Video games are a widely valued activity because they are densely packed with elements that can satisfy one's basic psychological needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness and can, as such, support healthy development. However, drawing on Self-Determination Theory, the Need Density Hypothesis posits that a lack of need satisfaction outside of video gaming in combination with need satisfaction inside of gaming may render adolescents vulnerable to gradually disengage from less satisfying domains, fostering obsessive gaming patterns and poorer mental health. Because empirical support for this hypothesis has been largely cross-sectional, this one-year longitudinal study investigates whether discrepancies in adolescents' psychological need experiences inside versus outside of video gaming predict changes in problematic gaming behavior and associated outcomes over time. We surveyed 661 adolescents (Mean age = 14.36; 55.98% boys) who played video games in two waves conducted one year apart. Results of polynomial regression analyses found partial evidence for the Need Density Hypothesis: Adolescents scoring higher on inside gaming than on outside of gaming need satisfaction showed increases in problematic video gaming, and mental health problems over time, while no interactive effects of need satisfaction inside gaming and need frustration outside of gaming were found. Moreover, low need satisfaction outside of video gaming was identified as a robust standalone predictor of increases in problems. These findings highlight that adolescents' vulnerability to problematic video gaming, as well as to associated mental health problems, is shaped by the interplay between need-satisfying experiences outside and inside the gaming world. It suggests that prevention efforts need to shift from focusing narrowly on gaming behavior toward addressing the broader ecological contexts of adolescents' daily lives.

Volgens de zelfdeterminatietheorie zijn ervaringen van autonomie (jezelf kunnen zijn), verbondenheid (een warme, hechte band ervaren) en competentie (je bekwaam voelen) noodzakelijk voor de positieve ontwikkeling en het welbevinden van jongeren. Er zijn twee manieren om deze drie psychologische basisbehoeften te vervullen. Een eerste manier is via de sociale omgeving: ouders, leerkrachten en vrienden kunnen in verschillende mate ondersteuning bieden bij de psychologische basisbehoeften van jongeren. Een tweede manier is via de jongeren zelf, die proactief kunnen proberen om hun basisbehoeften vorm te geven via het opzoeken van activiteiten of situaties die behoeftevervullend zijn. Voor deze vaardigheid werd recent de term behoeftevormgeving (‘need crafting’) geïntroduceerd. In deze bijdrage bespreken we recent crosssectioneel, longitudinaal en dagboekonderzoek waarin de samenhang tussen behoeftevormgeving en het welbevinden van jongeren werd onderzocht. Verder toont een beperkt aantal interventiestudies aan dat behoeftevormgeving trainbaar is. Zo’n training draagt bij aan verbeterde behoeftebevrediging, die op zijn beurt positief samenhangt met het welbevinden van jongeren tijdens stressvolle omstandigheden. We bespreken een aantal nieuwe onderzoeksvragen die dit werk oproept evenals de praktische implicaties ervan. Abstract According to Self-Determination Theory, experiences of autonomy (being able to be yourself), relatedness (feeling a warm, close connection with others), and competence (feeling effective and capable) are essential for the positive development and well-being of adolescents. There are two main ways by which these three basic psychological needs can be fulfilled. First, the social environment (such as parents, teachers, and peers) can provide varying degrees of support for adolescents’ psychological needs. The second way lies within the adolescents themselves, who can proactively shape their own need satisfaction by seeking out activities or situations that help fulfill these needs. This ability has recently been referred to as need crafting. In this contribution, we discuss recent cross-sectional, longitudinal, and daily diary research that has examined the association between need crafting and adolescents’ well-being. Furthermore, a small number of intervention studies show that need crafting can be trained. Such training contributes to improved need satisfaction, which in turn is positively associated with adolescents’ well-being, especially during stressful circumstances. We conclude by discussing several new research questions raised by this work, as well as its practical implications. Bijsluiter voor de praktijk • Ervaringen van autonomie, verbondenheid en competentie zijn essentieel voor het welzijn en de ontwikkeling van kinderen en jongeren. Ze vormen psychologische basisbehoeften of ABC-behoeften. • Naast ondersteuning vanuit de omgeving (bijvoorbeeld van ouders, leerkrachten en coaches) genieten jongeren steeds meer vrijheid en mogelijkheden om zélf op zoek te gaan naar ABC-ervaringen. Het bewustzijn van contexten, activiteiten en relaties die hun ABC-behoeften kunnen vervullen en de proactieve acties die erop gericht zijn de ABC-behoeften te vervullen, noemen we behoeftevormgeving of ‘need crafting’. • In dit stand van zaken artikel bieden we een overzicht van de onderzoeken die behoeftevormgeving bij jongeren onderzochten. • Uit vragenlijstonderzoek blijkt dat jongeren die meer aan behoeftevormgeving doen, meer behoeftebevrediging, minder frustratie en meer welbevinden ervaren. • Dit geldt zowel voor het vormgeven van online als offline ABC-ervaringen, al wegen de ABC-ervaringen in de echte wereld zwaarder (zowel de vervulling ervan als de frustratie). Enkel aan online behoeftevormgeving doen, hangt samen met minder ABC-bevrediging en minder welbevinden in vergelijking met jongeren die enkel inzetten op behoeftevormgeving in de offline wereld en met jongeren die in beide levensdomeinen inzetten op behoeftevormgeving. • Dagboekstudies laten zien dat behoeftevormgeving van dag tot dag fluctueert. Op dagen waarop jongeren zich meer door ouders ondersteund voelen in hun autonomie, of wanneer ze beter geslapen hebben (en daardoor energieker zijn), doen ze meer aan behoeftevormgeving en voelen ze zich aan het einde van de dag energieker en meer vervuld in hun ABC-behoeften. • Interventies zoals LifeCraft, waarin deelnemers via korte modules worden getraind in meer ABC-bewustwording en -actie, blijken effectief en dit vooral als deelnemers er actief aan deelnemen: jongeren en jongvolwassenen vertonen na deelname meer behoeftevormgeving, meer behoeftebevrediging en meer welbevinden, zelfs tijdens stressvolle periodes. Uitval is echter hoog bij deze online interventies. • Gesprekken die gericht zijn op ABC-bewustzijn (bijvoorbeeld ‘Wat lukt er al goed?’, ‘Waar wil je meer van weten?’, ‘Bij wie voel je je goed?’), of op actie (‘Plan je vandaag iets waar je écht zin in hebt?’, ‘Wat kun je vandaag doen om vooruit te gaan in je doel om x te bereiken?’, ‘Met wie spreek je graag af dit weekend?’) kunnen jongeren helpen om hun behoeftes beter te herkennen en ernaar te handelen. • Samengevat laat onderzoek naar behoeftevormgeving bij jongeren dus zien dat jongeren hun welbevinden meer in eigen handen kunnen nemen door bewust en proactief in te zetten op hun psychologische basisbehoeften. Bovendien blijkt deze vaardigheid trainbaar en beïnvloedbaar door de context, wat het interessant maakt voor iedereen die wil bijdragen aan de ontwikkeling en het welbevinden van de jeugd.

