8 December 2006
World-first research into the emotional welfare of young people may help to reduce youth depression and save millions on the cost of mental health care.
A team from Monash University’s School of Psychology, Psychiatry and Psychological Medicine is studying the ability of young people to regulate their emotions and its long-term impact on their mental health.
The team, headed by Associate Professor Eleonora Gullone, is following a group of 1400 young people, aged 11 to 18. The research began when the youth were aged 8 to 15 years.
Emotional regulation is a relatively new field of psychology and the Monash research team is the first to study it in school-aged children.
"Over the last decade or so, depression has increased significantly, particularly in Australia," Associate Professor Gullone says. "Research conducted in adults has found a link between a person's ability to regulate their emotions and their mental health. We believe the same applies in children."
Psychologists believe people use several strategies to regulate their emotions. These include "suppression", where they feel upset but ignore or suppress the negative emotion; and "reappraisal", where they rethink a potentially upsetting situation, before the emotion arises, to help cope with the consequences.
The team is studying the relationship between these strategies and depression in young people. They also are examining the way self-conscious emotions, such as shame, guilt and empathy, relate to depression. A new stage of the longitudinal study, to begin next year, will look at the role of parenting.
"The research will promote healthy ways of dealing with our emotions and helping young people to control them," she says.
Further information contact Media Communications on +61 3 9905 2085 or Associate Professor Eleonora Gullone on +61 3 9905 5374.
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