Emotional and behavioral problems (such as depression or aggressive behavior) represent important risks especially during adolescence, because is a period with many developmental demands and changes (Steinberg & Morris, 2001; Zahn-Waxler et al., 2000). Research emphasizes the crucial role of negative-emotionality and self-regulation in the development of emotional and behavioral problems during adolescence (Eisenberg & Morris, 2002; Rothbart & Bates, 2006; Oldehinkel et al., 2007): different levels of negative-emotionality and self-regulation can be differently associated to anxiety/depression or aggressive behavior. Despite the importance to take into account the combined effects of negative-emotionality and self-regulation,
only few previous contributions focused specifically on this issue in adolescence (e.g., Laible et al., 2010).
The proposed study aims to examine: (a) temperamental profiles in a sample of preadolescents, based on their levels of negative-emotionality and selfregulation; and (b) relations among profiles, anxiety/depression, and aggressive-behavior. We propose to use a sample of adolescents belonging to a longitudinal study.
We expect to find four temperamental profiles: a Regulated profile (high self-regulation/low negative-emotionality); an Average profile; a Dysregulated profile (high negative-emotionality/low self-regulation); and a partially Dysregulated (i.e. with high negative-emotionality or with low self-regulation). We
expect also to confirm the following associations: we hypothesize that the most maladjusted profile can be the most anxious/depressed and aggressive; the partially maladjusted can be associated with high levels of a specific emotional or behavioral problems, whereas the adjusted profile could show lower levels of anxiety/depression and aggressive behavior.
Overall, this study will corroborate the importance of considering patterns of temperamental characteristics and their links to maladjustment in early adolescence.
Despite the field of study investigating the combined role of Negative-Emotionality and Effortful-Control in adolescents' maladjustment is well theoretically anchored, at the moment this body of research is characterized by a great heterogeneity in terms of temperamental dimensions considered, and empirical
findings in many cases were scarce and not consistent. In addition, most of the existing research that consider associations between these two temperamental dimensions and the development of emotional and behavioral problems focused on the unique and differential effects of Negative-Emotionality and Effortful-Control separately, and they did not consider patterns based on these characteristics (e.g., Eisenberg & Morris, 2002; Zhou et al. 2007). For example, to our knowledge, there is only one previous study in adolescence (Laible et al., 2010) that have considered patterns of Negative-Emotionality and Effortful-Control, but this study was conducted within the American context, so findings are not comparable to the Italian or European
contexts.
Then, this contribution could be useful for several reasons. First of all, the present study will contribute to knowledge about how Emotionality and Self-Regulation can be organized in different patterns of individual differences in preadolescence. In fact, according with previous studies (e.g., Caspi, Roberts, & Shiner, 2005), the study adopts a holistic approach in order to examine adolescents' patterns of functioning based on their temperamental characteristics. To our knowledge, this could be the first study addressing specifically this point in Europe, considering Negative-Emotionality and Effortful-Control in early adolescence and how these dimensions can be organized in different patterns of individual functioning.
In addition, this study would contribute to that body of research focused on the relations between temperamental profiles based on Negative-Emotionality and Effortful-Control and their associations with Internalizing and Externalizing problems in early adolescence, within a person-centered approach, providing empirical support for the vulnerability model (e.g., Caspi & Shiner, 2006; Shiner & Caspi, 2003; Tackett, 2006), which emphasises the
importance to take into account different configurations of individual characteristics (with different levels of adjustment and maladjustment), that differently and uniquely predict later emotional and behavioral problems. As highlighted by several previous findings (e.g., Eisenberg et al., 2001; Rutter, Caspi &
Moffit, 2003), during the first part of the adolescence there is a normative increase in emotional and behavioral problems, such as anxiety, depression, or aggression, and youths are exposed to a normative increase in the whole negative emotional experience (Muris & Ollendick, 2005); in this developmental period, the role of self-regulative abilities become crucial to promote coping strategies, and to contrast the negative effects of these trends (Lengua & Long, 2002; Muris, 2006). Addressing how patterns of Negative-Emotionality and Effortful-Control can operate in concert, and how they can influence adjustment in early adolescence is crucial in order to well understand individual concurrent and later adjustment (e.g., Muris et al, 2007; Oldehinkel et al., 2007; Rothbart & Bates, 2006; Vervoort et al., 2011). To our knowledge, this is the first study in Italy addressing those associations in this developmental period, within this theoretical framework, considering specific Internalizing and Externalizing problems, such as Anxiety/Depression and Aggressive Behavior.
Overall, this study underlines the importance to consider individual differences in temperamental characteristics in early adolescence, that is a period particularly relevant for youths, because of many challenges and demands that they encounter. In this sense, this study represents a novelty and a step forward in the field of developmental and personality research, emphasizing the importance of adopting a person-centered approach in order to examine relations between patterns of temperamental individual differences, and how these patterns can affect the development of some Internalizing and Externalizing problems, such as Anxiety/Depression or Aggressive Behavior, in preadolescence. In fact, during this period, the emergence of emotional and behavioral problems, frequently tend to increase, and consider how these patterns can influence these trends in youths is extremely relevant for their adjustment, concurrently and prospectively across their lives. This contribution represents a novelty in this field, because these issues were scarcely
examined in the Italian context in the past years.