Emotional Clarity as a Mechanism Linking Emotional Neglect and Depressive Symptoms During Early Adolescence

Abstract

The present study examined whether emotional abuse and neglect differentially predicted decreases in emotional clarity, and whether emotional clarity, in turn, predicted increases in depressive symptoms. Participants included 204 early adolescents (52% African American; 54% female; M age = 12.85 years) who completed four assessments with measures of depressive symptoms, emotional clarity, and emotional abuse and neglect. Hierarchical linear regressions indicated that emotional neglect significantly predicted decreases in emotional clarity, whereas emotional abuse did not. Further, mediational analyses revealed that decreases in emotional clarity mediated the relationship between emotional neglect and increases in depressive symptoms. The current study suggests that emotional neglect (more so than emotional abuse) may hinder an individual’s ability to identify his or her own emotions, which may increase the risk of depressive symptoms during adolescence. These findings have significant implications for the development of intervention and prevention programs for depression.