Self-concept clarity and psychological adjustment in adolescence: The mediating role of emotion regulation

Self-concept clarity is a developmentally salient resource among adolescents and is positively associated with psychological adjustment. However, the mechanism underlying the association between self-concept clarity and adjustment remains inadequately understood. This study examined whether emotion regulation mediated the relationship between self-concept clarity and psychological adjustment in a sample of adolescents (N = 922) aged 14–16 years. Findings showed that the more adolescents had a clear idea of themselves the more they were effective in emotion regulation when dealing with both positive and negative emotions, and the more they were psychologically adjusted. •Higher self-clarity is associated with greater psychological adjustment in adolescents.•Higher self-clarity is associated with better emotion regulation skills.•Emotion regulation mediates the association between self-clarity and adjustment.