Buitelaar J, et al. An emotion recognition subtyping approach to studying the heterogeneity and comorbidity of autism spectrum disorders and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. J Neurodev Disord 2018: 10(1):31. This study examined emotion recognition abilities in children and adolescents with ASD, ADHD, comorbid ASD and ADHD, and controls. Results revealed that weak emotion recognition abilities were associated with increased risk for ASD and ADHD.

  49. Hartman CA, Rommelse N, van der Klugt CL, Wanders RBK, Timmerman ME. Stress exposure and the course of ADHD from childhood to young adulthood: comorbid severe emotion dysregulation or mood and anxiety problems. J Clin Med. 2019;8:1824.

    Article  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  50. Groves NB, Kofler MJ, Wells EL, Day TN, Chan ESM. An examination of relations among working memory, ADHD symptoms, and emotion regulation. J Abnorm Child Psychol. 2020;48(4):525–37.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  51. Leaberry KD, Rosen PJ, Slaughter KE, Reese J, Fogleman ND. Temperamental negative affect, emotion-specific regulation, and concurrent internalizing and externalizing pathology among children with ADHD. Atten Deficit Hyperact Disord. 2019;11:311–24.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  52. Hagstrøm J, Maigaard K, Pagsberg AK, Skov L, Plessen KJ, Vangkilde S. Reappraisal is an effective emotion regulation strategy in children with Tourette syndrome and ADHD. J Behav Ther Exp Psychiatry. 2020;68:101541.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  53. Kogan MD, Vladutiu CJ, Schieve LA, Ghandour RM, Blumberg SJ, Zablotsky B, et al. The prevalence of parent-reported autism spectrum disorder among US children. Pediatrics. 2018;142(6):e20174161.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  54. Xu G, Strathearn L, Liu B, O’Brien M, Kopelman TG, Zhu J, et al. Prevalence and treatment patterns of autism spectrum disorder in the United States, 2016. JAMA Pediatr. 2019;173:153–9.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  55. • Berkovits L, Eisenhower A, Blacher J. Emotion regulation in young children with autism spectrum disorders. J Autism Dev Disord 2017:47:68–79. This study examined emotion regulation in children ages 4–7 years with ASD. Results showed that difficulties with emotion regulation were relatively stable in children with ASD.

  56. Fenning RM, Baker JK, Moffitt J. Intrinsic and extrinsic predictors of emotion regulation in children with autism spectrum disorder. J Autism Dev Disord. 2018;48:3858–70.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  57. Zantinge G, van Rijn S, Stockmann L, Swaab H. Physiological arousal and emotion regulation strategies in young children with autism spectrum disorders. J Autism Dev Disord. 2017;47:2648–57.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  58. Nuske HJ, Hedley D, Woollacott A, Thomson P, Macari S, Dissanayake C. Developmental delays in emotion regulation strategies in preschoolers with autism. Autism Res. 2017;10:1808–22.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  59. • Samson AC, Hardan AY, Podell RW, Phillips JM, Gross JJ. Emotion regulation in children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder. Autism Res 2015:8:9–18. This study examined emotion regulation in older children and adolescents with ASD compared to age- and sex-matched controls. Results showed that children and adolescents with ASD used cognitive reappraisal less frequently and expressive suppression more frequently.

  60. Goldsmith SF, Kelley E. Associations between emotion regulation and social impairment in children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder. J Autism Dev Disord. 2018;48:2164–73.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  61. Guy L, Souders M, Bradstreet L, Delussey C, Herringto JD. Brief report: emotion regulation and respiratory sinus arrhythmia in autism spectrum disorder. J Autism Dev Disord. 2014;44:2614–20.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  62. Richey JA, Damiano CR, Sabatino A, Rittenberg A, Petty C, Bizzell J, et al. Neural mechanisms of emotion regulation in autism spectrum disorder. J Autism Dev Disord. 2015;45:3409–23.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  63. Cai RY, Richdale AL, Uljarević M, Dissanayake C, Samson AC. Emotion regulation in autism spectrum disorder: where we are and where we need to go. Autism Res. 2018;11(7):962–78.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  64. Conner CM, White SW, Beck KB, Golt J, Smith IC, Mazefsky CA. Improving emotion regulation ability in autism: the Emotional Awareness and Skills Enhancement (EASE) program. Autism. 2019;23:1273–87.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  65. Thomson K, Burnham Riosa P, Weiss JA. Brief report of preliminary outcomes of an emotion regulation intervention for children with autism spectrum disorder. J Autism Dev Disord. 2015;45:3487–95.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  66. Matson JL, Williams LW. Differential diagnosis and comorbidity: distinguishing autism from other mental health issues. Neuropsychiatry. 2013;3(2):233–43.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  67. Rosen TE, Mazefsky CA, Vasa RA, Lerner MD. Co-occurring psychiatric conditions in autism spectrum disorder. Int Rev Psychiatry. 2018;30(1):40–61.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  68. Simonoff E, Pickles A, Charman T, Chandler S, Loucas T, Baird G. Psychiatric disorders in children with autism spectrum disorders: prevalence, comorbidity, and associated factors in a population-derived sample. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 2008;47:921–9.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  69. van Steensel FJA, Bögels SM, de Bruin EI. Psychiatric comorbidity in children with autism spectrum disorders: a comparison with children with ADHD. J Child Fam Stud. 2013;22:368–76.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  70. Gjevik E, Eldevik S, Fjæran-Granum T, Sponheim E. Kiddie-SADS reveals high rates of DSM-IV disorders in children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorders. J Autism Dev Disord. 2011;41:761–9.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  71. White SW, Mazefsky CA, Dichter GS, Chiu PH, Richey JA, Ollendick TH. Social-cognitive, physiological, and neural mechanisms underlying emotion regulation impairments: understanding anxiety in autism spectrum disorder. Int J Dev Neurosci. 2014;39:22–36.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  72. Rieffe C, De Bruine M, De Rooij M, Stockmann L. Approach and avoidant emotion regulation prevent depressive symptoms in children with an autism Spectrum disorder. Int J Dev Neurosci. 2014;39:37–43.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  73. Cai RY, Richdale AL, Dissanayake C, Uljarević M. Brief report: inter-relationship between emotion regulation, intolerance of uncertainty, anxiety, and depression in youth with autism spectrum disorder. J Autism Dev Disord. 2018;48:316–25.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  74. Cai RY, Richdale AL, Dissanayake C, Trollor J, Uljarević M. Emotion regulation in autism: reappraisal and suppression interactions. Autism. 2019;23:737–49.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  75. Patriquin MA. Evidence-based treatment and conceptualization of autism spectrum disorder: emotion regulation, social impairment, and anxiety as targets. Bull Menn Clin. 2019;83:199–204.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  76. •• Weiss JA. Transdiagnostic case conceptualization of emotional problems in youth with ASD: an emotion regulation approach. Clin Psychol Sci Pract 2014:21:331–50. This review describes how viewing emotion regulation as mechanistically transdiagnostic may help to inform cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) for youth with ASD. This review suggests that this mechanistic definition may help to address the emotional problems and other co-occurring psychiatric disorders commonly reported in youth with ASD.

