EMOTIONAL REGULATION AND COPING MECHANISMS IN YOUNG ADULTS

Abstract

Young adulthood is a critical period marked by rapid life transitions, increased emotional demands, and the development of autonomy. Effective emotion regulation and adaptive coping strategies are essential for mental health, academic success, and overall well-being. This chapter explores foundational frameworks, including Gross’s Process Model of Emotion Regulation and Lazarus and Folkman’s Transactional Model of Stress and Coping, extended through a biopsychosocial perspective that considers the body’s role in emotional responses. Assessment methods span psychological, behavioral, and physiological domains, incorporating tools such as the ERQ, DERS, Brief COPE, and heart-rate variability measures. Evidence-based interventions are reviewed, including cognitive reappraisal, coping-skills training, mindfulness programs, and physiotherapy-informed strategies like aerobic and resistance exercise, diaphragmatic breathing, and HRV biofeedback. These multimodal approaches illustrate the value of integrated care models addressing both mind and body. Practical recommendations, research limitations, and future directions are discussed, emphasizing that holistic, interdisciplinary strategies are key to fostering sustained emotional well-being in young adults.