Adolescents who experience bullying victimization are at elevated risk of long-term health problems, yet research has primarily focused on trait-level explanations and has overlooked the day-to-day processes that may drive this vulnerability. This study examined whether bullying victimization – a threat to adolescents’ basic psychological needs (autonomy, competence, relatedness) – sensitizes daily-life experiences, as reflected in (a) a direct association of bullying victimization with greater psychological need frustration and subjective stress and (b) bullying victimization modulating the association between psychological need frustration and subjective and physiological stress (i.e., momentary cortisol, next-day cortisol awakening response, total daily average cortisol). In total, 231 Belgian adolescents (Mage = 13.43 years; SDage = 0.38; 45

During the transition from high school to higher education, late adolescents are faced with numerous decisions that can significantly impact their identity, such as choosing a major. This study investigated the role of late adolescents' sense of having an authentic inner compass (AIC)-the sense of knowing what is truly important to them by having personally endorsed values, preferences, and goals-in identity development. Moreover, we tested whether basic autonomy-supportive parenting and more identity-specific autonomy-supportive practices can facilitate late adolescents' sense of having an AIC and subsequent identity development. A three-wave longitudinal study involved 377 families with an adolescent from the 12th grade of Flemish secondary education during the transition to higher education (69.1% girls, Mage = 16.87), along with their mothers (Mage = 45.75 years) and fathers (Mage = 47.95 years). In the 12th grade, adolescents' AIC was related to more identification with commitment and study choice commitment and less ruminative exploration. Furthermore, adolescents' AIC had beneficial effects on changes in these identity outcomes across time. Both parents' identity-specific autonomy-supportive practices of inherent value demonstration (IVD) and reflective authentic inner compass facilitation (RAICF) related positively to adolescents' AIC and subsequent identity outcomes, in addition to basic autonomy support. These effects were stronger when reported by adolescents (than when reported by parents) and at the level of stable between-person differences (than at the level of within-person change). The findings indicate that parents can promote the development of an AIC through identity-specific autonomy-supportive practices, thereby indirectly fostering identity development among late adolescents.

