Abstract
BACKGROUND: Although psychological resilience and emotion regulation are crucial factors influencing mental health, network analysis studies examining their interrelationships in adolescents are scarce. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted in Shenzhen, China (October-November 2024). A total of 2,119 seventh-grade adolescents (Mean age = 12.25 ± 0.45 years; 1,101 males) were included. Network analysis was employed to model interactions among items measuring psychological resilience and emotion regulation. The network structure and gender differences were examined. RESULTS: Females scored lower on psychological resilience dimensions and cognitive reappraisal, but higher on expressive suppression. The items "Setting goals to propel myself forward" (from resilience) and "Thinking positively when facing something unpleasant" (from emotion regulation) exhibited the highest node expected influence within their respective clusters. Bridge centrality analysis, supplemented by bootstrapped difference tests, identified the positive cognition item "Believing that everything has a positive side" as possessing statistically superior bridge strength, indicating it as the most robust connector between the two constructs. The network structure for females showed greater connectivity. CONCLUSION: This study provides a visualization of the complex network between psychological resilience and emotion regulation. The findings highlight the centrality of "positive cognition" as a critical and reliable intervention target, suggesting that fostering the ability to find positive aspects in adversity may most effectively enhance the entire resilience-emotion regulation system in adolescents.