University of Santiago de Compostela, Spain

Assessment and implications of Emotional Toughness on the problems of child and youth behavior

In recent years, there has been a substantial growth of interest in the heterogeneity of disruptive behaviour problems. In this sense, a vigorous research team has developed around the so-called “Emotional Toughness” (or Affective Toughness/Insensitivity). It has been proposed that “Emotional Toughness” (ET), defined by traits such as limited empathy, lack of remorse and superficial affectivity, could be associated with more severe and difficult forms within the behavioural problems. Along the same lines as this hypothesis, the DSM-5 has introduced the specification known as “with limited prosocial emotions” within the category of dissocial personality disorder. This inclusion has triggered an interest in clinicians and researchers in the assessment, staging, prognosis and treatment of children with ET. In this symposium, particularly, there will a presentation of the progress developed in our country towards the tools to assess ET, the implications of having ET in childhood and adolescence, how children with ET develop over time and how psycho-social mechanisms (especially of the family) can be associated with the development of these traits. Deepening your knowledge on ET will allow a more compliant approach to behavioural problems in children and adolescents, guiding treatments more adjusted to the peculiarities of this personal pattern

Estrella Romero is Professor of Personality, Evaluation and Psychological Treatment at the University of Santiago de Compostela. Her research has developed around significant factors, prevention and treatment of disruptive behavior problems in children and adolescents. Under this line of work she has developed longitudinal studies on risk factors and protection of adolescent antisocial behavior and, currently, on the processes involved in behavioral problems early onset. She is the author of multiple papers disseminated in international and national publications, and by means of various projects funded by national calls, she has led the design, implementation and evaluation of the EmPeCemos programme, a cognitive-behavioral initiative to treat early behavior problems as of the coordinated intervention on children, families and teachers.