Cyberpsychological Analysis: The Effect of Emotional Regulation via Online Communities on the Quarter-Life Crisis Among Young People in Medan

Vollständiger Abstract

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Early adulthood is a transitional period characterised by academic, career and work demands, interpersonal relationships, and uncertainty about the future, all of which can trigger a quarter-life crisis. This study aims to analyse the influence of emotional regulation on the quarter-life crisis and to identify the most dominant aspects of emotional regulation amongst young adults in the city of Medan. The study employed a quantitative approach using a simple linear regression design. The sample comprised 348 individuals aged 18–25 years, selected via purposive sampling. Data were collected using a 27-item emotional regulation scale and an 18-item quarter-life crisis scale. Both instruments demonstrated good reliability, with Cronbach’s Alpha values of 0.959 and 0.879, respectively. Analyses were conducted using SPSS 20.0 via descriptive statistics, assumption tests, and simple linear regression. The results of the study indicate that emotional regulation has a significant effect on the quarter-life crisis (R = 0.552; R² = 0.304; F = 151.343; p < 0.001), accounting for 30.4 per cent of the variance. The aspect of ‘limited access to emotion regulation strategies’ was the most dominant (26.3 per cent), followed by ‘non-acceptance of emotional responses’ (20.7 per cent) and ‘lack of emotional clarity’ (18.7 per cent). These findings fill a research gap regarding the inconsistencies in the results of previous studies in the context of early adulthood in the city of Medan. It was concluded that the greater the difficulty in regulating emotions, the higher the likelihood of experiencing a quarter-life crisis. These results underscore the importance of strengthening skills in emotional regulation, adaptive coping, career planning and decision-making for young adults