Emotion Regulation Frequency and Self-Efficacy: Differential Associations with Affective Symptoms

Successful emotion regulation is a critical component of mental health, and difficulties with emotion regulation have been associated with a wide range of disorders, including anxiety and depressive disorders. However, although much is known about commonly used forms of emotion regulation such as cognitive reappraisal and expressive suppression, the relative contribution of two important facets of emotion regulation-frequency and self-efficacy-is not yet clearly established. To address this issue, we conducted two studies. Study 1 employed a community sample (cross-sectional N = 431; 4- to 5-month longitudinal N = 182). Study 2 employed a clinical sample (cross-sectional N = 132). Both assessed emotion regulation frequency and self-efficacy, as well as affective outcomes (anxiety and depressive symptoms). Findings indicated cognitive reappraisal self-efficacy appears to be a relevant variable understanding negative affect outcomes, cross-sectionally, longitudinally and in the clinical sample. Our findings support the process model of emotion regulation in affective symptomatology. Implications for theory and treatment are discussed.

Emotion malleability beliefs matter in emotion regulation: a comprehensive review and meta-analysis

Individuals' beliefs about the malleability of emotions have been theorised to play a role in their psychological distress by influencing emotion regulation processes, such as the use of emotion regulation strategies. We conducted a meta-analysis to test this idea across studies with a focus on the relationships between emotion malleability beliefs and five distinct emotion regulation strategies: cognitive reappraisal, suppression, avoidance, rumination, and acceptance. Further, using two-stage meta-analytic structural equation modelling (TSSEM), we examined whether the emotion regulation strategies mediate the cross-sectional relationship between emotion malleability beliefs and psychological distress across studies. Thirty-seven studies were included in the meta-analyses and 55 cross-sectional studies were included in the TSSEM. Results demonstrated that, across studies, emotion malleability beliefs were significantly associated with greater use of putatively helpful strategies (particularly with cognitive reappraisal) and less use of putatively unhelpful strategies (particularly with avoidance). The use of cognitive reappraisal and avoidance partially mediated the relationship between emotion malleability beliefs and psychological distress. These results highlight the importance of considering beliefs about the malleability of emotions in the context of emotion regulation. These findings suggest the potential role of emotion malleability beliefs in interventions for individuals with emotion regulation-related difficulties and psychological distress.

Beliefs about emotion usefulness are nuanced: degree of personal reference and emotional valence predict affective distress

The beliefs people hold about emotions are implicated in a variety of outcomes including emotion regulation success and overall well-being. However, research on the dimensions of such beliefs is limited, typically addressing broad beliefs about all emotions and focusing only on their controllability. This study investigated emotion usefulness beliefs, specifically, and further parsed dimensions of personal reference (general vs. personal emotions) and valence (positive vs. negative). Study 1 (N = 343), applying a 2 × 2 factorial ANOVA, revealed that participants believed negative emotions in general to be more useful than their own negative emotions, with no such difference emerging for positive emotions. Multiple regression analyses indicated that personal beliefs about emotions better predicted affective distress than general beliefs. Study 2 (N = 531) replicated these findings and employed confirmatory factor analyses to psychometrically assess the distinctiveness of these emotion belief dimensions. Evaluating a two-factor model, four-factor model, and three-factor bifactor model, results showed that both the four-factor and bifactor models fit the data well, whereas the two-factor model did not. These findings suggest that beliefs about emotion in general and beliefs about one's own emotions may not be fundamentally distinct, but rather different dimensions of the same underlying emotion usefulness belief.

Emotion beliefs, emotion regulation strategies, and test anxiety of Chinese adolescents in grade 8: Evidence from physiological recordings during an exam

Controllability beliefs and goodness beliefs about emotion are two fundamental emotion beliefs. The present study considered both controllability beliefs and goodness beliefs to examine whether and how the emotion beliefs of adolescents influence their test anxiety. Besides self-reported test anxiety (sr-TA), the present study measured heart rate (HR) and galvanic skin response (GSR) using custom-designed wristbands during an exam as indicators of state test anxiety. The GSR was further decomposed into the tonic skin conductance level and the transient skin conductance response. The results revealed that, after controlling the goodness beliefs about anxiety, the controllability beliefs about emotion were negatively related to sr-TA. This relationship was mediated by suppression. The controllability beliefs about emotion were directly related to the integration of transient skin conductance responses of 5 min before the exam. They were also indirectly related to the integration of transient skin conductance responses of the exam period, whether including the 5 min before the exam or not, and HR during certain periods through suppression. Therefore, adolescents' controllability beliefs about emotion may have important implications for their test anxiety.

Modeling the associations between emotion regulation, suicide crisis syndrome and suicidal behavior: Results in community and clinical samples

BACKGROUND

Emotion Regulation (ER) and Suicide Crisis Syndrome (SCS) are psychological processes involved in suicide. Within ER, both the use of rumination and dysfunctional emotion beliefs are associated with suicide. SCS, a pre-suicidal mental state involving cognitive and affective dysregulation, is related to short-term suicide risk.

AIMS

Here, we first examined associations between ER (beliefs about the uncontrollability of emotions and rumination), SCS and suicide behavior, and second, we test a multistep model in which ER factors are linked to suicide behavior through SCS.

MATERIALS & METHODS

We conducted two cross-sectional studies to address this issue by self-reports. Study 1 used a community sample (N = 421). Study 2 used a clinical sample (N = 70).

RESULTS

Results from both studies showed that beliefs about the uncontrollability of emotions and rumination were associated with higher levels of SCS symptoms and suicide behavior, and that SCS was associated with suicide behavior. In addition, path analyses showed that uncontrollability beliefs were linked to rumination, which in turn was associated with SCS, and this variable mediated the association between ER factors and suicide ideation (in both community and clinical samples) and suicide attempts (in the community sample).

