Short report: Longitudinal study on emotion understanding in children with and without developmental language disorder.

BACKGROUND: Children with Developmental Language Disorder (DLD) have difficult access to social interactions, which could in turn limit their opportunities to learn about others' emotions. AIMS: This study aimed to investigate the developmental trajectories of emotion understanding in young children with and without DLD. METHODS AND PROCEDURES: 95 DLD children and 149 non-DLD children were tested twice, with an approximately two-year interval (Mage = 3.58 years at Time 1), on three indices for emotion understanding (discrimination, identification, and attribution in emotion-evoking situations). OUTCOMES AND RESULTS: At Time 2, DLD children fell behind their non-DLD peers on the non-verbal task for emotion discrimination, while catching up on the verbal tasks for emotion identification and attribution. The two groups developed most of these skills with a similar improvement over time, but DLD children showed a greater increase in positive emotion identification and attribution with age than non-DLD children. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: The findings showed the potential of DLD children to understand others' emotions in verbal tasks to a similar extent as their non-DLD peers. However, DLD children may still face difficulties understanding more implicit emotional messages in real-life situations, and longitudinal follow-ups are required to reveal these challenges.

Longitudinal effects of emotion awareness and regulation on mental health symptoms in adolescents with and without hearing loss.

Emotion awareness (EA) and regulation (ER) are each known to associate with mental health symptoms, yet there is a paucity of longitudinal studies examining them jointly during adolescence. Furthermore, little is known about these skills and their relations in deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) adolescents, who are at risk for reduced emotion socialization and for more mental health symptoms. This longitudinal study examined the development and unique contributions of EA (emotion differentiation, emotion communication and bodily unawareness) and ER (approach, avoidance and worry/rumination) to internalizing and externalizing symptoms in adolescents with and without hearing loss. Using self- and parent's reports, we assessed 307 adolescents (age 9-15) three times over 18-month period. We found stability over time in development of EA and avoidance ER, increase in approach ER and decrease in worry/rumination. High levels and increases over time in two aspects of EA, emotion differentiation and communication, and in approach and avoidance ER were related to decreases in depressive symptoms. An increase in approach ER was also related to a decrease in anxiety symptoms. Yet, low levels or decreases in worry/rumination were related to decreased levels of depressive, anxiety and externalizing symptoms. Hearing loss did not moderate any of the variables or relations tested. Preliminary tests suggested heterogeneity within the DHH group according to educational placement, language abilities and parental education level. Overall, findings pointed at unique contributions of EA and ER to mental health development, suggesting that DHH adolescents, especially in mainstream schools, do not differ from their hearing peers in their emotion awareness and regulation.

The Roles of Shame and Guilt in the Development of Aggression in Adolescents With and Without Hearing Loss.

This longitudinal study examined how shame and guilt contribute to the development of reactive and proactive aggression in adolescents with and without hearing loss. Adolescents between 9 and 16 years old (adolescents with hearing loss (n = 80; Mage = 11.91) and without hearing loss (n = 227; Mage = 11.63)) completed self-reports on three occasions with an interval of 9 months. Mixed model analyses revealed that both reactive aggression and proactive aggression decreased with age, whereas shame and guilt peaked in early adolescence. Adolescents with hearing loss reported higher levels of proactive aggression, lower levels of shame and guilt, and showed protracted development for guilt compared to their hearing peers. In both groups, shame contributed to an increase in reactive aggression, whereas guilt contributed to a decrease in proactive aggression. These longitudinal associations highlight the unique role that shame and guilt play in the development of adolescent aggression.

Use of the Brief Shame and Guilt Questionnaire in Deaf and Hard of Hearing Children and Adolescents.

