Impact of emotion regulation on psychosocial and emotional problems in Dutch adolescents with inflammatory bowel disease

Abstract Objectives Adolescents with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) are at increased risk of psychosocial and emotional problems. This study examined the role of emotion regulation (ER) to (1) determine the prevalence of psychosocial and emotional problems in adolescents with IBD, (2) examine associations with sociodemographic and clinical characteristics, and (3) evaluate associations with ER strategies. Methods Adolescents (ages 12–17 years) with IBD from three Dutch medical centers completed routine psychosocial screening. Psychosocial and emotional problems were assessed with the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ). Norm comparisons were performed using one‐sample t ‐test on raw SDQ scores, and prevalence estimates were based on age‐ and sex‐specific percentile scores. ER strategies (adaptive, maladaptive) were measured with the Dutch FEEL‐KJ. Sociodemographic and clinical data were obtained from medical records/questionnaires. Associations were examined using Spearman correlations and stepwise multiple regression, with psychosocial and emotional problems as outcomes. Results Compared with Dutch population‐based norms, adolescents with IBD reported significantly higher psychosocial and emotional problems than reference norm groups ( p < 0.001). Elevated scores were observed in 64.3% for total difficulties and 42.9% for emotional problems. Maladaptive ER showed strong positive associations with both outcomes. Sociodemographic and clinical characteristics were not significantly associated with psychosocial or emotional problems. Conclusions Maladaptive ER is a prominent correlate of psychosocial and emotional problems in adolescents with IBD, whereas background characteristics were not supported. Targeting dysfunctional ER strategies may facilitate early identification of at‐risk adolescents and guide timely interventions.