Afifah Ismahani Nur Amalina. 2026. THESIS. The Influence of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) on Emotion Regulation Ability among Adolescents at SMA Negeri 2 Ponorogo. Supervisor I: Dr. Sigit Dwi Laksana M.Pd.I. Supervisor II: Yusuf Hamdani Abdi S.Psi., M.Psi.
Keywords: Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs), emotion regulation, adolescents.
This study aimed to analyze the effect of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) on emotion regulation abilities among adolescents at SMA Negeri 2 Ponorogo, as well as to identify differences in emotion regulation based on the severity of ACEs and gender. The research employed a quantitative correlational design. From a population of 385 eleventh-grade students, 196 respondents were selected using the Slovin formula. Data were collected using the Adverse Childhood Experiences Questionnaire (ACE-Q) and the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS), both of which underwent translation, validity testing, and reliability testing. Data analysis was conducted using simple linear regression, one-way ANOVA, and independent samples t-test. The findings indicate that ACEs have a significant effect on adolescents’ emotion regulation abilities (F = 19.452; p = 0.000; R² = 0.091). In addition, there were significant differences in emotion regulation based on the severity level of ACEs (F = 7.718; p = 0.001), showing that higher levels of ACEs were associated with greater difficulties in emotion regulation. The study also identified a significant difference in emotion regulation abilities based on gender (t = 4.274; p < 0.001), with female adolescents exhibiting greater difficulties in emotion regulation compared to male adolescents. These findings suggest that adverse childhood experiences constitute an important risk factor for adolescents’ emotion regulation abilities; however, other factors beyond ACEs also contribute to emotion regulation difficulties.