Why do I feel what I feel? Examining individual differences in meta-mood knowledge as a moderator of the relationship between anxiety and depression in adolescents

The aim of this study is to analyze whether dimensions of meta-mood knowledge (i.e., attention to emotion and emotional clarity) moderate the relationship between anxiety and depression. A sample of 258 adolescents aged 12 to 18 years (M = 14.6, SD = 1.7, 54.5% girls) was examined to investigate the moderating role of attention to emotion and emotional clarity on the relationship between anxiety and depression. A regression-based moderation analysis controlling for age, gender, and socioeconomic status was conducted. The results showed that attention to emotion and emotional clarity moderated the relationship between anxiety and depression. Moreover, the positive relationship between anxiety and depression was statistically significant in all cases (i.e., high attention and low clarity: b = 0.362, p <.001, low attention and low clarity: b = 0.184, p <.001; high attention and high clarity: b = 0.183, p =.001), with one exception (i.e., low attention and high clarity: b = 0.004, p =.929). This study highlights the importance of understanding individual differences in attention to emotion and emotional clarity in order to benefit more from treatments and prevention programs that incorporate emotional self-awareness as an active component.