Summary: New research finds that children who struggle to manage strong emotions around age seven are more likely to develop symptoms of anxiety and depression during their teenage years. The study tracked emotional development and mental health from childhood to age 17 using data from the UK Millennium Cohort Study.
Early signs such as frequent mood swings, intense excitement, and easy frustration were strong predictors of later internalizing problems. The findings highlight the value of early emotional skills training as a preventive strategy to support adolescent mental health.
Key Facts:
- Early emotion regulation matters: Difficulty managing emotions at age 7 was associated with higher rates of anxiety and depression symptoms in adolescence.
- Long-lasting association: The relationship persisted through age 17, even after accounting for earlier mental health and behavioural differences.
- Prevention opportunity: Targeted support for emotion regulation in childhood could reduce the risk of internalizing mental health problems in teenagers.
Source: University of Edinburgh
Children who find it hard to control emotions and behaviour at an early age show more anxiety and depression symptoms as teenagers, new analysis shows.
The research team observed that children who struggled with intense feelings at age seven were more likely to display signs of internalising problems — including persistent sadness, worry and anxious thoughts — at ages 11, 14 and 17.
Funded by the Medical Research Foundation, the University of Edinburgh study is among the first large-scale examinations to link early emotion regulation patterns with mental health outcomes in adolescence.
Using a nationally representative sample, researchers tested whether emotion dysregulation in childhood appears to precede and predict internalising problems in the teenage years. Adolescence is a peak period for the emergence of these conditions: around one in three young people experience depression and about one in five are affected by an anxiety disorder, the authors note.
The analysis drew on data from the UK Millennium Cohort Study, which follows roughly 19,000 children born in 2000–2002. The team examined parent and teacher reports and questionnaire data collected when participants were aged 7, and then assessed mental health measures at ages 11, 14 and 17.
Advanced statistical methods, including counterfactual-style approaches, were used to compare children with differing levels of emotion regulation skills at age seven while controlling for potential confounders such as earlier internalising symptoms and behavioural differences. This allowed the researchers to estimate whether childhood emotion dysregulation had an independent effect on later internalising outcomes.
Results indicated a modest but statistically significant effect: children who showed repeated mood swings, frequent over-excitement or pronounced frustration at age seven were more likely to report anxiety and depressive symptoms during adolescence. Importantly, this link remained observable up to age 17 after adjusting for prior mental health problems and other background factors.
The sustained association suggests that intense emotional difficulties in early childhood can set a developmental pathway that increases vulnerability to internalising disorders in the teenage years. The researchers highlight childhood emotion regulation as a practical intervention target for prevention efforts.
Dr Aja Murray of the University of Edinburgh’s School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences, who led the study, said the findings support early intervention: helping children build emotion regulation skills could reduce the likelihood of later mental health challenges.
Dr Angela Hind, Chief Executive of the Medical Research Foundation, emphasised the public health importance: because many mental health conditions begin in adolescence, identifying childhood risk factors opens the possibility of shifting from treatment to early prevention and targeted support that can change young lives.
About this neurodevelopment and mental health research news
Author: Joanne Morrison
Source: University of Edinburgh
Contact: Joanne Morrison – University of Edinburgh
Image: The image is credited to Neuroscience News
Original Research: Open access.
“Is emotion dysregulation in childhood a precursor to internalising problems in adolescence?” by Aja Murray et al., Journal of Affective Disorders. DOI: 10.1016/j.jad.2025.119433
Abstract
Is emotion dysregulation in childhood a precursor to internalising problems in adolescence?
Internalising problems such as anxiety and depression commonly emerge around the transition to adolescence. While prior research links emotion regulation difficulties with internalising symptoms, the causal role of childhood emotion dysregulation has been less clear.
This study applies a counterfactual analysis approach to a large, representative UK cohort to evaluate whether emotion regulation difficulties at age seven have an independent impact on internalising problems at ages 11, 14 and 17, after accounting for confounders including earlier internalising symptoms.
Findings demonstrate a modest but meaningful effect: childhood emotion dysregulation contributes to greater risk of adolescent internalising problems, supporting the idea that improving emotion regulation in early childhood could be a promising avenue for preventing later anxiety and depression.