TOEFL ITP ONSITE AND ONLINE IMPLEMENTATION - 25 MAY 2026
BIPA TEACHING ENHANCEMENT TRAINING HELD AT USU LANGUAGE CENTER
TOEFL ITP ONSITE AND ONLINE IMPLEMENTATION - 20 MAY 2026
04 March 2026
Thara Azura Najmi A.Md
ATTACHMENT
Dra. Roma Ayuni A. Loebis, M.A.
Head of the Language Center, USU
The increasing phenomenon of violence against and perpetrated by children has become a serious concern in recent times. Cases of suicide, domestic violence, and even homicide among siblings cannot be viewed as isolated incidents. These are usually multidimensional symptoms involving psychological, familial, social, and digital factors. The World Health Organization (WHO) emphasizes that depression, anxiety disorders, and chronic stress among adolescents have increased globally over the past decade. Contributing factors include academic pressure, family conflict, bullying, feelings of loneliness and being misunderstood, as well as exposure to negative content on social media.
There is a strong relationship between undetected depression and the quality of communication within the family. In many studies in developmental and clinical psychology, family communication is considered both a protective factor and a risk factor. Families characterized by open, empathetic, non-judgmental communication, and responsiveness to emotions tend to detect negative behavioral changes in children more quickly, such as social withdrawal, changes in sleep patterns, irritability, or decreased motivation. In other words, active communication between parents and children can function as an early warning system.
According to the theory developed by John Bowlby (1958), the quality of a child’s attachment to their parents greatly influences emotional regulation. Secure attachment enables children to be more open in expressing their problems, whereas insecure attachment tends to cause children to suppress or hide their emotions. This theory aligns with psycholinguistics, which views language as a tool for representing thoughts and emotions. Several studies indicate that children with limited emotional vocabulary tend to struggle in articulating distress and may behave more impulsively.
Undetected depression can occur because children may lack the linguistic tools to name their emotions. This does not mean that children do not have emotions; rather, they may lack sufficient vocabulary, language structures, or communication habits to identify and express what they feel specifically. Linguistic tools include: (1) emotional vocabulary (sad, disappointed, empty, frustrated, anxious, distressed); (2) sentence structures to express feelings (“I feel… because…”); (3) the ability to differentiate emotional nuances; and (4) experiences of emotional dialogue within the family.
If a child possesses only two emotional labels—“happy” and “sad”—their complex emotional experiences will be difficult to understand, even for themselves. When children are unable to name their emotions, distress becomes unarticulated, frustration turns into aggression, sadness leads to withdrawal, and depression remains hidden. In fact, language helps us categorize experiences, organize feelings, and regulate emotional responses. When someone can say, “I am not angry; I feel ignored,” their emotional regulation becomes more directed and constructive.
Family Attachment,ultimately, the family once again plays a crucial role. Parents and primary caregivers must establish secure attachment and maintain high emotional quality in their relationships. Children learn the language of emotions through interaction. If emotions are rarely discussed, if a child’s crying is silenced without dialogue, and if family communication is merely instrumental, the child does not receive a verbal model for identifying emotions.
Emotional differentiation requires rich linguistic exploration. Therefore, affective communication should be fostered within the family. Invite children to share their problems and take time to listen to their concerns. The richer a child’s emotional lexicon, the better their emotional regulation will be. Children with a rich emotional lexicon tend to have higher emotional granularity—that is, they are able to distinguish between “annoyed” and “angry,” or “anxious” and “panicked.”
Ultimately, such children are at lower risk of depression and anxiety, more adaptive in social relationships, and better able to make rational decisions.