Deficits In Self-regulation Research Articles

The Association between Self-Regulation and Symptoms of Autism Spectrum Disorder in Preschoolers with Externalizing Behavior Problems

The purpose of the current study was to examine the role of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms in predicting deficits in self-regulation across the domains of executive functioning and emotion regulation. Parents of 40 preschoolers with externalizing behavior problems reported on children’s ADHD and ASD symptoms, and emotion regulation. Children completed a standardized executive functioning battery. Results indicated that 28% of parents and 53% of teachers rated children above the subclinical range on ASD symptoms. An interaction emerged such that higher ASD symptoms were only associated with poorer executive functioning for children with lower ADHD symptoms. However, ASD symptoms were predictive of poorer emotion regulation independent of ADHD symptoms. Findings revealed clinically significant ASD symptoms, which aided in explaining heterogeneity in self-regulation deficits.

Brief report: Poor self‐regulation as a predictor of individual differences in adaptive functioning in young children with autism spectrum disorder

The present study examined the link between poor self-regulation (measured by the child behavior checklist dysregulated profile [DP]) and core autism symptoms, as well as with developmental level, in a sample of 107 children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) aged 19-46 months. We further examined the utility of DP in predicting individual differences in adaptive functioning, relative to the influence of ASD severity, chronological age (CA), and developmental level. Poor self-regulation was unrelated to CA, developmental level, and severity of ADOS-2 restricted and repetitive behaviors, but was associated with lower ADOS-2 social affect severity. Hierarchical regression identified poor self-regulation as a unique independent predictor of adaptive behavior, with more severe dysregulation predicting poorer adaptive functioning. Results highlight the importance of early identification of deficits in self-regulation, and more specifically, of the utility of DP, when designing individually tailored treatments for young children with ASD. Autism Res 2018, 11: 1157-1165. © 2018 International Society for Autism Research, Wiley Periodicals, Inc. LAY SUMMARY: This study explored the relationship between poor self-regulation and age, verbal and non-verbal developmental level, severity of autism symptoms and adaptive functioning in 107 children with autism under 4 years of age. Poor self-regulation was unrelated to age, developmental level, and severity of restricted and repetitive behaviors but was associated with lower social affect severity. Importantly, more severe self-regulation deficits predicted poorer adaptive functioning.

Academic interventions for academic procrastination: A review of the literature

ABSTRACTProcrastination is a widespread phenomenon in academic settings. It has been studied from many different theoretical angles, and a variety of causes and consequences have been suggested. Recent studies support the notion that academic procrastination can be seen from a situational perspective and as a failure in learning self-regulation. It suggests that interventions should address situational as well as deficits in self-regulation to help students overcome their procrastinating tendencies. The present review examined the recent literature on causes and consequences of academic procrastination and the limited number of studies of academic interventions for academic procrastination. Findings of this review strengthen the need to further study the topic of academic interventions for academic procrastination and to develop effective interventions. At the end of this review, several suggestions for the development of academic interventions are outlined.

Project Date SMART: a Dating Violence (DV) and Sexual Risk Prevention Program for Adolescent Girls with Prior DV Exposure.

Clinical Trials, NCT01326195, and http://www.clinicaltrials.gov.

Volitional determinants of self-harm behaviour and suicidal risk in persons with borderline personality disorder

Background and objectivesWe investigated differential mediators of the risk of suicidal behaviour and self-harm behaviour in a group of sixty-four patients with borderline personality disorder. MethodsThe study included an interview to assess suicidal attempts, the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ), volitional competences and self-regulation (VCQ), depression (BDI) and self-harm (SH) behaviour. We postulated two different serial multiple mediation models originating in emotional neglect in childhood, one leading to suicide attempts (through threat-related state orientation and depression) and the other leading to self-harm behaviour (through prospective state orientation and demand-related stress). ResultsThe serial multiple mediation models were confirmed, with the postulated variables serving as partial mediators of suicide attempts and of self-harm behaviour. In addition to emotional neglect, there were two additional predictors: Sexual abuse in childhood (for suicide attempts) and physical abuse in childhood (for self-harm behaviour). ConclusionsThe results highlight the critical importance of experiences of emotional neglect and other forms of abuse in childhood for the development of pathology in BPD patients. These early experiences of neglect promote deficits in self-regulation of emotion (state orientation), which together with depression or demanding circumstances, lead to an increase in the risk of suicide, or in self-harm behaviour, respectively.

