scholarly journals Rumination Versus Distraction: Dyadic Implementation Eliminates the Response Manipulation Emotion Regulation Effect

2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 76-90
Author(s):  
R.P. Egan ◽  
D.A. Smith
Keyword(s):  
Emotion Regulation ◽  
Depressive Symptoms ◽  
Mood Induction ◽  
Negative Mood ◽  
Secure Attachment ◽  
Same Sex ◽  
Interpersonal Distress ◽  
Regulation Effect ◽  
Manipulation Task ◽  
Laboratory Protocol

The Response Manipulation Task (RMT) is a popular laboratory protocol for inducing rumination and distraction. Across published studies of dysphoric participants who undergo negative mood inductions when no other people are present, only once has the RMT induction failed in its purpose. The present experiment tested the robustness of the RMT under dyadic conditions (N = 135 pairs of same sex friends). When administered in the presence of another person, the RMT showed no differential effects on subsequent negative mood or state rumination. The negative mood induction successfully induced negative mood; the effect of the manipulation did not depend on depressive symptoms; and the state rumination measure was reliable and valid. In light of this pattern of effects, nonsignificant findings on manipulation checks and substantive hypothesis tests are attributed to failure of the RMT to produce rumination and distraction under these specific study conditions. The Discussion explores constraints on the generalizability of the RMT effect due to the presence of others, including the influence of dyadic emotion regulation, interpersonal distress avoidance, and secure attachment relationships.

Spontaneous Self-Distancing Mediates the Association Between Working Memory Capacity and Emotion Regulation Success

2020 ◽  
pp. 216770262095363
Author(s):  
T. H. Stanley Seah ◽  
Lindsey M. Matt ◽  
Karin G. Coifman
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Emotion Regulation ◽  
Cognitive Processes ◽  
Mood Induction ◽  
Working Memory Capacity ◽  
Negative Mood ◽  
Theoretical Models ◽  
Memory Capacity ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Treatment Target

Self-distancing is associated with adaptive emotion regulation (ER), thereby making it a common treatment target across psychotherapies. However, less is known about cognitive processes that facilitate self-distancing. Working memory capacity (WMC) has been associated with self-distancing and ER, although research has not directly examined WMC and spontaneous self-distancing activity. Here, we tested the association between WMC and self-distancing (indexed by pronoun use) in relation to ER during a negative-mood induction in college students ( N = 209). Results suggested a mediation model: Higher WMC predicted lower I and greater we pronouns (i.e., greater self-distancing), which in turn predicted lower negative affect. Furthermore, higher WMC predicted greater we pronouns, which predicted higher positive affect. No significant mediation was observed for you. These findings enrich current theoretical models describing WMC and self-distancing in ER and suggest important future research to further elucidate the cognitive processes underlying self-distancing with implications for clinical practice.

scholarly journals The Effect of Mood on Opposite-Sex Judgments of Males' Commitment and Females' Sexual Intent

2007 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
pp. 147470490700500
Author(s):  
Shikkiah de Quadros-Wander ◽  
Mark Stokes
Keyword(s):  
Mood Induction ◽  
Negative Mood ◽  
Gender Effects ◽  
Same Sex ◽  
Sexual Intent ◽  
Opposite Sex ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Males And Females ◽  
Mood Condition ◽  
Gender Specific

Gender differences in perceptions of sexual intent and commitment have been the subject of formal and informal inquiry for considerable time. One evolutionary theory, Error Management Theory (EMT), predicts that opposite-sex perceptions of female sexual intent and male commitment intent reflect intrinsic biases that minimize gender-specific evolutionary costs. The results supporting these hypotheses were obtained from subjects regardless of mood. We hypothesized that mood would influence ratings of sexual and commitment intent. Sixty participants (30 males, 30 females) were recruited and exposed to a positive and negative mood condition in counterbalanced groups using video stimuli. Preliminary analyses found an unexpected effect of order of mood induction, necessitating separate analyses of the Positive-Negative (PN) and Negative-Positive (NP) groups. Contrary to the original study, there were no gender effects. Positive moods led to increased ratings of both sexual and commitment intent across genders. Further, negative to positive mood-change was associated with significantly increased ratings. Both males and females attributed significantly higher sexual intent to same-sex rivals than themselves, but only males assessed themselves as having significantly higher commitment intent than same-sex rivals. The EMT model may require adaptation to acknowledge effects of variables such as mood on its predictions of gender-specific biases.

