scholarly journals Relatively Happy: The Role of the Positive-to-Negative Affect Ratio in Japanese and Belgian Couples

2021 ◽  
pp. 002202212110510
Author(s):  
Alexander Kirchner-Häusler ◽  
Michael Boiger ◽  
Yukiko Uchida ◽  
Yoko Higuchi ◽  
Atsuhiko Uchida ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Negative Affect ◽  
Relationship Satisfaction ◽  
Positive Affect ◽  
Romantic Couples ◽  
Cultural Contexts ◽  
Mediation Analyses ◽  
Culturally Different ◽  
Positive Feelings ◽  
Negative Feelings ◽  
Couple Interactions

Satisfied couples in European-American cultural contexts experience higher ratios of positive to negative affect during interactions than their less satisfied counterparts. The current research tests the possibility that this finding is culture-bound. It compares proportions of positive to negative affect during couple interactions in two different cultural contexts: Belgium and Japan. Whereas Belgian relationship goals (e.g., mutual affirmation and self-esteem) call for the experience of positive affect, Japanese relationship goals (e.g., harmony and self-adjustment) call for the avoidance of negative affect. We propose that these differences result in different affect ratios in close relationships. To test this idea, we tracked positive and negative feelings during couple interactions. Fifty-eight Belgian and 80 Japanese romantic couples took part in a lab interaction study, in which they discussed a topic of disagreement. Using a video-mediated recall, participants rated their positive and negative feelings during the interaction; relationship satisfaction was assessed before the interaction. As expected, Belgian couples’ positive-to-negative affect ratios were more positive than those of Japanese couples. Furthermore, in both cultures relationship satisfaction was positively associated with more positive affect ratios, but this effect was significantly stronger for Belgian than Japanese couples. Finally, mediation analyses showed that higher affect ratios were achieved in culturally different and meaningful ways: satisfied Belgian couples showed higher ratios primarily through higher levels of positive feelings, whereas satisfied Japanese couples showed higher ratios primarily through lower levels of negative feelings.

scholarly journals SOCIAL SUPPORT AND RELATIONSHIP SATISFACTION AS PREDICTORS OF POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE AFFECT IN INFERTILE WOMAN DURING IVF TREATMENT

2021 ◽  
pp. 123
Author(s):  
Milica Mitrović ◽  
Jelena Opsenica Kostić ◽  
Damjana Panić
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Social Support ◽  
Negative Affect ◽  
Relationship Satisfaction ◽  
Positive Affect ◽  
Psychological Adjustment ◽  
Perceived Social Support ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Positive And Negative Affect ◽  
Fertility Problems

Infertility is a medical problem, but it can have significant consequences for mental health. Emotional problems caused by infertility are very common, so infertility can be called a life crisis. Therefore, it is very important to identify protective and risk factors that would determine the psychological adjustment to infertility. The aim of this study was to examine the differences in perceived social support, relationship satisfaction, and positive and negative affect between women undergoing IVF treatment and women who do not have fertility problems. The research also aims to examine whether perceived social support and relationship satisfaction were significant predictors of positive and negative affect in both groups. The study included 292 women – 163 who were undergoing the IVF treatment at the time of assessment and 129 without fertility problems who made up the control group. The following instruments were applied: the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support, the Relationship Satisfaction Scale, and the Serbian Inventory of Affect based on PANAS. The results show statistically significant differences between the examined groups in the level of negative affect, which is more pronounced in the group of women undergoing IVF treatment. Regarding positive affect, there is a trend of a more frequent experience of positive emotions in the women from the control group. Perceived social support and relationship satisfaction are significant predictors of both positive and negative affect for the women undergoing IVF treatment. As for the control group, the results of the regression analysis show that perceived social support and relationship satisfaction are significant predictors of negative affect, while in the case of positive affect, relationship satisfaction stands out as a significant predictor. The results indicate that perceived social support and relationship satisfaction can be important protective factors when it comes to psychological adjustment to infertility, which can serve as a guideline for mental health professionals who work with infertile couples.

scholarly journals Fading Affect Bias in Intergroup Relations

2021 ◽  
Vol 52 (4) ◽  
pp. 203-214
Author(s):  
Michèle D. Birtel ◽  
Gian Antonio Di Bernardo ◽  
Loris Vezzali
Keyword(s):  
Negative Affect ◽  
Positive Affect ◽  
Intergroup Relations ◽  
Intergroup Contact ◽  
Memory Strength ◽  
Buffering Effect ◽  
Mediation Analyses ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Opposite Gender ◽  
Over Time