Dysregulated infant temperament and caregiver warmth in Jordanian orphanages: The importance of considering goodness-of-fit

The growing literature on the negative effects of large institutions, has not translated into fundamental shifts in models of care in many parts of the world. The current study was part of a larger initiative to develop foster care as an alternative to institutions in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. The primary goal was to assess the early temperament of institutionalized infants, and to increase our understanding of pathways through which self-regulatory deficits may influence early relationship processes. The primary caregivers for a sample of 46 infants in institutional settings were surveyed, reporting on child functioning and their own beliefs about the relationship and their caregiving behavior. The mean age of the infants was 7months-of-age, and age at entry into institutional care averaged under 3months. 46% of children entered care through abandonment and a further 39% from unwed pregnancies. Compared to previously published community samples, these institutionalized infants exhibited more difficult and dysregulated temperaments, and temperament was predictive of caregiver perceptions, expectations for the infant's future, and caregiving behavior. The association between infant regulation and caregiver warmth was found to be mediated by caregiver reported goodness-of-fit with the infant. The current study adds to the literature painting institutionalized infants as a particularly vulnerable group in temperamental domains key to the development of self-regulation, an important underpinning of early mental health. The findings point to the need for staff training and support for children in institutions that consider the importance of goodness-of-fit with caregivers, while underscoring the need for continuing a shift to community-based alternatives.

6.39 A Case Series of Omega-3 Fatty Acids Supplementation in Medicated Children With Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and Deficits in Emotional Self-Regulation

6.39 A Case Series of Omega-3 Fatty Acids Supplementation in Medicated Children With Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and Deficits in Emotional Self-Regulation

College Binge Drinking Associated with Decreased Frontal Activation to Negative Emotional Distractors during Inhibitory Control.

The transition to college is associated with an increase in heavy episodic alcohol use, or binge drinking, during a time when the prefrontal cortex and prefrontal-limbic circuitry continue to mature. Traits associated with this immaturity, including impulsivity in emotional contexts, may contribute to risky and heavy episodic alcohol consumption. The current study used blood oxygen level dependent (BOLD) multiband functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to assess brain activation during a task that required participants to ignore background images with positive, negative, or neutral emotional valence while performing an inhibitory control task (Go-NoGo). Subjects were 23 college freshmen (seven male, 18–20 years) who engaged in a range of drinking behavior (past 3 months’ binge episodes range = 0–19, mean = 4.6, total drinks consumed range = 0–104, mean = 32.0). Brain activation on inhibitory trials (NoGo) was contrasted between negative and neutral conditions and between positive and neutral conditions using non-parametric testing (5000 permutations) and cluster-based thresholding (z = 2.3), p ≤ 0.05 corrected. Results showed that a higher recent incidence of binge drinking was significantly associated with decreased activation of dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC), dorsomedial prefrontal cortex (DMPFC), and anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), brain regions strongly implicated in executive functioning, during negative relative to neutral inhibitory trials. No significant associations between binge drinking and brain activation were observed for positive relative to neutral images. While task performance was not significantly associated with binge drinking in this sample, subjects with heavier recent binge drinking showed decreased recruitment of executive control regions under negative versus neutral distractor conditions. These findings suggest that in young adults with heavier recent binge drinking, processing of negative emotional images interferes more with inhibitory control neurocircuitry than in young adults who do not binge drink often. This pattern of altered frontal lobe activation associated with binge drinking may serve as an early marker of risk for future self-regulation deficits that could lead to problematic alcohol use. These findings underscore the importance of understanding the impact of emotion on cognitive control and associated brain functioning in binge drinking behaviors among young adults.

