The Role of Emotion Regulation in Adolescents' Psychological Well-being: A Systematic Literature Review

Abstract

Adolescence is a critical developmental period characterized by substantial emotional, social, and psychological changes that may influence psychological well-being. Emotion regulation is an important psychological process that enables adolescents to manage, modify, and express emotional responses adaptively when facing developmental demands. This study aimed to systematically examine the role of emotion regulation in adolescents’ psychological well-being by integrating conceptual and empirical findings from previous research. A Systematic Literature Review (SLR) was conducted using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) 2020 framework. Literature searches were conducted through Google Scholar and Scopus, focusing on peer-reviewed national and international journal articles published between 2016 and 2026. Twelve empirical studies that met the predetermined inclusion criteria were selected and analyzed descriptively and comparatively. The findings consistently demonstrated a positive association between adaptive emotion regulation and adolescents’ psychological or subjective well-being. Cognitive reappraisal, functional emotion regulation, positive refocusing, and perspective-taking were generally associated with higher life satisfaction, positive affect, psychosocial adjustment, and psychological well-being. In contrast, dysfunctional emotion regulation and excessive expressive suppression were generally associated with lower well-being and greater psychological difficulties. Empirical findings from Indonesia also supported this pattern, including a significant correlation between emotion regulation and psychological well-being among high school students (r = 0.465, p < 0.001). Overall, emotion regulation represents an important psychological resource for supporting adolescents’ well-being, although its contribution is influenced by developmental, interpersonal, and contextual factors.