Abstract. Negative affect associated with autobiographical events fades faster over time than positive affect. This Fading Affect Bias (FAB) has been established in the individual and interpersonal domains. Two studies tested the FAB in intergroup relations with Muslims ( N= 76 White British non-Muslim) and opposite gender ( N = 242 women and men) as target outgroups. The results indicated that the FAB exists in an intergroup context, for both ingroup and outgroup memories. Mediation analyses showed that intergroup contact is related to a lower fading of positive affect associated with the outgroup memory, through greater memory strength and a more positive outgroup member evaluation. The findings are important for understanding affect associated with intergroup memories and the buffering effect of positive contact.

Assessing Effective Coping with Bereavement in College Students: The Reactions to Loss Scale

2014 ◽  
Vol 68 (3) ◽  
pp. 241-257 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eric Cooley ◽  
Tamina Toray ◽  
Lauren Roscoe
Keyword(s):  
College Students ◽  
Negative Affect ◽  
Longitudinal Data ◽  
Predictive Validity ◽  
Loss Of Control ◽  
Positive Reappraisal ◽  
Control Scale ◽  
Loss Event ◽  
Positive Feelings ◽  
Negative Feelings

The predictive validity of the Reactions to Loss Scale (RTL) was assessed in two studies ( N = 185 and 170) of college students who reported a recent loss and their feelings about and preoccupation with the loss. Across a 9–week interval, participants reported an increase in positive feelings about the loss event and a decrease in negative feelings, regret, and preoccupation with the loss. The Positive Reappraisal Scale of the RTL predicted increased positive feelings and a reduction of regret. Avoidance scale of the RTL predicted higher levels of regret and the Loss of Control scale predicted higher levels of negative affect (Study 2). This longitudinal data supports the validity of the Reactions to Loss scale and supports the value of assessing positive, resilient responses to a loss.

Daily Support Equity in Romantic Couples

2017 ◽  
Vol 9 (7) ◽  
pp. 790-801 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eran Bar-Kalifa ◽  
Rony Pshedetzky-Shochat ◽  
Eshkol Rafaeli ◽  
Marci E. J. Gleason
Keyword(s):  
Negative Affect ◽  
Positive Affect ◽  
Response Surface ◽  
Polynomial Regression ◽  
Analytic Approach ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Romantic Couples ◽  
Daily Diaries ◽  
Differential Effects ◽  
Relational Outcomes

Receiving support may yield negative outcomes, although these can be offset by reciprocating support. Here, we argue that support receipt and reciprocation should be considered with reference to two separate needs, for relatedness/communion and competence/agency, which underlie differential effects of equity on affective versus relational outcomes. To test these, we go beyond earlier studies by (a) examining equity along a (daily) continuum, (b) using the novel analytic approach of polynomial regression with response surface analyses, and (c) indexing equity from both monadic and dyadic perspectives. Using dyadic daily diaries ( NDays = 35, NCouples = 80), we found personal outcomes (positive affect [PA] and negative affect [NA]) to be worst on inequitable days, particularly overbenefit ones. In contrast, equity did not play the same role with regard to relational outcomes (closeness/satisfaction), for which overbenefit proved more positive. Interestingly, the monadic and dyadic perspectives converged more with personal than with relational outcomes.

scholarly journals Can "slacktivism" work? Perceived power differences moderate the relationship between social media activism and collective action intentions through positive affect

2019 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mindi D. Foster ◽  
Eden Hennessey ◽  
Benjamin T. Blankenship ◽  
Abigail Stewart
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Collective Action ◽  
Low Power ◽  
Positive Affect ◽  
Moderated Mediation ◽  
Media Activism ◽  
Mediation Analyses ◽  
Moderated Mediation Model ◽  
Two Samples ◽  
Positive Feelings

We argue that the often-used critique of social media activism as merely a ‘feel-good’ mechanism can be countered by conceptualizing social media activism as a necessary type of collective action (i.e., consensus mobilization), incorporating theory on the benefits of positive feelings for activism, and by examining how power may affect these relationships. Women from two different samples (MTurk and university) were randomly assigned to recall a high- versus low-power experience, view real-world events of sexism, and then complete questionnaires assessing endorsement of social media activism, positive affect, and collective action intentions. A dual moderated mediation analyses at the second stage of mediation showed equivalency across two samples, at which point the single moderated mediation model was tested on the combined sample. The model was significant, such that among those in the high-power condition, endorsing social media activism was associated with greater positive affect, which in turn predicted greater collective action intentions. Among those in the low-power condition, however, this indirect effect was not significant. This study provides counter-evidence to the ‘slacktivism’ critique, contributes to theories of collective action, power and their integration, and identifies a possible intervention to enhance the effectiveness of social media activism.