Misuse of Child Sexual Abuse Images: Treatment Course of a Self-Identified Pedophilic Pastor

ABSTRACTThe recurrent use of child sexual abuse images (CSAI) for sexual arousal is considered a valid indicator for the existence of a pedophilic preference, which in turn represents a significant risk factor for committing contact offenses against children. Treatment programs for (potentially) sexually delinquent men endeavor to reduce the risk to offend by addressing relevant risk factors and emphasizing functional and socially acceptable alternative behaviors. Users of CSAI are a particular target group for prevention services and it has been suggested that the primary treatment focus should be on sexual self-regulation deficits.

Serotonin functioning and adolescents' alcohol use: A genetically informed study examining mechanisms of risk.

The current study used data from two longitudinal samples to test whether self-regulation, depressive symptoms, and aggression/antisociality were mediators in the relation between a polygenic score indexing serotonin (5-HT) functioning and alcohol use in adolescence. The results from an independent genome-wide association study of 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid in the cerebrospinal fluid were used to create 5-HT polygenic risk scores. Adolescents and/or parents reported on adolescents' self-regulation (Time 1), depressive symptoms (Time 2), aggression/antisociality (Time 2), and alcohol use (Time 3). The results showed that 5-HT polygenic risk did not predict self-regulation. However, adolescents with higher levels of 5-HT polygenic risk showed greater depression and aggression/antisociality. Adolescents' aggression/antisociality mediated the relation between 5-HT polygenic risk and later alcohol use. Deficits in self-regulation also predicted depression and aggression/antisociality, and indirectly predicted alcohol use through aggression/antisociality. Pathways to alcohol use were especially salient for males from families with low parental education in one of the two samples. The results provide insights into the longitudinal mechanisms underlying the relation between 5-HT functioning and alcohol use (i.e., earlier aggression/antisociality). There was no evidence that genetically based variation in 5-HT functioning predisposed individuals to deficits in self-regulation. Genetically based variation in 5-HT functioning and self-regulation might be separate, transdiagnostic risk factors for several types of psychopathology.

102. The Cognitive Costs of Social Exclusion in Schizophrenia

Background: Social exclusion is a particularly poignant and impairing social experience that can lead to affective and cognitive impairments in clinical populations. Various psychiatric disorders, (e.g., depression, social anxiety, and schizophrenia) are associated with hyper-responsivity to social exclusion. Social exclusion is exceedingly common in schizophrenia (e.g., most have very few friends, few get married, and many are estranged from family members). The most extensively validated paradigm for social exclusion is the Cyberball task, in which participants believe they are interacting with peers, and being excluded from an online ball-tossing game. For individuals with depression and anxiety, social exclusion leads to slowed processing speed, deficits in social self-regulation, and impaired cognitive control, memory, attention, and motivation. Despite the relevance to schizophrenia, no studies have examined the cognitive consequences of social exclusion in individuals with schizophrenia. Methods: Data collection is ongoing, and data are available on 35 patients with schizophrenia and 20 healthy controls. Social exclusion and social inclusion conditions were counterbalanced such that all participants were administered the Cyberball game (exclusion condition) and an online ball-passing game (inclusion condition) during 2 separate visits to our laboratory. Additionally, participants completed measures of neurocognition, defeatist beliefs, and emotional reactivity following both social exclusion and social inclusion. Results: There was a significant interaction such that the 2 groups showed different patterns in neurocognitive performance following social exclusion—patients get worse after being excluded and were less able to perform tasks requiring working memory and processing speed, while controls’ performance actually improved after they are socially excluded, compared to when they are included. Results indicate that patients had significantly higher levels of defeatist beliefs than controls, and both groups showed a significant increase in defeatist beliefs after social exclusion, compared to inclusion. Conclusion: This is the first study to directly examine the consequences of social exclusion on individuals with schizophrenia. The results suggest that individuals with schizophrenia may experience increases in neurocognitive impairment and in defeatist beliefs, when they feel socially excluded. The present data support the notion that social and environmental factors may contribute to impaired neurocognitive functioning in schizophrenia.

