Emotional comfort of adolescents with different levels of self-regulation

Abstract

The article describes the theoretical foundations of the concept ‘emotional comfort’ and its features in adolescence. In particular, the article focuses on the role of selfregulation in adolescence. It presents the results of a study that investigated the differences in emotional comfort in adolescents with high and low levels of self-regulation. The study contributes to the identification and prevention of deviant behavior and difficulties in learning and socialization. Emotional comfort is viewed as a component of adaptation marked by confidence, calmness, optimism, and activity, which allow an individual to openly express their feelings. Self-regulation (V. I. Morosanova, O. A. Konopkin) is defined as a systemic process of managing various types of one’s mental activity to achieve one’s goals. The analysis of prior research facilitated the development of a set of methodological tools. Emotional comfort of adolescents was studied using the following methods: Differential Emotions Scale by K. Izard; Diagnostics of Emotional Barriers in Communication by V. V. Boyko; Subjective Well-Being Scale by A. Perue-Badu; and Test of Personality Adjustment by K. Rogers and R. Dymond. To study self-regulation, the following methods were used: questionnaire Style of Self-Regulation of Behavior: SSP-98 by V. I. Morosanova and Profile of Maladapted Behavior of Adolescents by S. T. Posokhova and L. S. Rashitova. The study involved 88 adolescent students (aged 14–17 years). According to the results of the questionnaire Style of Self-Regulation of Behavior: SSP-98 by V. I. Morosanova, the study participants were distributed into two groups. The group of adolescents with a high level of self-regulation (35.16 ±2.41 points) included 32 people, while the group of adolescents with low self-regulation (23.76±3.05 points) 29 people. The differences between the groups are statistically significant (at p ≤0.001). The comparison of these groups of adolescents according to the U-Mann–Whitney criterion allowed us to determine differences in the level of emotional comfort. It has been established that adolescents with a low level of self-regulation experience less emotional comfort, fewer positive emotions (in particular, interest in the educational environment), more grief and shame. They are also marked by the predominance of emotional barriers in communication.