DISCUSSION

As we expected, in both samples, uncontrollability of emotions and rumination were positively related with SCS and suicide behavior.

CONCLUSION

We emphasize the importance of addressing uncontrollability beliefs and rumination in suicide prevention.

Negative urgency as a state-level process

OBJECTIVE

Test whether global self-reports of urgency moderated the within-person associations of affect and impulsive behaviors.

BACKGROUND

Negative urgency is a personality trait that is a risk factor for a range of psychopathology. Although it is assumed that global self-reports of urgency measure individual tendencies to act more impulsively in the face of negative emotions, evidence from ecological momentary assessment studies is mixed.

METHOD

In this Registered Report, we used ecological momentary assessment data from a large sample of young adults (n = 496, age 18-22, 5 surveys per day for 40 days).

RESULTS

All forms of momentary impulsivity were impaired in moments when people reported more intense negative emotions, but global self-reports of urgency did not explain individual differences in this association. Moreover, averaged affective states, rather than specific dimensions, affective circumplex, or appraisals, best predicted impulsive states.

CONCLUSIONS

Results suggest that face-valid interpretations of global self-report of urgency are inaccurate, and it may be important to understand how some people come to understand themselves as high on urgency rather than assuming that people's self-reports of their motivations are accurate. Momentary experiences of emotions globally impact multiple weakly to moderately associated impulsive behaviors, and future research should seek to understand both when and for whom these associations are strongest.

The Emotion Beliefs Questionnaire: Psychometric properties, norms, and links to affective outcomes

BACKGROUND

The Emotion Beliefs Questionnaire was recently developed to measure beliefs about the controllability and usefulness of negative and positive emotions. These are beliefs that have been theorised to be influential for emotion regulation and psychological outcomes. However, to date there are few studies utilising large, representative samples to examine the EBQ's psychometric properties and affective correlates. Our aim was to fill this gap by examining the EBQ's psychometric properties and exploring associations between emotion beliefs, emotion regulation, and affective disorder symptoms.

METHODS

A sample of 1175 adults recruited from the general population in the United States completed measures of emotion beliefs, emotion regulation, and affective disorder symptoms.

RESULTS

Confirmatory factor analyses supported the EBQ's intended subscale structure, where controllability and usefulness beliefs were separated by valence. This structure was invariant across gender, age, and education categories. The EBQ correlated in expected ways with other measures, demonstrating good validity, and had good to excellent levels of internal consistency reliability.

LIMITATIONS

This study used a non-clinical sample that was predominantly White. Future work should utilise clinical and cross-cultural samples to maximise generalisability of findings.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings indicate that the EBQ is a psychometrically sound tool for measuring the multidimensional emotion belief construct. The EBQ may have clinical utility in the conceptualisation, assessment, and treatment of maladaptive emotion beliefs. Furthermore, our results highlight the importance of considering the potential influence of maladaptive emotion beliefs in emotion dysregulation and affective disorder symptoms.

This too shall pass, but when? Children's and adults' beliefs about the time duration of emotions, desires, and preferences

This research investigated children's and adults' understanding of the mind by assessing beliefs about the temporal features of mental states. English-speaking North American participants, varying in socioeconomic status (Study 1: N = 50 adults; Study 2: N = 112, 8- to 10-year-olds and adults; and Study 3: N = 116, 5- to 7-year-olds and adults; tested 2017-2022), estimated the duration (seconds to a lifetime) of emotions, desires (wanting), preferences (liking), and control trials (e.g., napping and having eyes). Participants were 56% female and 44% male; 32% Asian, 1% Black, 13% Hispanic/Latino, 38% White (non-Hispanic/Latino), and 16% multiracial or another race/ethnicity. Children and adults judged that preferences last longer than emotions and desires, with age differences in distinguishing specific emotions by duration (η p 2 s > .03 ). By 5 to 7 years, ideas about the mind include consideration of time.

Parental linguistic content and distancing predict beliefs about emotion and child emotion regulation

ABSTRACTEmploying a constructionist framework of emotion, this study examines whether parental language during emotion belief discussions predicts parents' self-reported beliefs about emotion and child emotion regulation (ER). 102 parents of children ages 8 through 12 participated in focus groups about emotion beliefs, and nine months later, completed questionnaires on their emotion beliefs and child ER. Focus group content was analyzed for positive and negative emotion talk, cognitive process talk, and an established linguistic marker of psychological distancing. Parents' positive emotion talk and parental linguistic distancing when discussing their child's (but not their own) emotion experiences positively predicted beliefs about children's emotional capabilities. Finally, negative emotion talk negatively predicted parental beliefs about children's capacity to control their own emotions and the value of anger expression as well as child ER. Current findings contribute to our understanding of how parental communication patterns about emotions may influence emotion beliefs and child emotion development.

Reciprocal effects between negative affect and emotion regulation in daily life

The extended process model of emotion regulation provides a framework for understanding how emotional experiences and emotion regulation (ER) mutually influence each other over time. To investigate this reciprocal relationship, 202 adults completed a ten-day experience-sampling survey capturing levels of negative affect (NA) experience and use of ten ER strategies in daily life. Residual dynamic structural equation models (DSEMs) were used to examine within-person cross-lagged and autoregressive effects of NA and ER (strategy use and between-strategy variability). Results showed that NA predicted lower between-strategy variability, lower subsequent use of acceptance and problem-solving, but higher subsequent use of rumination and worry. Moreover, reappraisal and between-strategy variability predicted lower subsequent NA levels, while expressive suppression and worry predicted higher subsequent NA levels. Stable autoregressive effects were found for NA and for maladaptive ER strategies (e.g., rumination and worry). Exploratory correlation analyses revealed positive associations between NA inertia and maladaptive ER strategies. Together, these findings provide evidence of a dynamic interplay between NA and ER. This work deepens how we understand the challenges of applying ER strategies in daily life. Future clinical and translational research should consider these dynamic perspectives on ER and affect.

