Mindfulness-based Interventions for Emotional Dysregulation in Adolescents: A Systematic Review.

Mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) reduce emotional dysregulation and improve emotional regulation, coping skills, and neurological functioning in adolescents. Emotional dysregulation—frequent, intense emotions with poor coping—is a key concern during adolescence, linked to mental health challenges. A systematic review following PRISMA guidelines found that MBIs, which cultivate nonjudgmental present-moment awareness, effectively enhance self-regulation of emotions and behavior. The findings suggest MBIs can serve as both a preventative and therapeutic strategy for adolescent mental health.

Study at a glance

Abstract

Emotional dysregulation is a multidimensional construct, understood as frequent and intense experience of emotions combined with a lack of ability to cope with their occurrence. Adolescence represents a crucial developmental period where emotional dysregulation is being increasingly addressed as an emerging mental health issue, with implications on overall well-being, as well as a potential cause of psychopathology. Mindfulness is the awareness that surfaces through purposefully paying attention to the present moment and nonjudgmentally, exploring the layers of moment-to-moment experiences; Mindfulness-Based Interventions (MBIs) emphasise increasing the awareness of the thoughts, feelings, and actions through therapeutic application of Mindfulness techniques. The application of MBIs is conducive to reducing emotional regulation difficulties and has further led to the enhancement of self-regulation of emotions and behaviour. This study aims to understand the role of MBIs on emotional dysregulation among adolescents.The methodology comprised of a systematic review of literature following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. The analysis of the literature highlighted that MBIs effectively reduce emotional dysregulation and improve emotional regulation. The findings suggest that MBIs have been found to reduce adolescents' emotional dysregulation and improve emotional regulation, coping skills, as well as neurological functioning, leading to positive outcomes as well as an enhancement of self-regulation of emotions. Emotional dysregulation is a critical concern during adolescence and can lead to mental health challenges.Mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) help enhance emotional awareness and self-regulation.Systematic review findings suggest MBIs effectively reduce emotional dysregulation among adolescents.MBIs can serve as a preventative and therapeutic strategy for adolescent mental health.