Active student participation is considered adaptive for students’ learning and teachers’ motivation. However, students’ negotiation attempts with teachers, as one aspect of active participation, are not always successful. Possibly, the adaptiveness of negotiation depends on how teachers react to it. The current study examined factors shaping teachers’ appraisals and responses to student negotiation, including students’ negotiation style, teachers’ authoritarian beliefs, and symptoms of burnout. Using a vignette-based experimental design, 286 teachers (77.6

Background and Objectives Overprotective parenting (OP) is defined as parents' inclination to take over children's tasks, overinvolvement in children's self-direction and decision-making, and interfering in age-appropriate autonomy. Past studies have focused on impacts of OP on child mental health and well-being, but few have considered what social circumstances could produce parents' OP. The aim of the current study was to investigate parents' perceptions of world scarcity and instability, perceived societal pressures related to parenting, and comparisons on social media as correlates of OP, considering direct and indirect (via parents' anxiety) associations. A secondary aim was to explore whether associations differed for mothers and fathers.Method Australian parents (N = 909; 67% mothers) of an adolescent aged 16 to 19 years completed an online survey.Results In a latent-variable structural equation model, OP was explained by perceived world threat and upward comparisons on social media; these associations were mostly direct but were partially mediated by parents' anxiety. Perceived world threat and social comparisons had moderate and large, respectively, direct associations with parents' elevated anxiety, resulting in significant indirect associations of societal pressures on OP via parents' anxiety. Parent gender moderated four model paths-one involving parents' anxiety and three involving OP. Most notable were a positive association of fathers' (but not mothers') anxiety with OP, and a positive association of world threat with mothers' (but not fathers') OP.Conclusion For those who interact with parents, such as teachers or support providers, it is important to be aware that OP could be a reaction to societal and social media pressures.Implications Overall, these findings indicate that reducing parents' anxiety and addressing social comparison and pressure, particularly in gender-sensitive ways, may help mitigate overprotective parenting in the context of perceived world threats.

Background. Self-criticism and dependency are established personality vulnerabilities for mood and anxiety disorder onset, while dispositional mindfulness has emerged as a promising protective factor. However, how mindfulness facets configure with these personality vulnerabilities to confer risk remains unclear. This longitudinal study examined how dispositional mindfulness facets, self-criticism, and dependency combine to predict first lifetime mood and anxiety disorder onset in adolescence. Methods. Participants were 177 youth with a family history of internalizing disorders but no personal lifetime history. Baseline questionnaires assessed dispositional mindfulness facets, self-criticism, dependency, and depressive/anxiety symptoms. Disorder onset was assessed via structured diagnostic interviews at 9- and 18-month follow-ups. Hierarchical k-means cluster analysis identified dispositional profiles, which were examined as predictors of onset using logistic regression. Analyses controlled for sex, age, and baseline depressive or anxiety symptoms. Results. Four dispositional profiles emerged: Adaptive Self-Definition, Adaptive Relatedness, Maladaptive Self-Definition, and Maladaptive Relatedness. Maladaptive profiles showed elevated baseline symptoms and higher rates of disorder onset relative to adaptive profiles; however, profile-level effects were attenuated after controlling for baseline symptoms. Implications. Findings suggest that youth with high self-criticism and dependency often present with maladaptive mindfulness configurations, highlighting potentially important clinical targets for preventive mindfulness-based interventions during adolescence.