Beyond strategies: The when and why of emotion regulation in aging

Most research to date on potential age differences in emotion regulation has focused on whether older adults differ from younger adults in how they manage their emotions. We argue for a broader consideration of the possible effects of aging on emotion regulation by moving beyond tests of age differences in strategy use to also consider when and why emotion regulation takes place. That is, we encourage deeper consideration of contextual factors that spark regulation as well as the goals and motives underlying individuals' attempts to regulate their emotions. There may be age-related variation in all, some, or none of these components of emotion regulation. Descriptive work across all dimensions of emotion regulation is necessary to test and refine theories of emotional aging.

If it Ain't Broke, Don't Fix it: Positive Versus Negative Emotion Regulation in Daily Life and Depressive Symptoms

BACKGROUND

Despite the importance of positive emotions for affective psychopathology, prior research primarily focused on negative emotion regulation. To address this gap, this ecological momentary assessment study compared a broad set of emotion regulation strategies in the context of positive versus negative emotions regarding their effectiveness and associations with depressive symptoms.

METHODS

We analyzed data from 1066 participants who were notified five times daily for seven consecutive days to complete a smartphone survey assessing their predominant emotions, strategies to regulate them, and subsequent emotional outcomes.

RESULTS

Findings show that the effectiveness of most regulation strategies depended on whether the emotional context was positive or negative. While acceptance and savoring predicted improved emotional outcomes across emotional contexts, reappraisal and problem-solving were associated with deteriorated emotional outcomes and increased depressive symptoms when regulating positive but not negative emotions.

LIMITATIONS

Future studies should replicate our findings in demographically and culturally diverse clinical samples to improve generalizability.

CONCLUSION

These results emphasize that strategies effective for regulating negative emotions may be less helpful in the context of positive emotions. Thus, context-specific interventions may be a promising approach to improve the treatment of affective disorders.

University makes me angry: Investigating stimulus-response (S-R) and cognitive-mediation (C-M) emotion beliefs in undergraduate students

Emotion regulation through cognitive reappraisal is well-studied, but less so are the predispositional and superordinate beliefs that influence reappraisal. Recently, researchers developed the cognitive mediation beliefs questionnaire (CMBQ), which measures two emotion beliefs, namely stimulus-response (S-R) generation beliefs and cognitive mediation (C-M) change beliefs. In working populations S-R generation beliefs are inversely related to cognitive reappraisal tendencies and positive mental health, and positively related to emotion reactivity. C-M change beliefs are positively related to cognitive reappraisal tendencies, and inversely related to emotion reactivity and positive mental health. As yet, there is no evidence for the validity of the CMBQ within student samples, or for the associations between its subscales and cognitive reappraisal, emotion reactivity, and positive mental health. Therefore, in the present study the CMBQ is tested for factorial, convergent (associations with cognitive reappraisal), and concurrent (associations with emotion reactivity and positive mental health) validity in a cohort of 621 undergraduate students in the United Kingdom (U.K.). Results indicate support for the factorial and convergent validity of the CMBQ, with mixed evidence for the concurrent validity of the CMBQ. A CM-SR discrepancy score appeared to provide a promising variable when associated with emotion reactivity and positive mental health. The findings are discussed in terms of practical and research implications of the findings.

Early evaluation of a DBT-informed online intervention for people with eating disorders

OBJECTIVES

Eating disorders (EDs) have a worldwide prevalence of 7.8%, with towering mortality rates and high healthcare costs. The current recommended treatment for EDs principally works by directly targeting ED thoughts and behaviours, but recovery rates are low. A multifaceted link between difficulties with emotions and EDs is now widely established, and newer third-wave therapies that aim to address these underlying emotion difficulties are promising. The current study piloted an online emotion self-help intervention which was co-developed with clinicians and people with lived experienced of EDs. The intervention aimed to specifically address difficulties with emotion identification and regulation, as well as unhelpful beliefs about emotions, which are believed to give rise to and maintain ED thoughts and behaviours.

METHOD

We recruited 39 people with self-reported EDs to test this intervention over a one-week period. Our participants were asked to complete a series of questionnaires measuring emotion processes and psychopathology on Day 1 (T1) before being given access to the intervention. Participants were then asked to practice the newly acquired skills for seven days, before taking the same questionnaires on Day 9 (T2). We also asked participants to qualitatively report on their experience of the intervention.

RESULTS

We found significant improvements in ED psychopathology (ED-15), depression (PHQ-9), and anxiety (GAD-7) pre- to post-intervention, with medium to large effect sizes. All our emotion variables namely alexithymia (TAS-20), difficulties regulating emotions (DERS-SF), and unhelpful beliefs about emotions (EBQ) also showed significant changes post-intervention with medium to large effect sizes. Most importantly, changes in emotion regulation processes were linked to improved eating psychopathology. The qualitative analysis corroborated this finding, highlighting how the intervention helped them form new beliefs about emotions, which helped them reduce ED behaviours.

DISCUSSION

Significant improvements in emotion processing and regulations, as well as psychopathology, along with positive qualitative feedback, suggest that the intervention effectively met its aims of increasing awareness of the link between emotions and eating psychopathology, providing help to identify and regulate emotions, and normalising emotional experiences. While our results are promising, further research is required to assess its effectiveness longer term and in clinical settings.