scholarly journals How Depressive Symptoms Hinder Positive Information Processing: An Experimental Study on the Interplay of Cognitive Immunisation and Negative Mood in the Context of Expectation Adjustment

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tobias Kube ◽  
Julia Anna Glombiewski
Keyword(s):  
Information Processing ◽  
Depressive Symptoms ◽  
Performance Feedback ◽  
Mood Induction ◽  
Negative Mood ◽  
Performance Expectations ◽  
Positive Information ◽  
Student Sample ◽  
Positive Performance ◽  
Positive Experiences

Abstract Background People with depression maintain negative expectations despite disconfirming positive experiences by reappraising or discarding novel positive information, referred to as “cognitive immunisation”. A second body of literature suggests that negative mood can negatively affect information processing. Bridging these two lines of research, the present study examined the interplay of cognitive immunisation and negative mood in the context of expectation modification. Methods In a student sample (N = 152), we used a well-established experimental paradigm to examine the adjustment of performance expectations in response to positive performance feedback, and its relation to depressive symptoms. In a 2 × 2 design, participants received either a negative mood induction, a cognitive immunisation manipulation, both, or no further manipulation. Results Participants from all experimental groups revised their previous expectations significantly in line with positive performance feedback. However, depressive symptoms were a negative predictor of expectation adjustment, and a moderation analysis indicated that this effect was particularly pronounced if participants underwent the negative mood induction. Conclusions Consistent with previous work, depressive symptoms were associated with a reduced ability to integrate positive information. Furthermore, our results suggest that the activation of negative mood in people with elevated levels of depression may hamper learning from new positive experience.

scholarly journals Is It Personal? Context Moderates BPD Effects on Spontaneous Rumination and Distress

2020 ◽  
Vol 34 (2) ◽  
pp. 161-180 ◽  
Author(s):  
Skye Napolitano ◽  
Ilya Yaroslavsky ◽  
Christopher M. France
Keyword(s):  
Emotion Regulation ◽  
Interpersonal Relationships ◽  
Emotion Dysregulation ◽  
Mood Induction ◽  
Negative Mood ◽  
Borderline Personality ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
Personal Context ◽  
Interpersonal Situations ◽  
Experience Emotion

Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is associated with the use of maladaptive emotion regulation (ER) that predicts unstable interpersonal relationships and emotion dysregulation. Rumination, a maladaptive cognitive ER response, may be one mechanism by which those with BPD experience emotion dysregulation. However, it remains unclear whether emotion dysregulation is linked to rumination in general, or to rumination during interpersonal situations that often prove challenging for those with BPD. The present study examined whether interpersonal exclusion conferred an increased risk to spontaneously ruminate among those with elevated BPD features relative to an impersonal negative mood induction, and whether spontaneous rumination mediated the effects of BPD features on distress reactivity. Overall, BPD features predicted stronger tendencies to spontaneously ruminate and higher levels of distress following interpersonal exclusion; spontaneous rumination following interpersonal exclusion mediated the effects of BPD features on distress. These findings highlight the importance of context when examining ER outcomes.

scholarly journals Effectiveness of the level of personal relevance of visual autobiographical stimuli in the induction of positive emotions in young and older adults: Study protocol for a randomized controlled trial.