Background: To counter increasing youth mental health problems, it has been suggested to invest in broadly accessible parenting programs. To date, few online parenting programs exist and the majority provide universal rather than personalized advice. This preregistered randomized controlled trial tested a novel digital parenting intervention, composed of self-monitoring of parenting, a data-driven parenting report, and 6 weeks of online parenting tips to stimulate need-supportive parenting. Methods: This preregistered study compared post-intervention parenting (proximal outcome) and adolescent affective well-being (distal outcome) of 321 families in a control condition (100 daily diaries), with 225 families in an intervention group who additionally received a feedback report and add-on parenting tips from day 50 onwards. The report and tips were either universal (n = 107) or personalized (n = 110). This trial was registered at the CCMO: NL-009451 on 19-02-2025 [https://www.onderzoekmetmensen.nl/en/trial/57487] Results: Throughout the study, parents became less need-supportive, but adolescents experienced their parents as more need-supportive. Both parents and adolescents observed decreased overparenting over time. Parents in the control group reported becoming less autonomy supportive and warm (pre-post intervention) which was not found in the intervention groups. Adolescents in the universal intervention group perceived an increase in structure over time and an increase in negative affect (mainly irritability). No significant group differences were detected however (p’s > .06). Hence, an additional 6 weeks of parenting tips and a feedback report (our intervention) did not outperform the impact of 100 days of self-monitoring. Conclusions: Digital self-monitoring of parenting, combined with data-driven feedback and online parenting tips, seems to make parents more critical of their own parenting, but leaves adolescents more satisfied with the need-supportiveness of their parents. Moreover, this online parenting intervention, designed to target need-supportiveness, might counter harmful overparenting practices.

Met het themanummer ‘Positieve Ontwikkeling en Veerkracht bij Kinderen en Jongeren’ sluiten wij ons aan bij recente oproepen om meer en systematischer onderzoek te doen naar de ontwikkeling van competenties en vaardigheden van kinderen en jongeren die positief en wenselijk zijn. Hoewel de positieve psychologie in de afgelopen decennia een belangrijke stroming is geworden binnen de gedragswetenschappen, ligt de nadruk in de (klinische) ontwikkelingspsychologie en orthopedagogiek nog altijd vooral op het voorkomen en behandelen van problematische ontwikkeling. Een eenzijdige aandacht voor problemen en kwetsbaarheidsfactoren brengt echter het risico met zich mee dat we vergeten mensen vooruit te helpen in plaats van alleen schade te beperken. De afwezigheid van problemen staat immers niet gelijk aan een gelukkig en zinvol bestaan waarin mensen hun potentieel ten volle realiseren. Dit themanummer belicht onderzoek dat als doel heeft te begrijpen welke factoren bijdragen aan veerkracht, groei, welbevinden, adequaat functioneren en floreren – concepten die verder reiken dan de afwezigheid van klachten. Wij hopen hiermee bij te dragen aan een verschuiving in perspectief: van enkel het repareren of voorkomen van wat misgaat, naar het bevorderen en versterken van wat goed gaat. Abstract With this special issue ‘Positive Development and Resilience in Children and Adolescents’, we heed recent calls for more systematic research into the development of positive and adaptive resources and skills in children and young people. Although positive psychology has become an influential movement within the behavioral sciences over recent decades, research and practice in (clinical) developmental psychology and special education continue to focus predominantly on the prevention and treatment of problematic development. However, an exclusive emphasis on problems and vulnerability factors carries the risk that we forget to help individuals move forward, rather than merely limiting harm. After all, the absence of problems is not equivalent to a happy and meaningful life in which individuals fully realize their potential. This special issue highlights research aimed at understanding the factors that contribute to resilience, growth, well-being, adequate functioning, and flourishing – concepts that extend beyond the mere absence of problems. We hope to contribute to a shift in perspective: from solely repairing or preventing what goes wrong to promoting and strengthening what goes right.

When motivating preschoolers, parents can use autonomy-supportive or more controlling communication. An important, yet understudied, aspect of such parental communication is parents' tone of voice (i.e., prosody). Using a puppet interview protocol, the current research examined whether experimentally induced actor-recorded autonomy-supportive versus controlling prosody affects preschoolers' reactions. In two samples (Sample 1, N = 189; Mage = 4.93; 40% male; Sample 2, N = 116; Mage = 4.77; 39.70% male), multilevel analyses indicated that Dutch-speaking preschoolers judged sentences conveyed with controlling, relative to autonomy-supportive, prosody as more pressuring and less supportive of choice. The controlling prosody was also associated with more anger and fear attributions. Across both samples, effects of controlling prosody on preschoolers' attributed emotions did not vary systematically as a function of moderators such as child temperament, general parenting, social domain, and semantic content.

