scholarly journals Emotion regulation questionnaire-adapted and individual differences in emotion regulation

2021 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 70-84
Author(s):  
Rita Seixas ◽  
Anne Pignault ◽  
Claude Houssemand

Emotion regulation is a human adaptation process with important implications for daily life. Two specific emotion regulation strategies were the principle areas of study: reappraisal (cognitive change in which individuals adapt their state of mind about a given situation) and expressive suppression (response modulation in which individuals change their emotional response after its initiation). The Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (ERQ), that captures individual tendencies to reappraise and to suppress the expression of emotions, was also developed. Response modulation strategy was analyzed by considering two distinct processes: expressive suppression (down-regulation) and expressive enhancement (up-regulation). This latter modulation process has been less frequently studied by researchers. The present study investigates the psychometrical properties, individual differences and correlates of a French adapted version of the ERQ, which comprises reappraisal and the two response modulation tendencies – expressive suppression and expressive enhancement. Based on the initial ERQ, new items were created and added to the scale. The three-factor structure of the ERQ adapted was confirmed. As expected, emotion regulation is linked to individual differences: the tendency to reappraise has a positive low correlation with age; and men are significantly more disposed to suppress and to enhance than women. Finally, the tendency to suppress the expression of emotions is negatively correlated with extraversion, and the disposition to enhance the expression of emotions is negatively correlated with conscientiousness.

2017 ◽  
Vol 38 (2) ◽  
pp. 71-82 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julian Mutz ◽  
Peter Clough ◽  
Kostas A. Papageorgiou

Abstract. Mental Toughness (MT) provides crucial psychological capacities for achievement in sports, education, and work settings. Previous research examined the role of MT in the domain of mental health and showed that MT is negatively associated with and predictive of fewer depressive symptoms in nonclinical populations. The present study aimed at (1) investigating to what extent mentally tough individuals use two emotion regulation strategies: cognitive reappraisal and expressive suppression; (2) exploring whether individual differences in emotion regulation strategy use mediate the relationship between MT and depressive symptoms. Three hundred sixty-four participants (M = 24.31 years, SD = 9.16) provided self-reports of their levels of MT, depressive symptoms, and their habitual use of cognitive reappraisal and expressive suppression. The results showed a statistically significant correlation between MT and two commonly used measures of depressive symptoms. A small statistically significant positive correlation between MT and the habitual use of cognitive reappraisal was also observed. The correlation between MT and the habitual use of expressive suppression was statistically significant, but the size of the effect was small. A statistical mediation model indicated that individual differences in the habitual use of expressive suppression mediate the relationship between MT and depressive symptoms. No such effect was found for the habitual use of cognitive reappraisal. Implications of these findings and possible avenues for future research are discussed.


2018 ◽  
Vol 38 (4) ◽  
pp. 349-377
Author(s):  
Reed Maxwell ◽  
Steven Jay Lynn ◽  
Gregory P. Strauss

A sizable literature has yet to establish a reliable empirical connection between the trait conceptualization of emotion regulation as habitual, cross-situation emotion regulation tendencies and its state conceptualization as real-time, fluid, momentary emotion–situation interactivity and dependency. Thus, an open question remains: Do self-reported differences in tendencies to use one or another emotion regulation strategy predict self-reported, momentary emotional states and experiences, and are differences in these emotional states consistent with differences in emotional reactivity observed in previous studies among individuals in experimental paradigms asked to make real-time use of the emotion regulation strategies represented by these trait measures? If trait measures of emotion regulation validly reflect actual uses of particular strategies (e.g., expressive suppression and cognitive reappraisal), then these measures should predict individual differences in momentary emotions and experiences associated with habitual use of these strategies. Examining a sample of 177 participants, we found that differential endorsements of habitual strategy use on these measures were associated with individual differences in self-reported momentary emotion and experience that correspond to well-documented differences in reactivity reported among individuals instructed to apply these strategies in experimental settings. Limitations of these findings and suggestions for future directions are discussed.