Do Individual Differences in Early Affective and Cognitive Self-Regulation Predict Developmental Change in ADHD Symptoms From Preschool to Adolescence?

Objective: The role of heterogeneous self-regulation deficits in ADHD has long been emphasized. Yet, longitudinal studies examining distinct self-regulation processes as prospective predictors of developmental change in ADHD symptoms spanning wide developmental periods are scarce. The aim of the current study was to examine affective and cognitive self-regulation as predictors of developmental change in ADHD symptoms from preschool to adolescence in a sample with one third of the children being at risk for developing an ADHD and/or ODD diagnosis. Method: At 5 years laboratory measures for hot and cool executive function (EF) and parental and teacher ratings were used for regulation of positive and negative emotionality. Symptoms of ADHD and ODD were measured at 5 and 13 years using parental and teacher ratings based on the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (4th ed.; DSM-IV). Results: Converging developmental paths in hyperactivity/impulsivity across time were found for those high versus low in early cognitive self-regulation, whereas the development of inattention symptoms diverged across time for those high versus low in early affective self-regulation. Conclusion: These results support the idea that different aspects of self-regulation are important for developmental change in the two separate ADHD symptom domains from preschool to adolescence.

Set-Congruent Priming Stimuli Normalize the Information Processing of Psychopathic Offenders

Psychopathic individuals display characteristic deficits in processing emotion cues, the abstract meaning of words, and peripheral inhibitory cues, that have been linked to deficits in self-regulation and antisocial behavior. One view, supported by recent research, is that psychopathic individuals have difficulty processing set-incongruent information and that their difficulty may be ameliorated using task manipulations that establish a set-relevant focus of attention. We evaluated this characterization of the psychopathic deficit using a lexical decision (i.e., word recognition) task and priming manipulation that caused target stimuli to be set-congruent or set-incongruent. As predicted, low-anxious (i.e., primary) psychopathic participants displayed a significantly greater priming effect than low anxious non-psychopathic participants. The results highlight the potential value of priming relevant cognitive sets to overcome the costly information processing deficits associated with psychopathy. Treatment efforts emphasizing a balance of attention between primary and peripheral information may prove especially effective for reducing maladaptive behavior in psychopathic individuals.

Generating Attention, Inhibition, and Memory: A Pilot Randomized Trial for Preschoolers With Executive Functioning Deficits

This goal of this study was to assess the initial feasibility and efficacy of a play-based intervention targeting executive functions (EF) and parent–child relationships in preschoolers compared with an active control group. Preschoolers with EF deficits (M age = 3.7 ± 0.47, predominantly White boys) and their parents were randomized to intervention (n = 36) or active control (n = 32) conditions. Child performance on EF tasks, parent and masked teacher ratings of EF and behavior, and masked clinician ratings of severity were collected at baseline and at 3 and 6 months postbaseline. Partial eta-squared effect sizes at .02 or higher comparing performance across the two groups was considered evidence of meaningful, albeit small, intervention effects. Intervention effects were observed for parent ratings of inattention, hyperactivity/impulsivity, and number/severity of problems experienced in various home situations, teacher ratings of severity of problems in various school situations, parent and teacher ratings of overall impairment, and clinician ratings of impairment. Intervention effects for functional improvements were maintained at the 6-month follow-up. No effect of the intervention was observed on the objective EF measures, although parent ratings of emotional control were improved for children in the intervention group. An intervention utilizing play-based activities targeting EF, when administered in a structured way by parents, is a promising approach for improving behavior in preschoolers with self-regulation deficits. More work is needed to investigate potential impact on EF and to disentangle mechanisms of action. It may be that the intervention’s focus on the structure and quality of parent–child interactions is a mediator of outcomes, rather than improved EFs.