Emotion beliefs: conceptual review and compendium

Laypeople hold richly divergent beliefs about emotion, and these beliefs are consequential. Specific forms of belief that have been investigated include the usefulness, contagiousness, duration, dependence upon intersubjective experience, cognitively mediated properties, malleability, and hindering properties of emotion, just to name a few. Progress in this emerging sub-field of research has been hampered by the lack of a widely accepted definition of emotion belief able to capture all of these dimensions. Correspondingly, there has been a proliferation of different terminologies, constructs, and measures. The present review aims to address these obstacles by defining emotion belief, and subsequently re-considering existing constructs and measures that align with this definition. The latter is presented in the form of a comprehensive compendium of 21 different constructs and associated self-report measures that assess varying components of one's beliefs about emotions in general and/or about their own emotions, and an additional 5 scales that were designed to measure one's beliefs about another's emotions. From the more unified conceptualization of emotion belief presented here, critical areas of future research are highlighted.

The Future of Emotion Regulation Research: Broadening Our Field of View

Over the past few decades, emotion regulation research has matured into a vibrant and rapidly growing field (in 2022 alone, more than 30 thousand papers were published on emotion regulation). Taking stock of our progress, we ask "What does the future hold?" In this manuscript, we offer a roadmap for the next generation of research on emotion regulation. We begin by painting a picture of the field's journey so far. We then outline a forward-looking agenda for broadening our field of view along three key dimensions: (1) increasing our resolution to see how regulatory strategies are flexibly and dynamically translated into tactics; (2) widening our viewing angle to embrace interpersonal emotion regulation; and (3) extending the timescale of emotion regulation research to examine how regulatory efforts are fine-tuned across the regulatory cycle and in the context of a broader range of affective experiences. In doing so, we highlight empirical studies that exemplify these three areas of focus and discuss the opportunities that lie before us. We close by offering a set of concrete practical and methodological recommendations for how the field can accomplish the goals we have outlined.

Psychometric properties and factor structure of the Revised Beliefs About Emotions Questionnaire

OBJECTIVE

Given that there is an increasing exploration of the role of beliefs about emotions in emotion regulation and psychotherapy, there is a need for a range of valid and reliable measures of beliefs about emotions. The Beliefs About Emotions Questionnaire (BAEQ) has been shown to be a promising measure of beliefs about emotions. However, to date, no study has attempted to replicate the original factor structure of the BAEQ in an English-speaking country. The present study examined the psychometric properties of the BAEQ in a nonclinical sample.

METHOD

Archival data of 1807 adult participants residing in Australia was divided into three equal groups of participants. A confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was conducted on the first sub-sample, an exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was performed on the second sub-sample, and a second CFA was performed on the third sub-sample. Divergent validity was tested using the heterotrait-monotrait ratio and the concurrent validity was tested through correlations with the subscales of the Three-Factor Eating Questionnaire (TFEQ-R18).

RESULTS

The first CFA failed to replicate the original factor structure of the BAEQ. An EFA supported five of the original six factors. A five-factor structure, including 30 out of the original 43 items, was confirmed in a second CFA. The final subscales (Shameful and Irrational, Overwhelming and Uncontrollable, Invalid and Meaningless, Useless and Damaging) demonstrated good construct validity, good internal consistency, and good concurrent and divergent validity.

CONCLUSION

The results from this study support a briefer five-factor, 30-item version of the BAEQ (BAEQ-R) as a reliable and valid measure of beliefs about emotions that can be utilised in future research.

Time heals all wounds? Naïve theories about the fading of affect associated with autobiographical events

The current research examined the naïve theories that individuals hold about how affect fades over time. In three studies (with various replications), participants read about positive and negative events and estimated the emotional impact of those events on either themselves or a hypothetical other over different time frames (i.e., 1 week, 1 month, 1 year-Studies 1a-1c) or how long it would take for specific amounts of fade to occur (Studies 2a & 2b). In a final study, participants were directly asked about their beliefs regarding affect fade. Results demonstrated that people have inaccurate expectations about affect fade for positive and negative events. Specifically, participants rate that positive events fade more in the short term, but that negative events fade more in the long term. Results are discussed in terms of how these (incorrect) naïve theories of affect fade relate to metacognitive biases in memory and emotion.

Beliefs about emotions predict psychological stress related to somatic symptoms

BACKGROUND

Previous research has shown that the more people believe their emotions are controllable and useful (BECU), the less they generally report psychological distress. Psychological distress, in turn, impacts health outcomes, and is among the most frequently reported complaints in psychotherapeutic and psychosomatic practice.

OBJECTIVE

We aimed to examine how BECU predicts psychological distress related to somatic symptoms in a prospective sample from the general population and to replicate this association in two cross-sectional samples of psychosomatic patients.

METHODS

We applied a panel design with an interval of 2 weeks between T1 and T2 in general-population panel-participants (N = 310), assessing BECU and psychological distress related to somatic symptoms via validated self-report measures. Moreover, we cross-sectionally replicated the relationship between BECU and psychological distress in a clinical sample of psychosomatic outpatients diagnosed with somatoform disorders (n = 101) or without somatoform disorders (n = 628).

RESULTS

BECU predicted over and above the lagged criterion panel-participants' psychological distress related to somatic symptoms, β = -.18, p < .001. BECU was also cross-sectionally related to psychological distress in our clinical replication-sample of psychosomatic outpatients diagnosed with somatoform disorders, rS (87) = -.33, p = .002 and in those without, rS (557) = -.21, p < .001.

CONCLUSIONS

BECU as a malleable way of thinking about emotions predicted psychological distress related to somatic symptoms in general-population panel-participants and correlated with the same in two clinical replication samples. BECU thus becomes a promising treatment target in psychotherapeutic approaches.