PeerJ ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
pp. e11474
Author(s):  
Ricardo Morales ◽  
Daniela Ramírez-Benavides ◽  
Mario Villena-Gonzalez

Background Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response (ASMR) describes the experience of a pleasant tingling sensation along the back of the head, accompanied with a feeling of well-being and relaxation, in response to specific audio-visual stimuli, such as whispers, soft sounds, and personal attention. Previous works have assessed individual variations in personality traits associated with ASMR, but no research to date has explored differences in emotion regulation associated with ASMR. This omission occurred even when ASMR, a sensory-emotional experience, has been proposed to be located in a sound sensitivity spectrum as the opposite end of misophonia, a phenomenon associated with difficulties regulating emotions. The present work aimed to assess group differences between ASMR self-reporters and non-ASMR controls associated with emotion regulation strategies. Methods We used the validated Spanish version of the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire to assess individual differences in the use of cognitive reappraisal and expressive suppression. Results Our results showed that participants who experience ASMR had higher scores in the cognitive reappraisal subscale of the emotion regulation questionnaire than the non-ASMR group. Conclusions Individuals who experience ASMR reported higher use of cognitive reevaluation of emotionally arousing situations, suggesting more effectiveness in regulating emotions. Our finding further elucidates individual differences related to this experience, supporting that ASMR is a real psychophysiological phenomenon associated with other psychological constructs and has remarkable consequences in affective/emotional dimensions and general well-being.


PLoS ONE ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 15 (12) ◽  
pp. e0243209
Author(s):  
Ahmed M. Megreya ◽  
Robert D. Latzman

Face recognition ability is highly variable among neurologically intact populations. Across three experiments, this study examined for the first time associations between individual differences in a range of adaptive versus maladaptive emotion regulation strategies and face recognition. Using an immediate face-memory paradigm, in which observers had to identify a self-paced learned unfamiliar face from a 10-face target-present/ target-absent line-up, Experiment 1 (N = 42) found high levels of expressive suppression (the ongoing efforts to inhibit emotion-expressive behaviors), but not cognitive reappraisal (the cognitive re-evaluation of emotional events to change their emotional consequences), were associated with a lower level of overall face-memory accuracy and higher rates of misidentifications and false positives. Experiment 2 (N = 53) replicated these finding using a range of face-matching tasks, where observers were asked to match pairs of same-race or different-race face images taken on the same day or during different times. Once again, high levels of expressive suppression were associated with a lower level of overall face-matching performance and higher rates of false positives, but cognitive reappraisal did not correlate with any face-matching measure. Finally, Experiment 3 (N = 52) revealed that the higher use of maladaptive cognitive emotion regulation strategies, especially catastrophizing, was associated with lower levels of overall face-matching performances and higher rates of false positives. All told, the current research provides new evidence concerning the important associations between emotion and cognition.


2017 ◽  
Vol 32 (4) ◽  
pp. 369-375 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexandra L. Watts ◽  
Ray Norbury

Previous research has demonstrated a clear link between late chronotype and depression. The vulnerability factors underpinning this link, however, are unclear. Here the relationship between two specific emotion regulation strategies, cognitive reappraisal and expressive suppression, and chronotype was investigated using multiple regression. Two hundred and forty participants (age range 18-80, 189 females) completed validated self-report questionnaires assaying chronotype, neuroticism, depressive symptomatology, sleep quality, and emotion regulation. Eveningness was associated with increased expressive suppression, and morningness was associated with increased cognitive reappraisal after controlling for age, gender, depressive symptomatology, neuroticism, and sleep quality. Trait expressive suppression and reduced cognitive reappraisal are known to increase depression risk. Our results suggest that eveningness is associated with impaired emotion regulation, which may confer risk for future depression. These findings suggest modifiable markers that could be therapeutically targeted to prevent the onset of depression in late chronotype individuals.


2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 90-102
Author(s):  
Daniela Victoria Zaharia ◽  
Manuela Maria Apostol

The main objective of this paper is to explore the relations between emotional regulation and burnout among Romanian service employees, and to empirically validate the adequacy of emotional regulation model (Gross, 1998) to the emotional work paradigm. We were interested to clarify not only the relations among positive - negative affectivity of employees and their emotion regulation strategies (attention deployment, cognitive change and response modulation), but also the relations among these strategies and burnout. The empirical research was mainly based on questionnaires developed based on the previous literature in the field, and also on the data gathered directly from Romanian population. The results show that the positive affectivity of service employees relates to certain emotion regulation strategies and prevent burnout. Moreover, certain emotion regulation strategies also prevent burnout. In the end, some practical implications and directions for future research are discussed.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nancy Bahl ◽  
Allison Ouimet