scholarly journals Cognitive Mechanisms Reciprocally Transmit Vulnerability between Depressive and Somatic Symptoms

2015 ◽  
Vol 2015 ◽  
pp. 1-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kaitlin A. Harding ◽  
Karly M. Murphy ◽  
Amy Mezulis
Keyword(s):  
Negative Affect ◽  
Positive Affect ◽  
Somatic Symptoms ◽  
Reciprocal Relationship ◽  
Cognitive Responses ◽  
Negative Events ◽  
Cognitive Mechanisms ◽  
Mediation Analyses ◽  
Cognitive Predictors ◽  
Positive Rumination

Despite high comorbidity between depressive and somatic symptoms, cognitive mechanisms that transmit vulnerability between symptom clusters are largely unknown. Dampening, positive rumination, and brooding are three cognitive predictors of depression, with rumination theoretically indicated as a transdiagnostic vulnerability through amplifying and diminishing affect in response to events. Specifically, the excess negative affect and lack of positive affect characteristic of depressive symptoms and underlying somatic symptoms may cause and be caused by cognitive responses to events. Therefore, the current study examined whether comorbidity between depressive and somatic symptoms may be explained by the cognitive mechanisms of dampening and positive rumination in response to positive events and brooding in response to negative events among adults (N=321) across eight weeks of assessment. We hypothesized that greater dampening and brooding would reciprocally predict greater depressive and somatic symptoms, while greater positive rumination would reciprocally predict fewer depressive and somatic symptoms. Mediation analyses in AMOS 22 indicated that dampening and brooding mediated reciprocal pathways between depressive and somatic symptoms, but positive rumination did not.Findings propose dampening and brooding as mechanisms of the reciprocal relationship between depressive and somatic symptoms through diminishing positive affect and amplifying negative affect in response to positive and negative events.

scholarly journals Attachment and the Development of Depressive Symptoms in Adolescence: The Role of Regulating Positive and Negative Affect

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martine W. F. T. Verhees ◽  
Chloë Finet ◽  
Sien Vandesande ◽  
Margot Bastin ◽  
Patricia Bijttebier ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Emotion Regulation ◽  
Depressive Symptoms ◽  
Negative Affect ◽  
Positive Affect ◽  
Attachment Anxiety ◽  
Insecure Attachment ◽  
Multiple Mediation ◽  
Mediation Analyses ◽  
Longitudinal Support ◽  
Regulation Strategies

AbstractAlthough widely accepted, attachment theory’s hypothesis that insecure attachment is associated with the development of depressive symptoms through emotion regulation strategies has never been longitudinally tested in adolescence. Additionally, previous research only focused on strategies for regulating negative affect, whereas strategies for regulating positive affect may also serve as a mechanism linking insecure attachment to depressive symptoms. This study aimed to fill these research gaps by testing whether the association between attachment and change in depressive symptoms over time is explained by strategies for regulating negative and positive affect in adolescence. Adolescents (N = 1706; 53% girls; Mage = 12.78 years, SDage = 1.54 at Time 1) were tested three times, with a 1-year interval between measurement times. They reported on their attachment anxiety and avoidance at Time 1, depressive symptoms at Times 1 and 3, and regulation of negative affect (brooding and dampening) and positive affect (focusing and reflection) at Time 2. The results from multiple mediation analyses showed that more anxiously attached adolescents developed more depressive symptoms via increased brooding and dampening. More avoidantly attached adolescents developed more depressive symptoms via decreased focusing. These findings provide longitudinal support for attachment theory’s emotion regulation hypothesis, and show that the regulation of both negative and positive affect is important.