Relation of emotion malleability beliefs to subjective well-being: A short-term longitudinal study

Prior research has shown that emotion malleability beliefs are positively related to subjective well-being, but less is known about the longitudinal relationship between both variables. The present study used a two-wave longitudinal design to examine the temporal directionality of the relationship in a sample of Chinese adults. Using cross-lagged models, we found that emotion malleability beliefs predicted all three dimensions of subjective well-being (i.e. positive affect, life satisfaction, and negative affect) 2 months later. However, we did not detect any reverse or reciprocal effect between emotion malleability beliefs and subjective well-being. In addition, emotion malleability beliefs still predicted life satisfaction and positive affect after controlling for the effect of the cognitive or emotional component of subjective well-being. Our study provided primary evidence for the temporal directionality of the association between emotion malleability beliefs and subjective well-being. Implications and suggestions for future research were discussed.

The association between emotion malleability beliefs and severe psychological distress stratified by sex, age, and presence of any psychiatric disorders

Background

Recent studies have shown an association between psychological distress and emotion malleability beliefs, meaning mindsets about whether one's emotions are fixed or changeable. However, most studies have not examined the association between these beliefs and sociodemographic factors.

Methods

A nationwide cross-sectional Internet survey of residents of Japan aged 15-79 years was conducted using sampling weights for national estimates to investigate the association between emotion malleability beliefs and sociodemographic factors and between fixed beliefs and severe psychological distress (SPD). SPD was defined as a Kessler 6 Scale score of ≥13. Adjusted odds ratios for SPD were calculated considering potential confounders. Further analyses were stratified by sex, age and presence of any psychiatric disorder.

Results

The analysis included 23,142 participants (female, 48.64%). Fixed beliefs were associated with female sex, age < 45 years, and presence of psychiatric disorders. These beliefs were associated with SPD, and additional analysis showed stronger associations with SPD among female respondents, respondents aged 45-59 years, and those aged ≥60 years.

Conclusion

Results indicate that female sex, age < 45 years, and current mental disorders were associated with fixed emotion malleability beliefs. Associations between fixed emotion malleability beliefs and SPD were particularly strong among female respondents and people aged ≥45 years compared with the general population. Our study extends the association between emotion malleability beliefs and psychological health to the general population. Future studies should explore mechanisms underlying individual differences in emotion beliefs.

The development and evaluation of an online hearing loss prevention program

Recent studies underline the need for research on approaches to encouraging healthy listening habits. This study aims to develop and evaluate an online hearing loss prevention program; and examine its influence on the participants' use of hearing protection, hearing loss prevention knowledge, attitude towards noise, and program useability and adherence. The study was conducted in the county of Västra Götaland, Sweden, from March through October 2021. The program included four modules focused on hearing and hearing loss prevention and was accessible to the participants for four weeks. In total, 75 participants completed the program which was evaluated using the Youth Attitude to Noise Scale and four additional self-designed questionnaires. The questionnaires were deployed before and immediately after program completion. The findings indicate that the program may influence the participants' attitudes toward noise and the use of hearing protection. The participants who completed the program perceived high useability and increased hearing loss prevention knowledge. This program is most needed to promote healthy hearing. Future studies should target specific groups with this program and evaluate its long-term effects.

Creation of a Short-Form and Brief Short-Form Version of the Coping With Children's Negative Emotions Scale

The Coping with Children's Negative Emotions Scale (CCNES) is a widely used measure of parent emotion socialization; however, it is a lengthy measure and it is unclear whether all items are appropriately aligned with, and fully capture, the underlying constructs. We aimed to examine content validity of the CCNES, evaluate the theoretical alignment between the CCNES and Gottman, Katz and Hooven's meta-emotion theory, and develop two short-forms. Participants were parents of children aged 4 to 10 years (N = 937) from the longitudinal study the Child and Parent Emotion Study (https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/10/10/e038124). Content experts qualitatively evaluated parent-report items of the CCNES and additional items that measured empathy. Nineteen of the 84 items were found to not align with the meta-emotion theory. The latent structures of the CCNES and empathy subscales were quantitatively evaluated via confirmatory factor analysis. Items with poor psychometric properties were subsequently removed. An 18-item short-form (three emotion coaching subscales, three emotion dismissing subscales) and 6-item brief short-form (one emotion coaching subscale, one emotion dismissing subscale) with strong psychometric properties were created using a calibration sample (n = 468, that is, 50% of N = 937) and cross-validated with a validation sample. The short-form CCNES measures provide viable, theoretically consistent alternatives to the original CCNES measure.

How do fundamental emotion beliefs affect the rapid emotional processing? An ERP study

Beliefs about whether emotions are good or bad, controllable or uncontrollable are two fundamental emotion beliefs. Studies have confirmed the link between the two beliefs and emotional responses, but how emotion beliefs affect the process from emotional stimulus perception to emotion generation and automatic regulation is unclear. Answering this question helps to understand the role of emotion beliefs in emotional dysfunction and dysregulation and can provide a basis for effective emotion regulation. Therefore, the current study used event-related potential (ERP) measures to examine the time course and neural mechanisms by which emotional beliefs influence the processing of emotional pictures. One hundred participants were divided into four groups (25 per group) according to controllable or uncontrollable beliefs about emotions and good or bad beliefs about negative emotions, and viewed emotional negative and neutral pictures. Results showed that P2 was more positive in participants with emotion controllable vs. uncontrollable belief. The early posterior negativity (EPN) was more negative for unpleasant than neutral images in participants with emotion good and controllable beliefs as well as with bad and uncontrollable beliefs. On late positive potential (LPP), middle LPP (500-1000ms) was more positive in emotion good vs. bad belief holders and the late LPP (1000-2000 ms) was more positive for negative than neutral images in emotion uncontrollable belief holders. The findings suggest that fundamental emotion beliefs can affect individuals' early attention and late meaning evaluation towards unpleasant stimuli. Furthermore, they provide insight into altered beliefs about emotion in people with emotion dysfunction or dysregulation.

