Abstract:

This study examined cross-cultural similarities and differences in associations among feedback sensitivity, emotion dysregulation, and school performance in early adolescents. Emotion dysregulation has been shown to impede youth academic success (Arsenio & Loria, 2014). Evidence suggested that feedback sensitivity affects individual differences in emotion dysregulation. High punishment sensitivity has been previously linked to emotion dysregulation strategies, such as rumination (Tortella-Feliu et al., 2010). On the other hand, high reward sensitivity has been associated with adaptive emotion regulation strategies (Dennis, 2007). Although the expression of basic emotions is similar worldwide (Ekman, 1999), and although feedback sensitivity appears to follow a similar trajectory across cultures (Steinberg et al., 2017), there is a dearth of research examining these factors altogether during adolescence and cross-culturally.
We hypothesize that higher punishment sensitivity and lower reward sensitivity are associated with greater rumination and that lower rumination is associated with higher academic performance.

Participants included 534 family triads from three countries and six cultural groups—Colombia, Italy (Neapolitan, Roman), and the United States (European American, African American, Latinx)—in the Parenting Across Cultures project (Lansford et al., 2018). Data were gathered at three time points (T1: youth Mage = 10.89, SD = .70; T2: youth Mage = 12.82, SD = .66; T3: youth Mage = 13.70, SD = .67).

Feedback sensitivity was measured using a modified version of the Iowa Gambling Task (Cauffman et al., 2010), which captures behavioral sensitivity to both rewards (gains) and punishments (losses). Hostile and depressive rumination were assessed at T2 using youth-reports on questionnaires (Caprara, 1985; Abela et al., 2002, respectively) and vignette-based measures (Di Giunta et al., 2017). Academic performance was measured at T1 and T3 using parent-reports on the CBCL (Achenbach, 1991).

Two path analyses were implemented to examine hostile and depressive rumination, respectively, as mediators of the association between feedback sensitivity and academic performance, controlling for prior levels of academic performance, parental education, and youth gender. Evaluation of model fit was based upon recommended fit index cut-off values (Kline, 2011). Cross-cultural comparisons were conducted with X2 difference tests.

High punishment sensitivity and low reward sensitivity were associated with high hostile rumination, which in turn was associated with low academic performance. Only punishment sensitivity was associated with high depressive rumination, but no significant association emerged between depressive rumination and academic performance. This pattern of results was the same across the six cultural groups.

This study clarifies the association between discrete negative emotions and adolescents’ academic performance by considering individual differences in adolescents’ sensitivity to feedback (both positive and negative). Results suggest that the consequences for emotion dysregulation on adolescents’ academic performance is a function of individual differences in feedback sensitivity. These findings may help educators work with students who struggle, for example, with anger, and provide them with a learning environment that affords them the opportunity to succeed academically.

Keywords:

Feedback sensitivity, school performance, emotion regulation, preadolescence.