CONVERGENT VALIDITY OF THE DEPRESSION-HAPPINESS SCALE WITH THE BRADBURN AFFECT BALANCE SCALE

2000 ◽  
Vol 28 (6) ◽  
pp. 579-584 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher Alan Lewis ◽  
Paddy McCollam ◽  
Stephen Joseph
Keyword(s):  
Negative Affect ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Convergent Validity ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Positive And Negative Affect ◽  
Subjective Well Being ◽  
Affect Balance ◽  
Balance Scale ◽  
Positive Feelings ◽  
Negative Feelings

The aim of the present paper is to provide further evidence for the convergent validity of one such measure, the Depression-Happiness Scale (McGreal & Joseph, 1993; Joseph & Lewis, 1998). The Affect Balance Scale (Bradburn, 1969), a measure which is very well established in the subjective well-being literature, which contains measures of both positive and negative affect, was administered alongside the Depression-Happiness Scale to 67 undergraduate students. As predicted, higher scores on the Depression-Happiness Scale, indicating a higher frequency of positive feelings and a lower frequency of negative feelings, were significantly associated with higher scores on the Affect Balance Scale and the Affect Positive Scale and also with lower scores on the Affect Negative Scale. These data provide further evidence of the convergent validity of the Depression-Happiness Scale.

scholarly journals The Effects of Intimate Partner Violence on Relationship Satisfaction Over Time for Young At-Risk Couples: The Moderating Role of Observed Negative and Positive Affect

Partner Abuse ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 131-151 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joann Wu Shortt ◽  
Deborah M. Capaldi ◽  
Hyoun K. Kim ◽  
Heidemarie K. Laurent
Keyword(s):  
At Risk ◽  
Intimate Partner Violence ◽  
Negative Affect ◽  
Relationship Satisfaction ◽  
Positive Affect ◽  
Partner Violence ◽  
Intimate Partner ◽  
Inverse Association ◽  
Model Average ◽  
Over Time

In the current study, the moderating effects of observed negative and positive affects on the association between intimate partner violence (IPV, physical aggression) and relationship satisfaction were examined over a 5-year period. Multiwave data were obtained from a sample of young adult men at risk for delinquency and their women partners (n = 121 couples; ages 21–26 years). The trajectory of each partner’s relationship satisfaction and the effects of dyadic IPV and affect were tested using HLM analyses and a two-level (within-couple and between-couple) dyadic growth model. Average levels of dyadic positive affect were associated with relationship satisfaction for both men and women. For men, increases in couples’ positive affect over time were linked to increases in relationship satisfaction, and increases in couples’ externalizing negative affect were linked to decreases in satisfaction. For women, higher levels of couples’ IPV predicted lower levels of satisfaction. Couples’ internalizing negative affect amplified the effects of IPV on satisfaction over time. Increases in IPV were associated with declines in satisfaction for couples with high levels of internalizing negative affect. Conversely, average levels of externalizing negative affect did not amplify the association between IPV and relationship satisfaction. In fact, the adverse influence of IPV on relationship satisfaction was greater for couples who displayed low levels of externalizing negative affect. Because of the inverse association between externalizing negative affect and relationship satisfaction, these findings were interpreted to suggest that the salience of IPV was greater in couples whose relationship satisfaction was not already impaired by high levels of negative affect.

scholarly journals “We Feel Good”: Daily Support Provision, Health Behavior, and Well-Being in Romantic Couples

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Corina Berli ◽  
Philipp Schwaninger ◽  
Urte Scholz
Keyword(s):  
Social Support ◽  
Health Behavior ◽  
Negative Affect ◽  
Relationship Satisfaction ◽  
Vigorous Physical Activity ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Health Behavior Change ◽  
Romantic Couples ◽  
Support Provision ◽  
Daily Diary Study

Intimate partners are an important source of support when pursuing health goals. A vast amount of literature documents the role of social support in alleviating recipients’ distress and facilitating health behaviors. Less studied is the phenomenon that providing support may entail a benefit for the provider, particularly in the context of health behavior change. In the present study, we investigated whether providing social support in daily life would be associated with more health behavior, and emotional and relational well-being that same day, using a sample of romantic couples aiming to become more physically active. Ninety-nine inactive and overweight heterosexual romantic couples (=198 individuals) participated in this dyadic daily diary study. Both partners reported on the provision of social support, positive and negative affect, and relationship satisfaction in electronic end-of-day diaries across 14 consecutive days. Moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) was objectively assessed via triaxial accelerometers (Actigraph GT3X+). Using the Actor-Partner Interdependence Model (APIM), dyadic data analyses indicated that providing support to the partner was associated with higher own MVPA, more own positive affect, less own negative affect, and more own relationship satisfaction (actor effects), over and above the effect of support provision on outcomes in the other partner (partner effects). The present findings suggest that the provision of daily social support in couples is strongly associated with enhanced well-being not only at a personal level but also at a relational level. Providing social support may also serve the function of relationship maintenance. Thus, shifting the focus away from the recipient to examine beneficial effects of social support in providers is highly relevant. Future research should address the question of when, why, and how giving support is beneficial.

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