Emotional Dysregulation as a transdiagnostic factor: implications for categorical models of psychopathology

Emotional Dysregulation (ED) refers to difficulties in modulating the processes involved in emotional regulation – for instance, the use of maladaptive strategies to regulate one’s emotional response – and can lead to significant levels of psychological distress. In recent years, interest in the topic has increased: ED has been consistently identified across a wide range of mental disorders, raising concerns over the accuracy of current categorical classifications. This thesis aims at exploring ED as a transdiagnostic factor, and how it supports a dimensional conceptualisation of psychopathology. The advantages and disadvantages of the traditional categorical approach are evaluated and compared to a dimensional approach. To understand how this alternative perspective allows to conceive factors like ED as transdiagnostic, one of the most promising dimensional models – the Hierarchical Taxonomy of Psychopathology (HiTOP) – is examined. Furthermore, this thesis explores the possibility of ED as a mechanism driving the development and maintenance of psychopathological symptoms, independently of the diagnosis. ED may mediate the association between distal risk factors like adverse childhood experiences and psychopathology. Through its interaction with moderators, such as individual differences in reward sensitivity, ED may predict several psychopathological outcomes. Finally, the implications of dimensional models for treatment – with a special focus on Dialectical Behavioural Therapy (DBT) and Unified Protocol (UP) – are investigated, as well as the challenges of implementing such models in clinical practice.