Self-regulation of socioemotional behavior in twin adolescents: structural validation of a multidimensional inventory

Instruments for rating socioemotional behavior with a strong theoretical basis, broad coverage of behaviors, and that are well-validated are rare. Here, the Multidimensional Peer Nomination Inventory (MPNI) Form SERI (Socio(E]motional Regulation Inventory) was employed in a longitudinal population-based sample of Finnish twins (FinnTwin 12) at age 17 to study: (1) the structure of self-ratings on self-regulation of socioemotional behavior, (2) concurrent, discriminative, and predictive validity of the scales, and (3) genetic and environmental factors contributing to individual differences in self-regulation. A bipolar factor for self-regulation was interpreted as representing p-factor (general psychopathology) versus src-factor (self-regulation capacity). Each was further categorized into a Problem behavior scale that comprised Hyperactivity/Inattention, Aggression, and Anxiety subscales, and a Prosocial behavior scale. These scales had high correlations with co-twin ratings at age 17 and similarly formed scales for self- and co-twin ratings at age 14, and good discriminative validity with items for social position and resilience. Modeling the twin data indicated that the p-factor and src-factor are moderately heritable and are influenced by both genetic and unique environmental factors. The inventory can be used for self- and sibling ratings in a population study.