Background Research on overprotective parenting in adolescence has predominantly used cross-sectional designs, limiting attention to possible bidirectional associations between such parenting and adolescents' problem behaviors. The few longitudinal studies available have yielded mixed findings regarding the direction of effects between overprotective parenting and adolescent outcomes, which may stem from substantive and design-related choices (e.g., type of informant). The present study systematically investigated the potentially bidirectional interplay between overprotective parenting and adolescents' functioning over time using a multiverse analysis.Methods We used two-wave repeated-measures data with a two-year interval from the Flemish Study on Parenting, Personality, and Development (FSPPD), including 588 adolescents, both parents, and their teachers. Adolescents and their parents reported on parental overprotection. Moreover, adolescents, their parents, and teachers rated adolescents' externalizing and internalizing problem behaviors. Latent change models were estimated within a multiverse framework.Results The results provide stronger evidence that adolescents with more overprotective parents show, on average, a greater increase in problem behavior than adolescents with less overprotective parents, compared to evidence for the opposite direction of effects.Conclusions Overall, these findings highlight the potential of a multiverse analysis and mainly support a directional effect of overprotective parenting on more problematic adolescent functioning within the two-year time interval studied.

Few digital parenting interventions for preventing adolescent mental health problems exist and little is known about their effectiveness. This preregistered Randomized Controlled Trial examined short-term (1 month post-intervention) and longer-term (6 months) effects, side-effects, and family-specific effects of a novel digital parenting intervention. Dutch adolescents (N = 547, 53% female, Mage = 14.1) and one of their parents (N = 541; 81% mothers, Mage = 46.7) were assigned to a control or intervention group. The intervention group received a parenting feedback report and 18 parenting tips across six weeks, in the second half of a 100-day diary study. No explicit intervention effects were identified, but no harmful side-effects were identified either. At 6-month follow-up, parent- and adolescent-reported overprotection decreased and longer-term adolescent well-being improved. Furthermore, improvements in overprotection and adolescent well-being were correlated and changes in overparenting were generally stronger when parents were exposed to more tips, tentatively suggesting a benefit of 100 days of journaling. The trial was retrospectively registered (CCMO; registration NL-009451) on 19-02-2025.

The transition to parenthood is a momentous life event that brings about significant changes and profound adjustments in individuals' lives. This period poses challenges for new parents and can increase their vulnerability to mental health problems. Although this transition is an identity-defining episode, surprisingly little research has focused on the development of parental identity during this crucial phase. To address this gap, the present study examined the development of parental identity among first-time mothers and fathers and its longitudinal associations with their own and their partners' psychological well-being. A four-wave longitudinal study was conducted, covering the period from pregnancy to 2 years into parenthood. A total of 288 mother-father couples participated, completing measurements on parental identity commitment, exploration, ruminative exploration, and mental health at each time point. Results showed that parents with high levels or stronger increases in parental identity commitment and with lower levels or stronger decreases in ruminative exploration reported higher levels and stronger increases in life satisfaction and lower levels and stronger decreases in depressive symptoms. The associations between parental identity exploration and mental health outcomes were less pronounced and more inconsistent. Additionally, the study revealed partner effects, indicating that one partner's mental health was also influenced by the other partner's parental identity, with notable differences between mothers and fathers. Overall, these findings underscore the importance of parental identity processes in the well-being of first-time parents. Targeting parental identity in prevention and intervention efforts could prove valuable in enhancing mental health of (future) parents during the transition to parenthood. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).

Although extensive research has examined the impact of the social context on motivation, relatively less attention has been given to individuals' capacity to regulate their own motivation in the absence of external influences. Grounded in self-determination theory, the present research investigates the effectiveness and antecedents of situational autonomy- and control-oriented Self-Motivating Strategies (SMS) in shaping individuals' task experience and behavior. Study 1 (N = 169; M-age = 19.3; 72% female) examined whether the use of situational autonomy- and control-oriented strategies differentially relate to individuals' experience (interest, boredom), performance (accuracy, reaction time), and persistence in a boring computer task, as well as whether the situational use of these strategies is influenced by individuals' habitual reliance on these strategies. Study 2 (N = 216; M-age = 18.91; 89% female) additionally explored the effects of an experimental induction of both types of SMS. Both studies demonstrated that autonomy-oriented strategies helped to sustain interest, improved task accuracy, and fostered greater task persistence, whereas control-oriented strategies increased boredom and predicted slower reaction times. In addition, while both types of situational strategies were predicted by their corresponding habitual use, control-oriented SMS were significantly heightened after an experimental induction. These findings underscore the differential effects of SMS, suggesting that not all strategies to maintain and uplift one's motivation are equally effective. We discuss theoretical and practical implications, emphasizing the benefits of fostering autonomy-oriented strategies while minimizing reliance on control-oriented strategies.

