Children's expression of negative affect: Reasons and methods

This study examined the influence of socialization figures (mother, father, best friend, medium friend), emotion type (anger, sadness, physical pain), age, and gender on 66 2nd and 71 5th-grade children's reasons for and methods of affect expression. Children reported expressing sadness in order to receive support, expressing pain because they perceived it was uncontrollable, and regulating anger due to negative consequences. Girls reported using verbal means to communicate emotion, whereas boys cited mild aggressive methods. Younger children indicated expressing emotion to receive assistance because they lack regulation skills, and to adhere to norms. Children expressed emotion in passive ways to fathers more than peers, and mothers were deemed by younger children as most accepting of displays of anger.