The Firepower of Work Craving: When Self-Control Is Burning under the Rubble of Self-Regulation.

Work craving theory addresses how work-addicted individuals direct great emotion-regulatory efforts to weave their addictive web of working. They crave work for two main emotional incentives: to overcompensate low self-worth and to escape (i.e., reduce) negative affect, which is strategically achieved through neurotic perfectionism and compulsive working. Work-addicted individuals’ strong persistence and self-discipline with respect to work-related activities suggest strong skills in volitional action control. However, their inability to disconnect from work implies low volitional skills. How can work-addicted individuals have poor and strong volitional skills at the same time? To answer this paradox, we elaborated on the relevance of two different volitional modes in work craving: self-regulation (self-maintenance) and self-control (goal maintenance). Four hypotheses were derived from Wojdylo’s work craving theory and Kuhl’s self-regulation theory: (H1) Work craving is associated with a combination of low self-regulation and high self-control. (H2) Work craving is associated with symptoms of psychological distress. (H3) Low self-regulation is associated with psychological distress symptoms. (H4) Work craving mediates the relationships between self-regulation deficits and psychological distress symptoms at high levels of self-control. Additionally, we aimed at supporting the discriminant validity of work craving with respect to work engagement by showing their different volitional underpinnings. Results of the two studies confirmed our hypotheses: whereas work craving was predicted by high self-control and low self-regulation and associated with higher psychological distress, work engagement was predicted by high self-regulation and high self-control and associated with lower symptoms of psychological distress. Furthermore, work styles mediated the relationship between volitional skills and symptoms of psychological distress. Based on these new insights, several suggestions for prevention and therapeutic interventions for work-addicted individuals are proposed.

Cause or consequence? Investigating attention bias and self-regulation skills in children at risk for obesity

Impaired self-regulation, especially in food-specific situations, has been linked to childhood obesity. These deficits may be acquired during the development of obesity rather than being a prerequisite thereof. The current study, hence, focused on an at-risk population versus controls. Normal-weight children of obese and normal-weight parents were tested regarding attentional flexibility, emotion regulation, and inhibitory control. A sample of 50 preschoolers of obese parents (n=25) or normal-weight parents (n=25) participated in this study. Through eye-tracking, attentional bias for food cues was measured during a visual probe task using food and toy images. Emotion regulation was assessed during a distress-evoking task, and inhibitory control was examined through a delay-of-gratification task. Both tasks are standardized and were conducted in non-food contexts. Results showed no significant group differences in overall attentional bias to food images over toy images. However, children of normal-weight parents showed a preference for toy images. Regarding emotion regulation, children in the risk group expressed significantly less overall emotional distress. In addition, less gaze aversion and bodily sadness could be observed in this group. No differences were found for inhibitory control. Findings suggest that general deficits in self-regulation are not yet present in normal-weight children at risk for obesity. Instead, they might develop as a by-product of unhealthy weight gain. Results indicate, however, that children of obese parents are less emotionally expressive compared with children of normal-weight parents. Furthermore, children of normal-weight parents appeared to be more interested in toy images than in food images.

Gender Differences in the Associations Among Sexual Abuse, Posttraumatic Stress Symptoms, and Delinquent Behaviors in a Sample of Detained Adolescents

Sexual abuse (SA) is highly prevalent among detained youth and is associated with a number of deleterious outcomes associated with self-regulation deficits; however, less is known about the consequences of SA for boys. Thus, the current study examined posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) and associated symptoms in a sample of detained youth (612 boys, 214 girls). 9.2 % of boys and 51.0 % of girls endorsed SA. There were no gender differences in rates of symptoms endorsed by sexually abused girls and boys; however, sexually abused boys reported higher rates of symptoms in comparison to non-sexually abused boys. Results indicated that, for boys only, there were significant indirect effects of emotion dysregulation (ED), borderline personality features (BP), and dissociation on the association between SA and PTSS. Additionally, there was a significant, indirect effect of BP on the association between SA and delinquent behaviors for both boys and girls.