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dolores Fernandez ◽  
Laura Ros ◽  
Roberto Sánchez-Reolid ◽  
Jorge Javier Ricarte ◽  
Jose Miguel Latorre
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Depressive Symptoms ◽  
Mood Induction ◽  
Positive Emotions ◽  
Protective Factor ◽  
Electrodermal Activity ◽  
Negative Mood ◽  
Personal Relevance ◽  
Autobiographical Memories ◽  
Positive Images

Abstract Background The ability to retrieve specific memories is a cognitive and emotional protective factor. Among the most effective techniques to generate autobiographical memories is the use of audio-visual stimuli, particularly images. Developing and improving techniques that facilitate the generation of such memories could be highly effective in the prevention of depressive symptoms, especially in the elderly population. The aim of the present study is to examine how the level of personal relevance of pictures as autobiographical memory cues to induce positive emotions may affect an individual’s emotion regulation.Methods The participants, 120 older adults aged 65 and over and 120 young adults aged between 18 and 35, of both sexes and without depressive symptoms, will be induced to a negative mood state by means of viewing a film clip. Following the negative mood induction, the participants will be shown positive images according to experimental group to which they were randomly assigned (high personal relevance: personal autobiographical photographs; medium personal relevance: pictures of favourite locations associated with specific positive autobiographical memories; and low personal relevance: positive images from the International Affective Picture System). We will analyse the differences in subjective (responses to questionnaires) and objectives measures (EEG signal, heart rate variability and electrodermal activity) between the groups before and after the induction of negative affect and following the recall of positive memories.Discussion The use of images associated with specific positive autobiographical memories may be an effective input for inducing positive mood states, which has potentially important implications for their use as a cognitive behavioural technique to treat emotional disorders, such as depression, which are highly prevalent among older adults.Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT04251104. Registered on 30 January 2020, https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04251104

Expression Versus Distraction

2017 ◽  
Vol 36 (2) ◽  
pp. 162-179
Author(s):  
Ciara James ◽  
Jennifer E. Drake ◽  
Ellen Winner
Keyword(s):  
Emotion Regulation ◽  
Negative Affect ◽  
Positive Affect ◽  
Mood Induction ◽  
Negative Mood ◽  
Positive And Negative Affect ◽  
Over Expression ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Emotion Regulation Strategy

While the benefit of distraction over expression as an emotion regulation strategy has been shown, it is not clear whether this benefit generalizes across a range of activities. To find out, we compared distraction versus expression in drawing, writing, talking, and thinking to oneself. We induced a negative mood in 160 participants by asking them to visualize an upsetting experience. Participants were randomly assigned to an emotion regulation strategy (express or distract) and an activity (draw, write, talk, or think). Positive and negative affect was measured before and after the mood induction and after the activity. Distraction boosted positive affect more than did expression for the draw and think activities, but distraction lowered negative affect more than did expression for all four activities. We conclude that distraction is a more effective emotion regulation strategy than expression in improving mood especially for activities that involve drawing and thinking.

scholarly journals Which Emotion Regulation Strategies are Most Associated with Trait Emotion Dysregulation? A Transdiagnostic Examination

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexander R. Daros ◽  
Anthony C. Ruocco
Keyword(s):  
Emotion Regulation ◽  
Emotion Dysregulation ◽  
Mood Induction ◽  
Negative Mood ◽  
Strategy Use ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Data Driven ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Suboptimal Strategies