This study examines how school smartphone policy stringency (the “what”) and teachers’ communication about smartphone rules (the “how”) relate to students’ motivation to comply (the “why”), as well as to their self-reported adherence and smartphone regulation beyond school. The sample consisted of 3786 secondary school students (Mage = 14.66 years, SD = 1.74; 48% male, 51% female) from 17 schools spanning Grades 7 to 12. Results from regression and mediation analyses with robust cluster corrections show that policy stringency showed only modest associations with the outcomes. In contrast, students perceived teacher communication styles displayed more consistent relations: need-supportive communication was associated with greater ownership of the rules and lower amotivation, which in turn correlated with more compliance and lower smartphone use beyond school, whereas chaotic and controlling communication showed less favourable patterns. By clarifying underlying motivational processes of school smartphone policies, the findings inform the debate on smartphone bans.

INTRODUCTION:Research collecting data from parents has found that helicopter parenting (HP) and overprotective parenting (OP) of their adolescents can be reformed to identify two features: demanding and responsive overparenting (Ryan et al. 2024). The correlations of these features with other measures were also found to differ, with demanding overparenting uniquely correlated with parent reports of less positive parenting and poorer youth adjustment and with responsive overparenting correlated with more parent-reported positive parenting. We aimed to determine if these features are also found when parenting is reported by youth and to validate the features by correlating them with youth experiences of positive parenting and youth self-reports of their adjustment. METHODS:Australian adolescents aged 16-19 years (N = 512; 34% boys, 64% girls, 2% nonbinary) completed surveys to report HP, OP, received parental support, psychological distress, decision-making, and coping efficacy. Data were analyzed with confirmatory factor analysis and partial correlations. RESULTS:Demanding and responsive features of overparenting were confirmed. When controlling for shared variance between the features, demanding overparenting was associated with less but responsive overparenting was associated with more parental support. Demanding overparenting was associated with higher, whereas responsive overparenting was associated with lower, youth psychological distress. Correlations also differed for youth's decision-making and coping. CONCLUSIONS:The findings are consistent with the idea that measures of intrusive parenting can be differentiated into a more coercive form-referred to as demanding overparenting-from a form that may be in response to tasks and decision-making-referred to as responsive overparenting.

Need crafting denotes the active pursuit of experiences that satisfy the basic psychological needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness. This RCT evaluated an online need crafting intervention among 299 adolescents (Mage=16.34; 55% girls), examining general and domain-specific (school, leisure, social media) effectiveness. The intervention directly improved need crafting and need satisfaction, particularly among engaged participants. Serial mediation analyses confirmed that intervention-induced increases in need crafting were associated with higher need satisfaction and lower need frustration, in turn relating to improved well-being and reduced ill-being. These effects were replicated in the school and leisure domains, but not for social media. The findings provide initial evidence for need crafting interventions in adolescence. This study was pre-registered on AsPredicted (bv8pj7; November 27, 2024).

The Trier Social Stress Test (TSST) is a widely used and validated procedure for inducing and investigating stress responses in humans. Although virtual reality (VR) adaptations of the TSST have been developed, most have primarily replicated the in-person protocol without exploring potential additional benefits of VR. The present preregistered study investigated whether VR TSST induces anxiety in emerging adults and whether real-time socially evaluative questions generated by a Large Language Model (LLM) further modulate these responses. Sixty-two emerging adults completed either a standard VR TSST or an LLM-enhanced VR TSST. Anxiety was assessed multimodally through subjective anxiety ratings, physiological stress markers (electrodermal activity and blood volume pulse), eye gaze behavior, as well as basic psychological needs, frustration, and emotion regulation. Both VR TSST conditions demonstrated phase-dependent increases in subjective anxiety and physiological stress responses, consistent with the typical temporal pattern of social-evaluative threat. However, the addition of LLM-generated questions did not produce incremental effects on anxiety or basic psychological needs frustration. Exploratory analyses indicated that higher baseline trait anxiety and greater use of disengagement-oriented emotion regulation strategies predicted greater subjective but not physiological anxiety reactivity. Overall, our findings provide further support for the use of VR TSST paradigms to induce subjective anxiety and partial physiological stress responses in a controlled environment. While LLM-generated evaluative questions did not amplify anxiety responses in the present implementation, this study provides an initial feasibility test of integrating LLM-enhanced evaluator interactions into VR TSST and contributes to defining boundary conditions for their potential impact on anxiety responses.