Proper Emotion Recognition, Dysfunctional Emotion Regulation

A considerable number of adolescents exhibit severe self-regulation deficits in affect and behavior, which are referred to as affective dysregulation (AD). AD may be conceptualized as a dimensional trait that, in its extreme form, resembles the diagnostic categories of severe mood dysregulation (SMD) or disruptive mood dysregulation disorder (DMDD). Assuming a shared pathway of psychopathology in AD and SMD, similar underlying dysfunctional mechanisms in emotion processing, particularly emotion recognition (RECOG) and regulation (REGUL), may be postulated. Adolescent inpatients with AD (CAD, N = 35), without AD (CCG, N = 28), and nonclinical controls (NCG; N = 28) were administered a morphed facial recognition task (RECOG). REGUL abilities, levels of irritability as well as depressive symptoms were also assessed. We found no significant group differences in accuracy and thresholds for RECOG abilities. Patients with AD reported more dysfunctional REGUL strategies than did CCG and NCG. Both depression and AD, but not irritability, influenced the overall degree of maladaptive REGUL. The broad phenotype of AD does not involve the deficits in RECOG reported for adolescents with a narrow phenotype (SMD); regarding REGUL strategies, AD seems to be associated with specific impairments.

Treatment of Depression From a Self-Regulation Perspective: Basic Concepts and Applied Strategies in Self-System Therapy.

Self-regulation models of psychopathology provide a theory-based, empirically supported framework for developing psychotherapeutic interventions that complement and extend current cognitive-behavioral models. However, many clinicians are only minimally familiar with the psychology of self-regulation. The aim of the present manuscript is twofold. First, we provide an overview of self-regulation as a motivational process essential to well-being and introduce two related theories of self-regulation which have been applied to depression. Second, we describe how self-regulatory concepts and processes from those two theories have been translated into psychosocial interventions, focusing specifically on self-system therapy (SST), a brief structured treatment for depression that targets personal goal pursuit. Two randomized controlled trials have shown that SST is superior to cognitive therapy for depressed clients with specific self-regulatory deficits, and both studies found evidence that SST works in part by restoring adaptive self-regulation. Self-regulation-based psychotherapeutic approaches to depression hold significant promise for enhancing treatment efficacy and ultimately may provide an individualizable framework for treatment planning.

Do I feel ill because I crave for work or do I crave for work because I feel ill? A longitudinal analysis of work craving, self-regulation, and health.

BackgroundThe theory of work craving defines workaholism as a pathological work addiction which comprises: (a) obsessive–compulsive desire to work, (b) anticipation of self-worth compensatory incentives from working, (c) anticipation of reduction of negative emotions or withdrawal symptoms from working, and (d) neurotic perfectionism. Research has shown that workaholism is associated with adverse health outcomes. However, the antecedents of workaholism and the causal direction of the relationship with health have been largely neglected.AimsIn the present longitudinal study, we expect that work craving is predicted by deficits in emotional self-regulation (i.e., low action orientation) and mediates the relationship between self-regulation deficits and symptoms of psychological distress. We expected work craving to have an effect on later psychological distress symptoms, but not psychological distress symptoms to have an effect on later work craving.MethodsIn a sample of 170 German employees, a half-longitudinal design using two times of measurement was implemented to specify the paths of two different structural equation models of mediation: (a) action orientation to later work craving and work craving to later psychological distress, and alternatively, (b) the temporal order of action orientation to later distress and distress to later work craving.ResultsOur data indicated that work craving partially mediated the relationship between self-regulation deficits and psychological distress, but psychological distress symptoms were not found to increase later work craving.ConclusionsThe presented longitudinal study indicates important mechanisms of work craving, especially by highlighting the influence of self-regulation deficits on work craving and, in turn, psychological distress.