Background and Objectives. Response-focused emotion regulation (RF-ER) strategies may alter people’s evoked emotions, influencing psychophysiology, memory accuracy, and affect. Researchers have found that participants engaging in expressive suppression (ES; a RF-ER strategy) experience increased sympathetic nervous system arousal, affect (i.e., higher subjective anxiety and negative emotion), and lowered memory accuracy. It is unclear, however, whether all RF-ER strategies exert maladaptive effects. Expressive dissonance (ED; displaying an expression opposite from how one feels) is a RF-ER strategy, and thus likely considered “maladaptive”. As outlined by the facial feedback hypothesis, however, smiling may increase positive emotion, suggesting it may be an adaptive strategy. We compared the effects of ED and ES to a control condition on psychophysiology, memory accuracy, and affect, to assess whether ED is an adaptive RF-ER strategy, relative to ES. Methods. We randomly assigned 144 female participants to engage in ED, ES, or to naturally observe, while viewing negative and arousing images. We recorded electrodermal activity and self-reported affect throughout the experiment and participants completed memory tasks. Results. There were no differences between groups across outcomes. Conclusion. Engaging in ES or ED may not lead to negative or positive impacts, shedding doubt on the common conclusion that specific strategies are categorically adaptive or maladaptive.


Author(s):  
Laura Antonia Lucia Parolin ◽  
Ilaria Maria Antonietta Benzi ◽  
Erika Fanti ◽  
Alberto Milesi ◽  
Pietro Cipresso ◽  
...  

The onset of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic impacted individuals’ psychological wellbeing resulting in heightened perceived stress, anxiety, and depression. However, a significant issue in accessing psychological care during a lockdown is the lack of access to in-person interventions. In this regard, research has shown the efficacy and utility of psychological app-based interventions. ‘Italia Ti Ascolto’ (ITA) has been developed as a population tailored internet-based intervention to offer an online professional solution for psychological support needs. The ITA app is available on iOS and Android systems. Users completed a baseline assessment on emotion regulation strategies (cognitive reappraisal and expressive suppression), psychological stress, anxiety, depression, and perceived social support. Participants could select among several one-hour long clinical groups held by expert psychotherapists. After every session, people were asked to complete a quick users’ satisfaction survey. Our contribution presents ITA’s intervention protocol and discusses preliminary data on psychological variables collected at baseline. Data showed significant associations between emotion regulation strategies, symptoms of depression and anxiety, and level of stress. Moreover, the role of perceived social support is considered. Future developments and implications for clinical practice and treatment are discussed.


2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ray Norbury

Previous research has demonstrated a clear link between late chronotype and depression. The vulnerability factors underpinning this link, however, are unclear. Here the relationship between two specific emotion regulation strategies, cognitive reappraisal and expressive suppression, and chronotype was investigated using multiple regression. Two hundred and fourty participants (age range 18- 80, 189 females) completed validated self-report questionnaires assaying chronotype, neuroticism, depression symptomatology, sleep quality and emotion regulation. Eveningness was associated increased expressive suppression and morningness was associated with increased cognitive reappraisal after controlling for age, gender, depressive symptomatology, neuroticism and sleep quality. Trait expressive suppression and reduced cognitive reappraisal are known to increase depression risk. Our results suggest that eveningness is associated with impaired emotion regulation which may confer risk for future depression. These findings suggest modifiable markers that could be therapeutically targeted to prevent the onset of depression in late chronotype individuals.


PeerJ ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. e6051 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brooke Brady ◽  
Ian I. Kneebone ◽  
Nida Denson ◽  
Phoebe E. Bailey

The process model of emotion regulation (ER) is based on stages in the emotion generative process at which regulation may occur. This meta-analysis examines age-related differences in the subjective, behavioral, and physiological outcomes of instructed ER strategies that may be initiated after an emotional event has occurred; attentional deployment, cognitive change, and response modulation. Within-process strategy, stimulus type, and valence were also tested as potential moderators of the effect of age on ER. A systematic search of the literature identified 156 relevant comparisons from 11 studies. Few age-related differences were found. In our analysis of the subjective outcome of response modulation strategies, young adults used expressive enhancement successfully (g = 0.48), but not expressive suppression (g = 0.04). Response modulation strategies had a small positive effect among older adults, and enhancement vs suppression did not moderate this success (g = 0.31 and g = 0.10, respectively). Young adults effectively used response modulation to regulate subjective emotion in response to pictures (g = 0.41) but not films (g = 0.01). Older adults were able to regulate in response to both pictures (g = 0.26) and films (g = 0.11). Interestingly, both age groups effectively used detached reappraisal, but not positive reappraisal to regulate emotional behavior. We conclude that, in line with well-established theories of socioemotional aging, there is a lack of evidence for age differences in the effects of instructed ER strategies, with some moderators suggesting more consistent effectiveness for older compared to younger adults.


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