Parents' Beliefs about Children's Emotions and Children's Social Skills: The Mediating Role of Parents' Emotion Regulation

Few studies have investigated the relationship between parents' beliefs about children's emotions and children's social skills. Fewer studies have addressed this association and its underlying mechanisms while obtaining data from both parents. In this context, the present study explores the mediating role of parents' emotion regulation in the association between parents' beliefs about children's emotions and children's social skills. The participants were 90 parental dyads (N = 180) with typically developing preschool children. They completed self-report scales regarding parents' beliefs about their children's emotions, parents' emotion regulation, and children's social skills. The data were analyzed using the common fate mediation model (CFM with mediation). The results indicate that only parents' cognitive reappraisal mediates the relationship between their emotion-related beliefs and their children's social skills. Specifically, parental beliefs about "children's anger is valuable" and "children use their emotions to manipulate others" are directly and negatively associated with children's social skills, and indirectly through the parents' cognitive reappraisal. Future intervention programs should focus on restructuring parents' beliefs and their ability to regulate emotions.

Using Reappraisal to Improve Outcomes for STEM Teachers and Students

The many stressors associated with teaching can take a toll, resulting in high levels of burnout among teachers and reduced motivation and academic performance among students. This is especially true in the context of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) subjects. Despite the efficacy of emotion regulation interventions in pedagogical settings in general and in STEM teaching in particular, there is a lack of suitable interventions. We applied the process model of emotion regulation to STEM teaching and proposed a framework, STEM-Model of EmotioN regulation: Teachers' Opportunities and Responsibilities (STEM-MENTOR), to elucidate how the high demands of STEM teaching and contextual factors (e.g., culture, reforms, teacher-student interactions) may lead to intensified negative emotions and deficits in executive functioning and emotion regulation implementation. Teacher emotions, in turn, shape students' STEM-related achievements and epistemic emotions. Thus, teachers' emotion regulation skills have pervasive effects on teaching outcomes for both teachers and students. We illustrate how at each level of our framework, steps could be taken to improve teachers' emotional trajectory. Our proposed STEM-MENTOR framework has implications for theoretical understanding and may help to shape future interventions that focus on cognitive-emotional processes in STEM education.

Profiles of parents' emotion socialization within a multinational sample of parents

Introduction

Seminal emotion socialization theories classify parents according to two patterns of parent emotion socialization processes: 'emotion coaching' (i.e., parents validate and teach children about emotions) versus 'emotion dismissing' parenting (i.e., parents minimize and dismiss their children's emotions). However, empirical evidence supporting this binary distinction of parents remains limited. Our objective was to investigate whether parents can be differentiated by distinct patterns in their (1) beliefs about children's emotions, (2) emotion regulation, and (3) emotion-related parenting practices.

Method

Participants were parents of children aged 4-10 years from the Child and Parent Emotion Study (N = 869) (https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/10/10/e038124). Parents completed self-reported measures of emotion socialization processes via an online survey, which took 20-30 min to complete. Data included in the current study were collected May-August 2019. We conducted a latent profile analysis of parents' emotion socialization (13 indicators). To assess reliability of the profiles, we examined stability of the profiles across (1) parents of children in early versus middle childhood, and (2) fathers versus mothers, via measurement invariance testing. Further, to assess for construct validity of the profiles, we examined concurrent associations between six criterion constructs and parents' emotion socialization profiles.

Results

A three-profile model emerged characterizing parents by: (1) emotion coaching; (2) emotion dismissing; (3) emotion disengaged. There was strong support for construct validity and reliability.

Discussion

Our study provides empirical support for distinct differentiated classifications of emotion coaching and emotion dismissing parenting, aligned with emotion socialization theories. We further extend on extant theory and suggest a third 'emotion disengaged' classification, describing parents with moderate levels of emotion dismissing parenting and low levels of emotion coaching parenting. It should be noted that the profiles were derived with self-report data, therefore, data may have been biased by contextual factors. Furthermore, the study sample consisted of Western families from affluent backgrounds. The field should focus efforts on conducting person-centered studies with more diverse samples in future.

Effects of emotion, emotional tolerance, and emotional processing on reasoning

Emotion plays a significant role in our reasoning even without awareness, perhaps especially for individuals who have difficulties tolerating strong, negative emotions. Opportunity for reflection may help such individuals decide when emotions should influence reasoning. Two studies attempted to clarify the relationships among reasoning, emotions, and emotion tolerance (measured with the Affect Intolerance Scale). The first examined the effect of affect intolerance on a reasoning task. Participants were asked to determine whether conclusions logically followed from both emotional and neutral if-then statements. Emotion had a small effect on performance on the reasoning task, unmoderated by affect intolerance. The second study examined whether reflection on emotional responses impacts performance on the same reasoning task. Participants asked to reflect on their emotions performed more poorly on the reasoning task than participants asked to reflect on the task's cognitive aspects. People who endorse greater affect tolerance performed better in the cognitive reflection condition than the emotional reflection condition. People with less tolerance performed the same in both conditions. Overall, these studies support previous findings that emotion can negatively impact performance on reasoning tasks but suggest a more complex relationship for affect intolerance.

