Emotional dysregulation in childhood and disordered eating and self-harm in adolescence: prospective associations and mediating pathways

Background: Emotional dysregulation may be a risk factor for disordered eating and self-harm in young people, but few prospective studies have assessed these associations long-term, or considered potential mediators. We examined prospective relationships between childhood emotional dysregulation and disordered eating and self-harm in adolescence; and social cognition, emotional recognition, and being bullied as mediators. Methods: We analysed Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children data on 3,453 males and 3,481 females. We examined associations between emotional dysregulation at 7 years and any disordered eating and any self-harm at 16 years with probit regression models. We also assessed whether social cognition (7 years), emotional recognition (8 years) and bullying victimisation (11 years) mediated these relationships. Results: Emotional dysregulation at age 7 years was associated with disordered eating [fully adjusted probit B (95% CI) = 0.082 (0.029, 0.134)] and self-harm [fully adjusted probit B (95% CI) = 0.093 (0.036, 0.150)] at age 16 years. There was no evidence of sex interactions or difference in effects between self-harm and disordered eating. Mediation models found social cognition was a key pathway to disordered eating (females 51.2%; males 27.0% of total effect) and self-harm (females 15.7%; males 10.8% of total effect). Bullying victimisation was an important pathway to disordered eating (females 17.1%; males 10.0% of total effect), but only to self-harm in females (15.7% of total effect). Indirect effects were stronger for disordered eating than self-harm. Conclusions: In males and females, emotional dysregulation in early childhood is associated with disordered eating and self-harm in adolescence and may be a useful target for prevention and treatment. Mediating pathways appeared to differ by sex and outcome, but social cognition was a key mediating pathway for both disordered eating and self-harm.

Citation

Warne, N., Heron, J., Mars, B., Solmi, F., Biddle, L., Gunnell, D., Hammerton, G., Moran, P., Munafò, M., Penton-Voak, I., Skinner, A., Stewart, A., & Bould, H. (2023). Emotional dysregulation in childhood and disordered eating and self-harm in adolescence: prospective associations and mediating pathways. Journal of child psychology and psychiatry, and allied disciplines, 64(5), 797–806. https://doi.org/10.1111/jcpp.13738

DOI

10.1111/jcpp.13738

URI

https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14709/735