<![CDATA[Difficulties with emotional regulation are a key issue during adolescence as they relate to pupils’ academic, social and psychological adjustment. This study aims to describe the profile of emotional regulation difficulties among lower secondary school pupils in Yogyakarta, and to analyse differences based on gender, year group and school of origin. This study employed a quantitative approach using a descriptive–comparative survey design. The sample comprised 402 students from two junior high schools selected using purposive sampling. The instrument used was the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS-36), which measures six dimensions: Nonacceptance, Goals, Impulse, Awareness, Strategies, and Clarity. The data were analysed using descriptive statistics, Cronbach’s alpha, Pearson’s correlation, the independent samples t-test, the chi-square test, one-way ANOVA, and Tukey’s HSD post-hoc test. The results of this study indicate that the majority of pupils fell into the ‘moderate’ category for difficulties in emotion regulation (70.1%). The ‘Strategies’ dimension had the highest mean score, whilst the ‘Goals’ dimension showed the highest percentage in the ‘high’ category. Significant differences were found based on gender, with female pupils reporting higher DERS scores than male pupils. Meanwhile, differences based on school type and year group emerged in certain dimensions. These findings suggest that pupils’ difficulties with emotional regulation need to be understood in a multidimensional way and can serve as a basis for guidance and counselling teachers in designing services that are more responsive, preventative and tailored to the developmental needs of lower secondary school pupils.]]>
