Children’s Dual Emotion Regulation Strategy Scale (CDERS)

Abstract

The Children’s Dual Emotion Regulation Strategy Scale (CDERS; Wang et al., 2023) is a 24-item, scenario-based instrument designed to assess children’s perspectives on emotion regulation strategies, incorporating both Western and East Asian cultural viewpoints. This measure was developed in response to the limited cultural and contextual sensitivity in existing emotion regulation literature, which primarily focused on adult participants. The development of the CDERS was guided by the Dual Emotion Regulation (DER) model (Morris et al., 2015), which integrates features from both Western and East Asian cultures. Initially, 39 scenarios were developed and reviewed by six academic and clinical professionals. From these, six interpersonal conflict scenarios were chosen, with each scenario featuring four emotion regulation strategies: expression, forbearance, impulsiveness, and suppression, resulting in a total of 24 items. Nine pilot studies were conducted to evaluate the appropriateness of the scale from children’s perspectives. The CDERS was administered to children and young adolescents in Taiwan. A confirmatory factor analysis affirmed the four-factor structure consistent with the DER model. The study also reported on the reliability and validity of the scale.

Keywords

Children’s Emotion Regulation; Cultural Perspectives; Dual Emotion Regulation Model; East Asian Cultural Perspectives; Expression; Forbearance; Impulsiveness; Incremental Validity; Scenario-Based Measure; Suppression; Western Cultural Perspectives

Authors

Wang, Li-fei; Wei, Meifen; Chang, Jen‐Ho; Chiao, Hung

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Purpose

The primary purpose of this measure is to assess emotion regulation among children and adolescents, specifically integrating Western and East Asian cultural perspectives on these strategies.

Validity

Concurrent Validity: The CDERS demonstrated concurrent validity, with its four strategies accounting for 18%–20% of the variance in predicting positive self-concept and life adjustment.

Predictive Validity: The CDERS exhibited predictive validity, accounting for 12%–16% of the variance in predicting six different outcomes.

Incremental Validity: The scale showed significant incremental validity, accounting for an additional 3%–11% of the variance in predicting all outcomes, beyond what existing Western and East Asian emotion regulation measures could explain.

Reliability

Internal Consistency: The CDERS subscales demonstrated acceptable internal reliability, with coefficient alphas ranging from 0.70 to 0.82.

Test-Retest Reliability: The CDERS subscales exhibited acceptable test-retest reliability over a one-month period. The correlations were: expression (r = 0.70, p < 0.001), forbearance (r = 0.65, p < 0.001), suppression (r = 0.73, p < 0.001), and impulsiveness (r = 0.76, p < 0.001).

Factor Analysis

Confirmatory Factor Analysis: A confirmatory factor analysis was performed on the 24-item CDERS scale. This analysis used maximum likelihood estimation with robust standard errors, and missing data were handled using the full information maximum likelihood (FIML) method. When compared to five other models, the four-factor oblique model, incorporating a method effect, provided the best fit for the data (χ2 = 701.64, df = 210, CFI = 0.93, SRMR = 0.087, RMSEA = 0.055). This confirmed the four-factor structure proposed in the Dual Emotion Regulation (DER) model.

Instrument: Children’s Dual Emotion Regulation Strategy Scale (CDERS)

Test Type: Original

Format: The CDERS consists of six scenarios, including two sets each of parent–child conflict, teacher–student conflict, and peer conflict. Each scenario contains four respondent items (i.e., expression, forbearance, suppression, and impulsiveness), totaling 24 items. These items are scored on a 5-point rating scale, ranging from 0 (never) to 4 (always).

Language Available: Chinese. English is the language present in the provided text.

Population Group: Human; Male; Female

Age Group: Childhood (birth-12 yrs); Adolescence (13-17 yrs). Specifically, the respondents were children and young adolescents (4th to 9th Graders).

Population Details: The study participants were located in Taiwan.

Test Methodology: Test Validity (Concurrent Validity, Predictive Validity, Incremental Validity); Test Reliability (Internal Consistency, Test-Retest Reliability); Factor Analysis (Confirmatory Factor Analysis).

Keywords

Child Attitudes; Childhood Development; Cross Cultural Differences; Emotional Regulation; Impulsiveness; Southeast Asian Cultural Groups; Suppression (Defense Mechanism); Emotional Assessment; Vignette Measure; Cultural Attitudes

Authors

Wang, Li-fei
Affiliation: Department of Educational Psychology and Counseling, National Taiwan Normal University
Email addresses: No data is Available

Wei, Meifen
Affiliation: Department of Psychology, Iowa State University
Email addresses: No data is Available

Chang, Jen‐Ho
Author ORCID Identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0001-5357-708X
Affiliation: Academia Sinica, Institute of Ethnology
Email addresses: [email protected]
Correspondence Address: Academia Sinica, Institute of Ethnology, 128 Academia Road, Section 2, Nankang, Taipei, Taiwan, Province of China, 11529, [email protected]

Chiao, Hung
Affiliation: Department of Educational Psychology and Counseling, National Taiwan Normal University
Email addresses: No data is Available

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

Permissions: Contact Corresponding Author

Commercial: No

Fee: No

Test Year: 2023

References

Wang, L.‐f., Wei, M., Chang, J.‐H., & Chiao, H. (2023). The Children’s Dual Emotion Regulation Strategy scale: An integrated perspective of Western and East Asian cultures. Asian Journal of Social Psychology, 26(4), 461–474. https://doi.org/10.1111/ajsp.12571

Items of the Children’s Dual Emotion Regulation Strategy Scale (CDERS)

The CDERS is a 24-item measure composed of six interpersonal conflict scenarios. Each scenario includes four emotion regulation strategies:

• Expression

• Forbearance

• Impulsiveness

• Suppression