Distinct profiles of caregiver and adolescent emotion regulation were identified, with findings suggesting that adolescent ER may more strongly influence positive patterns of communication regarding sexual health and relationships than parent ER.
Key Findings
Results
Three distinct clusters of caregiver-adolescent emotion regulation strategy use were identified among the sample.
Participants included adolescent males (n = 117; Mage = 13.06; SD = 0.72) and their caregivers (Mage = 42.33; SD = 0.72)
Cluster 1: 'Moderate ER strategy use' — both parents and adolescents used moderate ER strategies
Cluster 2: 'Low ER strategy use' — both parents and adolescents used low ER strategies
Cluster 3: 'Mixed ER strategy use' — moderate adolescent but low caregiver ER strategy use
Participants were recruited as part of a dyadic, web-based dating violence prevention intervention trial for middle school boys
Results
Caregivers in the Moderate ER strategy use cluster reported discussing the greatest total number of sexual health and relationship topics.
This finding was based on caregiver self-report measures of sexual health and relationship topic discussion
The Moderate ER cluster was characterized by moderate ER strategy use by both caregivers and adolescents
This suggests that higher caregiver ER is associated with broader coverage of sexual health topics in caregiver-adolescent communication
Results
Adolescents in the Mixed ER strategy use cluster indicated the greatest perceived caregiver openness during sexual health and relationship discussions.
The Mixed ER cluster was characterized by moderate adolescent ER but low caregiver ER strategy use
Perceived openness was measured via adolescent self-report
This pattern suggests that adolescent ER level may be more influential than caregiver ER in shaping adolescents' perceptions of communication openness
Discussion
Adolescent emotion regulation appeared to more strongly influence positive patterns of caregiver-adolescent sexual health and relationship communication than caregiver emotion regulation.
Adolescents with moderate ER (Mixed cluster) reported greater perceived openness even when paired with low-ER caregivers
Caregiver ER was more strongly associated with the quantity (number of topics) of communication rather than perceived quality (openness)
Authors note this suggests adolescent ER may be a stronger driver of communication quality than caregiver ER
Methods
The study was conducted as part of a dyadic, web-based dating violence prevention intervention trial, using cluster analysis of self-report ER measures.
Sample was limited to adolescent males and their caregivers, limiting generalizability to other populations
Cluster analysis was performed using a self-report measure of ER strategy use for both caregivers and adolescents
The dyadic design allowed simultaneous assessment of both caregiver and adolescent ER within the same family unit
Recruitment was tied to a middle school dating violence prevention program, which may introduce selection bias
Conclusions
The authors recommend future research comparing the efficacy of adolescent-only versus dyadic sexual health and dating interventions.
The recommendation stems from findings suggesting adolescent ER may suffice to promote positive communication patterns
Authors call for determining 'whether there is a clinically significant additive effect of including caregivers or if adolescent engagement alone may suffice'
This has implications for intervention design and resource allocation in sexual health and dating violence prevention programs
What This Means
This research suggests that the emotional regulation skills of both teenagers and their caregivers can be grouped into distinct patterns, and these patterns are linked to how openly families communicate about sexual health and dating relationships. The study identified three types of families: those where both the caregiver and teen used moderate emotion regulation strategies, those where both used low strategies, and those where the teen used moderate strategies but the caregiver used low strategies. Caregivers who used more emotion regulation strategies tended to discuss a wider range of sexual health topics with their teens, while teens who had better emotion regulation skills reported feeling that their caregivers were more open during these conversations — even when the caregiver's own emotional regulation skills were low.
A notable finding is that the teenager's own emotional regulation ability appeared to play a stronger role in shaping the quality (openness) of sexual health conversations than the caregiver's emotional regulation. This was evident because teens with moderate ER skills reported greater perceived openness from their caregivers regardless of whether those caregivers themselves had strong or weak ER skills. This suggests that helping teens develop better emotional regulation may be particularly impactful for improving family conversations about sexual health and relationships.
This research matters because open caregiver-adolescent communication about sexual health and dating is associated with healthier adolescent decision-making and reduced risk behaviors. The findings raise important practical questions for intervention programs: should resources focus on coaching teens alone in emotional regulation skills, or is there meaningful added benefit to including caregivers in the program? The authors call for future studies to directly test whether involving caregivers in these interventions provides meaningful clinical benefits beyond working with adolescents alone.
Cummings C, Shircliff K, Gatto A, Rizzo C, Houck C. (2025). Cluster analysis of caregiver and adolescent emotion regulation and its relation to sexual health and dating communication.. Journal of pediatric psychology. https://doi.org/10.1093/jpepsy/jsaf012