Emotion Regulation Strategies Questionnaire: Supporting Neurodivergent Children & Teens
Emotion regulation is the ability to recognize, understand, and manage our emotional responses in ways that are helpful and appropriate to the situation. Emotion regulation is not about suppressing emotions or always staying calm; rather, it is about showing emotion in a way that supports well-being, relationships, and daily functioning. For young people this often means navigating the school and social pressures – all while their brains and coping skills are still developing.
Examining Emotion Regulation Strategies
Emotion regulation strategies are generally defined as the set of skills and processes used to modulate emotional experiences and/or responses. Although the term “strategy” seems to imply that there is always conscious consideration, individuals may in fact not always be aware they are regulating their emotions. In addition, emotion regulation strategies can be intrapersonal (e.g., internalizing) or interpersonal (e.g., expressing emotions). They can be cognitive or behavioral, requiring quite a bit or very little cognitive effort. Furthermore, emotion regulation can involve both reinforcing a good feeling and controlling a bad feeling.
Most emotion regulation strategies are about fighting daily negative emotions that cross our paths, usually in the context of pain, a threat, or a challenge. Consequently, studies to date have focused primarily on the regulation of negative emotions.
Why This Matters for Neurodivergent People
Neurodivergent children and young people—such as those who are autistic, dyslexic, or have ADHD—face significantly higher rates of depression and anxiety compared to their neurotypical peers. This disparity is not coincidental, but rather the result of a complex interplay of social, educational, and healthcare-related factors that often affect neurodivergent individuals.
Some research suggests that as many as 40% of autistic children experience symptoms of depression or anxiety. Similarly, children with ADHD are more than five times as likely to develop depression as those without the condition. These figures highlight a pressing mental health crisis that demands targeted research and intervention.
Adding the complexities these individuals may already face in managing their mental health conditions, emotion regulation can also sometimes be more challenging for neurodiverse youth due to:
1. Heightened sensory sensitivity: Sensory overload can trigger intense emotional responses, making it harder to stay regulated in environments that others might find manageable.
2. Differences in emotional processing: Some neurodivergent people may experience emotions more intensely or have difficulty identifying and labeling their feelings.
3. Executive function challenges: Conditions like autism and ADHD can affect impulse control and the ability to pause and reflect before reacting emotionally.
4. Social expectations and masking: Constantly trying to "fit in" or mask neurodivergent traits can lead to emotional exhaustion and dysregulation.
5. Misunderstanding and stigma: Being misunderstood or judged for emotional expressions can increase stress and make regulation harder.
Using the FEEL-KJ-2 to support emotion management
While the Emotion Regulation Strategies Questionnaire (FEEL-KJ-2) was not created specifically for neurodivergent people, the design of the assessment lends itself to providing practical information about how an individual – any individual – manages their emotions. When describing an individual’s present level of functioning, a practitioner may describe the types of strategies that the individual appears to be relying on most frequently. This information can be used to guide a treatment plan.
It is important to note that it is not so much the emotion itself that can counteract positive mental health; rather, it is the way that the emotion is experienced and how the individual deals with it.
The FEEL-KJ-2 consists of a self-report questionnaire that measures how children, adolescents, and young adults cope with anger, anxiety, and sadness. For each emotion, the same 30 questions are asked about how they behave or what they think when confronted with the emotional situation, for a total of 90 items. Using a five-point Likert Scale (never or almost never, rarely, sometimes, often, always or almost always), the results of the questionnaire provide 15 different emotion regulation strategies, each measured by six items (two items each for anger, anxiety, and sadness). These 15 emotion regulation strategies are divided into three categories: Adaptive Strategies, Maladaptive Strategies, and Additional Regulation Strategies.
Mapping Regulation Strategies for Better Interventions
Clinical and educational psychologists can use the FEEL-KJ-2 to map adaptive, maladaptive, and additional regulation strategies for anger, anxiety, and sadness in students. The assessment is especially helpful in identifying an individual’s strengths and weaknesses across these three emotions, providing valuable psychological insights beyond just identifying problems.
Functionally, this information can be used to set measurable goals and objectives within a treatment or intervention program to support increasing the use of positive emotion regulation strategies. From a clinical perspective, the FEEL-KJ-2 examines the development of emotion regulation through individual emotional processing, providing critical information for understanding skill competencies.
This information, combined with an assessment of their individual symptoms, stress levels, and personal coping capacity, aids in the development of individualized treatment plans. For all mental health practitioners, the FEEL-KJ-2 can serve to evaluate the outcome of an intervention or therapy course, and as a result, determine how effective a therapeutic treatment has been with an individual or group of individuals.
Using the FEEL-KJ-2 to assess emotion regulation strategies in neurodivergent children and teens moves beyond merely identifying difficulties. The FEEL-KJ-2 provides a roadmap for understanding the unique emotional landscape of every individual, enabling the development of targeted and effective supports to significantly enhance long term outcomes and quality of life.
Case study: Maxwell, 10 years old, History of Dyslexia
Maxwell is a 10-year-old without any mental health diagnoses, according to his parents. However, he does have a history of specific learning difficulties and in 3rd grade he was observed to have issues with dyslexia. At that time, he did not demonstrate any concerns related to his emotional regulation. Since beginning fifth grade, however, Maxwell has begun showing less in-class participation; he avoids group work and seems to isolate himself during unstructured times like lunch and recess. Maxwell’s academic performance has also suffered this school year. He is currently not passing his classes due to missing class assignments and homework and scoring poorly on tests and quizzes.
Prior to conducting a full evaluation, the school psychologist asked Maxwell to complete the FEEL-KJ-2 to better understand how Maxwell is regulating his emotions. An excerpt of his results is shown in his profile sheet. Maxwell’s Adaptive Strategies–Total score is a T-score of 42, indicating that overall, he demonstrates typical use of adaptive strategies to regulate his emotions. Maxwell appears to rely more on Reappraisal and Distraction strategies and less on Acceptance and Forgetting, the latter two falling below the average range. Maxwell uses the adaptive strategies across all three emotions with good consistency.
When examining the types of adaptive strategies that Maxwell does not appear to be using, it makes sense that he is showing high levels of certain Maladaptive Strategies— particularly Withdrawal and Perseveration. Maxwell has a hard time letting go of small problems (Forgetting) or acknowledging problems for what they are (Acceptance) and instead seems to think about problems over and over again (Perseveration).
When considering the Additional Strategies scores within the context of his other strategy scores, it is also clear that Maxwell does not think he has friends or family that he can rely on (Social Support), and he does not feel comfortable showing his emotions to others (Expression). Instead, Maxwell hides his emotions through stricter Emotional Control and appears to isolate himself from others (Withdrawal).
Since Maxwell appears to be withdrawing from others and thinking about his problems repeatedly in these situations, a first step may be to assist Maxwell in understanding why he does not have established supportive relationships. Once it is determined why Maxwell is not seeking the support of others and doesn’t feel comfortable expressing his emotions, Maxwell can receive more direct instruction in reducing his tendency to withdraw and perseverate, and increase his utilization of more positive, adaptive emotion regulation strategies to rely on. Maxwell may be a candidate for using Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) strategies, as well as for using mindfulness-based interventions combined with positive psychology interventions (such as, for example, journalling). Research shows that mindfulness-based interventions can reduce the use of maladaptive strategies and increase the use of strategies such as Acceptance.