Although definitions of emotion dysregulation infer difficulties in selecting and implementing emotion regulation (ER) strategies, surprisingly few studies have examined the relationship between trait emotion dysregulation and a wide range of specific ER strategies. The present study used a data-driven approach to assess trait- and state-related ER strategy use in 99 women (aged 18-55) recruited from the community with varying levels of trait emotion dysregulation. Participants completed self-report questionnaires assessing habitual ER strategy implementation and self-ratings of ER strategy use in vivo during negative mood inductions. Principal components analysis revealed four self-report questionnaire-based and three mood-induction-based groupings comprising both optimal and suboptimal strategies. After adjusting for demographic and clinical variables, results from self-report questionnaires indicated that trait emotion dysregulation was significantly associated with higher endorsements of suboptimal strategies in two groupings (e.g., self-criticism, rumination, and social withdrawal; catastrophizing and blaming others) and lower endorsements of optimal ER strategies in one grouping (e.g., cognitive reappraisal and problem solving). In the context of mood induction, trait emotion dysregulation was significantly associated with higher endorsements of suboptimal ER strategies from one cluster only (e.g., expressive suppression, thought avoidance, and self-criticism). Such transdiagnostic, data-driven approaches can uncover how the application of specific ER strategies both habitually and during negative mood states is associated with trait emotion dysregulation.

The German Version of the Generalized Expectancies for Negative Mood Regulation Scale

2010 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
pp. 28-38 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthias Backenstrass ◽  
Katharina Joest ◽  
Nicole Gehrig ◽  
Nils Pfeiffer ◽  
Jack Mearns ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Emotion Regulation ◽  
Depressive Symptoms ◽  
Negative Mood ◽  
Incremental Validity ◽  
German Version ◽  
Mood Regulation ◽  
Emotion Regulation Strategies ◽  
Regulation Strategies ◽  
Negative Mood Regulation ◽  
Generalized Expectancies

The Generalized Expectancies for Negative Mood Regulation (NMR) Scale has been developed to assess beliefs about one’s ability to do something to feel better when emotionally upset. One aim of the present study was to replicate convergent and discriminant relationships with constructs such as coping behavior, emotion regulation strategies, and social desirability using the German version of the NMR Scale. Furthermore, the series of studies reported in this paper examined the incremental validity of the NMR Scale. The correlations found between the NMR Scale and the studied constructs are in accordance with theoretical assumptions and replicate results found with the original English language NMR Scale. Tests of incremental validity showed that the German version of the NMR Scale explained variance in depressive symptoms beyond that explained by task-oriented, emotion-oriented, and avoidance-oriented coping; emotion regulation strategies; locus of control variables; and self-efficacy. Finally, depressive patients were found to have lower NMR expectancies than a healthy control group – even when the severity of depressive symptoms was statistically controlled. Thus, the present study confirmed the validity of the German version of the NMR Scale and, by analyzing its incremental validity, emphasized the significance the NMR construct has for emotion regulation research.

How depressive symptoms hinder positive information processing – An experimental study on the interplay of cognitive immunisation and negative mood in the context of expectation update.

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tobias Kube ◽  
Julia Glombiewski
Keyword(s):  
Information Processing ◽  
Depressive Symptoms ◽  
Performance Feedback ◽  
Mood Induction ◽  
Negative Mood ◽  
Performance Expectations ◽  
Positive Information ◽  
Student Sample ◽  
Positive Performance ◽  
Positive Experiences

Background: People with depression maintain negative expectations despite disconfirming positive experiences by reappraising or discarding novel positive information, referred to as “cognitive immunisation”. A second body of literature suggests that negative mood can negatively affect information processing. Bridging these two lines of research, the present study examined the interplay of cognitive immunisation and negative mood in the context of expectation update.Methods: In a student sample (N = 152), we used a well-established experimental paradigm to examine the update of performance expectations in response to positive performance feedback, and its relation to depressive symptoms. In a 2x2 design, participants received either a negative mood induction, a cognitive immunisation manipulation, both, or no further manipulation.Results: Participants from all experimental groups updated their previous expectations significantly in line with positive performance feedback. However, depressive symptoms were a negative predictor of expectation update, and a moderation analysis indicated that this effect was particularly pronounced if participants underwent the negative mood induction. Conclusions: Consistent with previous work, depressive symptoms were related to reduced integration of positive information. Furthermore, our results suggest that in people with elevated levels of depression, the activation of negative mood can hamper learning from new positive experience.

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