No assessment tools are available to measure shame and guilt in children who are deaf or hard of hearing (DHH), while these self-conscious emotions might play a role in the frequently noted social and behavioral problems in this group. Therefore, the aim of this study was to validate the Brief Shame and Guilt Questionnaire (BSGQ) in DHH children. In addition, we examined associations of shame and guilt with social anxiety, self-esteem, delinquency, and psychopathic behaviors. A sum of 225 hearing (Mage = 11.62 years) and 108 DHH (Mage = 11.82 years) participants completed the self-report BSGQ. Multigroup confirmatory factor analysis confirmed the two-factor structure (i.e., shame and guilt) of the BSGQ in the DHH group. Measurement invariance was established across both groups. However, the DHH group reported lower levels of self-conscious emotions in comparison with the hearing group. The BSGQ showed good concurrent validity, where shame was associated with higher levels of social anxiety and lower levels of self-esteem, and guilt was associated with lower levels of delinquency and psychopathic behavior in both groups. Future research should investigate the potential behavioral consequences of lower reported levels of self-conscious emotions in DHH youth.

Bidirectional relationships between bullying, victimization and emotion experience in boys with and without autism.

Adolescents with autism are more often victims of bullying than peers without autism. Although prior work indicates that emotions play an important role, bidirectional relationships are yet unknown. This study examines the longitudinal associations of anger, fear, guilt and shame with being victimized and bullying others in adolescent boys with and without autism. On three occasions (9 months in between) 169 boys (43% with autism, 11.6 years at T1) completed self-reports. Findings show that more anger and less guilt predicted bullying behaviour, and vice versa, in both groups. In addition, more anger and fear predicted victimization. Fear was a stronger predictor in boys without autism. In turn, victimization predicted more anger, fear and shame. Especially, boys with autism reported more anger after being bullied, suggesting a tenacious vicious circle: these youngsters are likely to be angered when being bullied, which, in turn, makes them a target for bullies. Our findings provide new theoretical insights in the role emotions play in the emergence and maintenance of victimization/bullying others in boys with and without autism.

Friendship and Emotion Control in Pre-Adolescents With or Without Hearing Loss.

Emotional functioning plays a crucial role in the social development of children and adolescents. We examined the extent to which emotion control was related to the quality of friendships in pre-adolescents with and without hearing loss. We tested 350 pre-adolescents (75 deaf/hard of hearing in mainstream education (DHHm), 48 deaf/hard of hearing in special education (DHHs), and 227 hearing) through self-report. Outcomes confirmed a positive association between emotion control and positive friendships for all groups, with one notable exception: more approach strategies for emotion regulation were associated with more negative friendship features in the DHHs group. In addition, the DHHm group demonstrated high levels of emotion control, while their levels of positive friendship features were still lower compared to the hearing group.

Longitudinal Associations Between Bullying and Emotions in Deaf and Hard of Hearing Adolescents.

In hearing adolescents, emotions play important roles in the development of bullying and victimization. Yet, it is unclear whether this also applies to adolescents who are deaf or hard of hearing (DHH). The present study examines the longitudinal associations of anger, fear, guilt, and shame with bullying/victimization in DHH adolescents. Overall, 80 DHH and 227 hearing adolescents (Mage = 11.7; 103 males) completed self-reports on two occasions with a 9-month interval. Outcomes show that DHH adolescents reported fewer bullying behaviors, but more victimization compared to hearing adolescents. Longitudinal relations between emotions and bullying/victimization did not differ between DHH and hearing adolescents. More anger and less guilt predicted increased bullying, and more bullying predicted increased anger and decreased guilt. Higher levels of anger, fear, and shame predicted increased victimization, and more victimization predicted increased anger, fear, and shame. These findings emphasize that emotions are involved in both the emergence and maintenance of bullying and victimization. These outcomes have clinical implications for the prevention of bullying.

Assessing Empathy across Childhood and Adolescence: Validation of the Empathy Questionnaire for Children and Adolescents (EmQue-CA).

