Emotion Dysregulation Linked to Depression Symptoms in a Sub-Saharan Sample of Adolescent University Students

Emotions are fundamental to human development and survival across the lifespan. Adolescence is a volatile and critical developmental period characterized by frequent high-intensity positive and negative emotions. Emotion dysregulation and depression symptoms are common occurrences in adolescence. This study explored the association between emotion regulation difficulties and depressive symptoms in adolescents. The study was anchored on the extended process model of emotion regulation. The study employed a descriptive-analytical design and sampled 352 adolescents, ages 18-19, from the United States International University-Africa, Kenya. SPSS® v28 was used to analyze data and apply descriptive and inferential statistics. The study found no gender or ethnic differences in emotion regulation. However, there was a significant association between emotion regulation difficulties and depression, χ2 (3) = 12.133, p = 0.007, V = 0.186, and a positive and significant linear relationship between the variables, r (352) = 0.229, p < 0.001, r2 = 0.052. Notably, the higher the emotion regulation difficulties, the higher the depression levels. The study concluded that emotionally dysregulated adolescent university students are particularly vulnerable to developing psychological symptoms of depression.