The Line of Emotion Dysregulation and Need Frustration from Parents to Adolescents: The Role of Parental Psychological Control

Accumulating evidence, as outlined by Self-Determination Theory (SDT), highlights the crucial role of emotion dysregulation and basic psychological needs in shaping various psychological outcomes. Parental psychological control may play a key role in understanding how these processes develop within the family context. This study aims to examine the intergenerational transmission of basic psychological needs and emotion dysregulation from parents to adolescents, focusing on the indirect association of parental psychological control within this relationship. 210 Italian families living in the same household, consisting of biological parents and one adolescent (55% female) aged between 13 and 18 years old (M = 15.71, SD = 1.76) participated in the study. The results showed that both mothers' and fathers' higher emotion dysregulation were related to their own higher levels of psychological control, while higher maternal need frustration was related to higher perceptions of parental psychological control in adolescents. In turn, higher perceptions of parental psychological control in adolescents were related to adolescents' higher need frustration and emotion dysregulation. Furthermore, higher maternal emotion dysregulation was linked to higher adolescent emotion dysregulation, and higher paternal need frustration was linked to higher adolescent need frustration. These findings are explored in the context of SDT and highlight the significance of both emotion regulation ability and needs in shaping adolescent adjustment.