  77. Santomauro D, Sheffield J, Sofronoff K. Depression in adolescents with ASD: a pilot RCT of a group intervention. J Autism Dev Disord. 2016;46:572–88.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  78. Maughan AL, Weiss JA. Parental outcomes following participation in cognitive behavior therapy for children with autism spectrum disorder. J Autism Dev Disord. 2017;47:3166–79.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  79. Weiss JA, Thomson K, Burnham Riosa P, Albaum C, Chan V, Maughan A, et al. A randomized waitlist-controlled trial of cognitive behavior therapy to improve emotion regulation in children with autism. J Child Psychol Psychiatry Allied Discip. 2018;59:1180–91.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  80. Aldao A, Gee DG, De Los RA, Seager I. Emotion regulation as a transdiagnostic factor in the development of internalizing and externalizing psychopathology: current and future directions. Dev Psychopathol. 2016;28:927–46.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  81. Baurain C, Nader-Grosbois N. Theory of mind, socio-emotional problem-solving, socio-emotional regulation in children with intellectual disability and in typically developing children. J Autism Dev Disord. 2013;43:1080–97.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  82. Singer E. The strategies adopted by Dutch children with dyslexia to maintain their self-esteem when teased at school. J Learn Disabil. 2005;38:411–23.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  83. Musser ED, Galloway-Long HS, Frick PJ, Nigg JT. Emotion regulation and heterogeneity in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 2013:52(2):163–171.e2.

  84. Hovik KT, Egeland J, Isquith PK, Gioia G, Skogli EW, Andersen PN, et al. Distinct patterns of everyday executive function problems distinguish children with Tourette syndrome from children with ADHD or autism spectrum disorders. J Atten Disord. 2017;21:811–23.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  85. Eisenberg N, Gershoff ET, Fabes RA, Shepard SA, Cumberland AJ, Losoya SH, et al. Mothers’ emotional expressivity and children’s behavior problems and social competence: mediation through children’s regulation. Dev Psychol. 2001;37:475–90.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  86. Seeley SH, Garcia E, Mennin DS. Recent advances in laboratory assessment of emotion regulation. Curr Opin Psychol. 2015;3:58–63.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  87. •• Weiss JA, Thomson K, Chan L. A systematic literature review of emotion regulation measurement in individuals with autism spectrum disorder. Autism Res 2014:7(6):629–48. This systematic review provides an overview of the research examining emotion regulation in children and adults with ASD. This review found that most research only used a single method of measuring emotion regulation and suggests that future research should examine emotion regulation using multiple types of measures (e.g., self-report, naturalistic/observational coding, physiological).

  88. Campbell SB, Denham SA, Howarth GZ, Jones SM, Whittaker JV, Williford AP, et al. Commentary on the review of measures of early childhood social and emotional development: conceptualization, critique, and recommendations. J Appl Dev Psychol. 2016;45:19–41.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  89. • Halle TG, Darling-Churchill KE. Review of measures of social and emotional development. J Appl Dev Psychol 2016:45:8–18. This paper provides a review of the contemporary measures for assessing social and emotional development in children. This review suggests that many social-emotional constructs, including emotion regulation, are difficult to accurately measure in young children.

Download references

Acknowledgements

G. England-Mason is supported by an Alberta Innovates Postgraduate Fellowship in Health Innovation and an Alberta Children’s Hospital Research Institute Postdoctoral Fellowship.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Gillian England-Mason.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of Interest

Gillian England-Mason declares no conflicts of interest relevant to this manuscript.

Human and Animal Rights and Informed Consent

This article does not contain any studies with human or animal subjects performed by any of the authors.

Additional information

Publisher’s Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

This article is part of the Topical Collection on Comorbidities

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

England-Mason, G. Emotion Regulation as a Transdiagnostic Feature in Children with Neurodevelopmental Disorders. Curr Dev Disord Rep 7, 130–138 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40474-020-00200-2

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40474-020-00200-2

Keywords

Navigation