Empathy plays a crucial role in healthy social functioning and in maintaining positive social relationships. In this study, 1250 children and adolescents (10-15 year olds) completed the newly developed Empathy Questionnaire for Children and Adolescents (EmQue-CA) that was tested on reliability, construct validity, convergent validity, and concurrent validity. The EmQue-CA aims to assess empathy using the following scales: affective empathy, cognitive empathy, and intention to comfort. A Principal Components Analysis, which was directly tested with a Confirmatory Factor Analysis, confirmed the proposed three-factor model resulting in 14 final items. Reliability analyses demonstrated high internal consistency of the scales. Furthermore, the scales showed high convergent validity, as they were positively correlated with related scales of the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (Davis, 1983). With regard to concurrent validity, higher empathy was related to more attention to others' emotions, higher friendship quality, less focus on own affective state, and lower levels of bullying behavior. Taken together, we show that the EmQue-CA is a reliable and valid instrument to measure empathy in typically developing children and adolescents aged 10 and older.

Disentangling proactive and reactive aggression in children using self-report.

The distinction between proactive and reactive functions of aggression is one of the most common divisions when investigating aggression among children and adolescents. To date, self-report is the least used measurement, despite existing literature supporting the view that the best informant regarding internal processes and motives are children themselves. The main aim of this study was to examine the construct and concurrent validity of a new self-report questionnaire, which aims to disentangle acts of reactive vs. proactive aggression that are most common within the daily lives of children. We examined the self-report measure among 578 children (313 girls, 265 boys, mean age 11 years, range 9-13 years). Most children (90% boys; 85% girls) reported at least one act of aggression over the last four weeks. Furthermore, the outcomes support the two-factor structure (reactive and proactive aggression) and the questionnaire showed good concurrent and discriminant validity with measures for emotional and social functioning. This study validates the use of the self-report instrument for reactive and proactive aggression and demonstrates that children can successfully distinguish between their own motives for reactive and proactive forms of aggressive behaviours.

The Understanding of Intentions, Desires and Beliefs in Young Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder.

This study provides a comprehensive picture of three core elements (Intentions, Desires, Beliefs) of Theory of Mind (ToM) in young children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD, n = 63, Mage = 55 months) and typically developing children (TD, n = 69, Mage = 54 months). Outcomes showed that ASD and TD children understood intentional actions equally well. Yet, children with ASD lacked the social interest to share intentions. Additionally, children with ASD had more difficulties in understanding others' desires and beliefs compared to their TD peers. It is discussed whether the ToM delay seen in children with ASD is a motivational or a conceptual problem.

Preliminary findings on associations between moral emotions and social behavior in young children with normal hearing and with cochlear implants.

Moral emotions such as shame, guilt and pride are the result of an evaluation of the own behavior as (morally) right or wrong. The capacity to experience moral emotions is thought to be an important driving force behind socially appropriate behavior. The relationship between moral emotions and social behavior in young children has not been studied extensively in normally hearing (NH) children, let alone in those with a hearing impairment. This study compared young children with hearing impairments who have a cochlear implant (CI) to NH peers regarding the extent to which they display moral emotions, and how this relates to their social functioning and language skills. Responses of 184 NH children and 60 children with CI (14-61 months old) to shame-/guilt- and pride-inducing events were observed. Parents reported on their children's social competence and externalizing behavior, and experimenters observed children's cooperative behavior. To examine the role of communication in the development of moral emotions and social behavior, children's language skills were assessed. Results show that children with CI displayed moral emotions to a lesser degree than NH children. An association between moral emotions and social functioning was found in the NH group, but not in the CI group. General language skills were unrelated to moral emotions in the CI group, yet emotion vocabulary was related to social functioning in both groups of children. We conclude that facilitating emotion language skills has the potential to promote children's social functioning, and could contribute to a decrease in behavioral problems in children with CI specifically. Future studies should examine in greater detail which factors are associated with the development of moral emotions, particularly in children with CI. Some possible directions for future research are discussed.