Framing depression as a functional signal, not a disease: Rationale and initial randomized controlled trial

Depression is often framed as a disease or dysfunctional syndrome, yet this framing has unintended negative consequences including increased stigma. Here, we consider an alternative messaging framework - that depression serves an adaptive function. We describe the historical development of popular messages about depression and draw from the fields of evolutionary psychiatry and social cognition to describe the alternative framework that depression is a "signal" that serves a purpose. We then present data from a pre-registered, online randomized-controlled study in which participants with self-reported depression histories viewed a series of videos that explained depression as a "disease like any other" with known biopsychosocial risk factors (BPS condition), or as a signal that serves an adaptive function (Signal condition). In the entire sample (N = 877), three of the six hypotheses were supported: The Signal condition led to less self-stigma, greater offset efficacy, and more adaptive beliefs about depression. Exploratory analyses revealed these Signal effects were stronger among females (N = 553), who also showed a greater growth mindset of depression after the Signal explanation. Results suggest that framing depression as an adaptive signal can benefit patients and avoid harmful consequences of popular etiological presentations. We conclude that alternative framings of depression are worthy of further study.

Psychometric validation of the modified Chinese version of the personalized psychological flexibility index in patients with cancer

Objective

The aim of this study was to perform across-cultural adaptation of the English version of the personalized psychological flexibility index (PPFI) into Chinese, and to evaluate its psychometric properties in patients with cancer.

Methods

This study was conducted in two phases. In phase 1, we followed Beaton's guidelines for cross-cultural adaptation of PPFI. In phase 2, we conducted a cross-sectional study to assess the validity and reliability of the PPFI among a total of 455 patients with cancer in Hunan Province of China. Item analysis was used to evaluate and screen items, while content validity, construct validity, convergent validity, and concurrent validity were used to evaluate the validity. Reliability was assessed using Cronbach's ɑ coefficient, retest reliability, and composite reliability.

Results

The item-level content validity index of the modified Chinese version of PPFI (PPFI-C) ranged from 0.89 to 1.00, the scale-level CVI/universal agreement was 0.87, and the S-CVI/average was 0.99. Exploratory factor analysis identified a 14-item, three-factor structure of PPFI (item 11 deleted). Confirmatory factor analysis showed χ²/df ​= ​2.42, RMSEA ​= ​0.07, GFI ​= ​0.92, NFI ​= ​0.91, TLI ​= ​0.93, CFI ​= ​0.95, and IFI ​= ​0.95. PPFI-C demonstrated positive correlations with the 8-item Commitment Action Questionnaire, and negative correlations with Acceptance and Action Questionnaire-II, Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, and Short Form Quality Life Scale. The Cronbach's ɑ coefficient of modified PPFI-C stood at 0.84.

Conclusions

The results suggest that the 14-item PPFI-C is a reliable and valid tool for measuring PF in Chinese patients with cancer. However, additional studies are needed to validate the psychometric properties of PPFI-C in other populations.

Valuing Negative Affect Weakens Affect-Health Linkages: Similarities and Differences Across Affect Valuation Measures

Negative affect (NA) has been robustly linked to poorer psychological health, including greater depressive symptoms, personal burnout, and perceived stress. These associations, known as affect-health links, have been postulated by our research team to vary with different levels of negative affect valuation (NAV), such that people who evaluate NA states as more pleasant, helpful, appropriate, and/or meaningful may show weaker affect-health links. Another affect valuation construct is ideal NA, which is the degree to which people ideally want to experience NA states (i.e., desirability of affective states). The current study extends previous research by examining these two different measures of affect valuation (NAV and ideal NA) and comparing the extent to which they moderate affect-health links for psychological health and functioning. Participants from the Health and Daily Experiences (HEADE) study (N = 162 comprising of 56 younger adults and 106 older adults) completed questionnaires in a laboratory setting and ecological momentary assessments of NA 6 times a day for 7 consecutive days (i.e., trait NA). The results demonstrated that the two affect valuation constructs were distinct and showed different patterns of buffering effects. NAV attenuated the association between trait NA and depressive symptoms, personal burnout, and intolerance of uncertainty. Ideal NA attenuated affect-health links for depressive symptoms and perceived stress. These findings point to the importance of sharpening the distinctions between various affect valuation constructs to elucidate their unique contributions to attenuating affect-health links.

Keeping Up Appearances: The Role of Motives and Utility Beliefs in Expressive Suppression

We examined the role of impression management motives and utility beliefs in predicting suppression. In Study 1, 222 participants were assigned one of four motives (warmth, competence, pro-hedonic, control) during a job interview and reported their strategy use. In Study 2, 150 participants completed 9 days of experience sampling surveys assessing momentary emotion regulation motives and strategy use. In both studies, participants reported suppression utility beliefs. Lab results suggested a decreased preference for suppression when pursuing warmth motives over competence motives. This effect did not emerge when examining daily motives. In both studies however, people believed it was more useful to suppress negative than positive emotions, and more useful to suppress negative emotion when appearing competent than warm. Utility beliefs did not predict suppression or moderate motive-strategy links. Overall, there was mixed evidence about how suppression links to specific motives. Results suggest suppression is perceived as useful for certain impressions, but people do not act in accordance with these beliefs.

Hovering or invalidating? Examining nuances in the associations between controlling parents and problematic outcomes for college students

Objective: The purpose of these studies was to examine whether college students' beliefs about themselves (i.e., self-compassion and beliefs about emotions) could be mechanisms explaining the relationship between problematic parenting behaviors (helicopter parenting and parental invalidation) and outcomes including perfectionism, affective distress, locus of control, and distress tolerance. Participants: Respondents included 255 (Study 1) and 277 (Study 2) college undergraduates. Methods: Simultaneous regressions and separate path analyses with helicopter parenting and parental invalidation as predictors, with self-compassion and emotion beliefs as mediators. Results: Across both studies, parental invalidation predicted perfectionism, affective distress, distress tolerance, and locus of control, and these links were often mediated by self-compassion. Self-compassion emerged as the most consistent and strongest link between parental invalidation and negative outcomes. Conclusion: People who internalize their parents' criticism and invalidation such that they hold negative beliefs about themselves (i.e., low self-compassion) may be vulnerable to negative psychosocial outcomes.

Reappraising reappraisal: an expanded view

Reappraisal is a frequently used and often successful emotion regulation strategy. However, its underlying cognitive mechanisms are not well understood. In this paper, we seek to clarify these mechanisms by expanding upon our recently proposed reAppraisal framework. According to this framework, reappraisal consists of appraisal shifts that arise from changes to the mental construal of a situation (reconstrual) or from changes to the goals that are used to evaluate the construal (repurposing). Here we propose that reappraisal can target both object-level construals and goals representing states in the environment as well as meta-level construals and goals about different states in the mind. We also propose that reappraisal can operate by facilitating decommitment from a dominant construal or goal as well as by facilitating commitment to alternative construals or goals. We demonstrate that the 2 × 2 × 2 matrix formed by crossing the three distinctions between reconstrual and repurposing, between object-level and meta-level representations, and between decommitment and commitment operations forms a useful map of different reappraisal tactics. We draw examples of each of the 8 reappraisal tactics from basic and clinical research. We conclude by considering future research inspired by the expanded reAppraisal framework.

The Association of Emotion Regulation with Distress Tolerance Depends on a Neural Correlate of Cognitive Control

BACKGROUND

Distress tolerance is associated with transdiagnostic mental health problems. Theory and research implicate emotion regulation and cognitive control as factors in distress tolerance. But their unique contributions and interdependency have been unclear. This study tested how emotion regulation and the N2, a neural index of cognitive control, uniquely and interactively predicted distress tolerance.

METHODS

Undergraduate psychology students (N = 57) completed self-report measures and a Go-NoGo task, from which the N2 was extracted using PCA. The Go-NoGo task was counter-balanced to avoid confounding stimulus characteristics and frequency of stimulus presentation.

RESULTS

Emotion regulation predicted distress tolerance, but the N2 did not. The association of emotion regulation with distress tolerance was moderated by the N2, such that the association was larger at higher N2 amplitudes.

LIMITATIONS

The use of a non-clinical student sample limits the generalizability of the results. The data are cross-sectional and correlational, preventing conclusions about causality.

CONCLUSIONS

The findings indicate that emotion regulation is associated with better distress tolerance at higher levels of N2 amplitude, a neural correlate of cognitive control. Emotion regulation may be more effective at enabling distress tolerance in individuals with better cognitive control. This supports past work indicating that distress tolerance interventions may benefit by developing emotion regulation skills. Additional research is needed to test if such an approach is more effective in individuals with better cognitive control.

Naïve Theories of Emotions: Why People Might (Not) Be Uncertain or in Conflict About Felt Emotions

Beliefs about conflict and uncertainty over felt emotions-for Joy, Pride, Sadness, Jealousy and Envy events-were studied by means of Yes/No and Why questions. Each participant (N = 1,156) judged a typical antecedent for a single emotion-e.g., Jealousy: story protagonist SP sees his or her partner kiss someone. The Yes/No results showed that SP was frequently expected to experience both phenomena, the more so the greater the event impact (Yes range: 40-86%). Beliefs associated with Yes answers (BY) were categorized into 4 categories: (BY1) reason-emotion opposition-felt emotions are unreasonable, inadequate ways of reacting; (BY2) ambivalent emotions-e.g., joy and sadness; (BY3) unclear emotions; (BY4) other causes-e.g., focused on event implications, SP's personality. No conflict or uncertainty answers (BN; range 14-60%) mirrored BY categories: (BN1) no reason-emotion opposition, (BN2) no ambivalent emotions, (BN3) clear emotions, (BN4) other causes. Attributions and beliefs about causes did not generally differ by gender. As a collective entity, expressed beliefs were complex, focusing on one or more emotion component-e.g., appraisal, regulation, expression-as well as on emotion intensity, duration, and on self-concept issues. Overall, expressed beliefs seemed to imply a malleability theory of emotions, and emotion awareness. Results overall confirmed the hypotheses that conflict and uncertainty attributions are more likely for: unpleasant experiences; when emotions are norm-incongruent for the judged event; when mixed, ambivalent emotions are felt. The study confirms that people interpret emotion processes according to their lay theories.

Emotion Controllability Beliefs and Young People's Anxiety and Depression Symptoms: A Systematic Review

Emotion regulation is a powerful predictor of youth mental health and a crucial ingredient of interventions. A growing body of evidence indicates that the beliefs individuals hold about the extent to which emotions are controllable (emotion controllability beliefs) influence both the degree and the ways in which they regulate emotions. A systematic review was conducted that investigated the associations between emotion controllability beliefs and youth anxiety and depression symptoms. The search identified 21 peer-reviewed publications that met the inclusion criteria. Believing that emotions are relatively controllable was associated with fewer anxiety and depression symptoms, in part because these beliefs were associated with more frequent use of adaptive emotion regulation strategies. These findings support theoretical models linking emotion controllability beliefs with anxiety and depression symptoms via emotion regulation strategies that target emotional experience, like reappraisal. Taken together, the review findings demonstrate that emotion controllability beliefs matter for youth mental health. Understanding emotion controllability beliefs is of prime importance for basic science and practice, as it will advance understanding of mental health and provide additional targets for managing symptoms of anxiety and depression in young people.

Lay perspectives on emotion: past, present, and future research directions

Empirical research has demonstrated that individuals vary widely in how they view their emotions. We call the viewpoints that individuals have towards their emotions emotion perspectives. While many subdisciplines of psychology, such as social psychology and clinical psychology, have studied this topic, research thus far can be siloed, despite overlap in terms and constructs. The goal of the current special issue and this introduction is to describe the state of research on emotion perspectives, highlight common themes in streams of emotion perspective research, and present future directions for investigation. The first portion of this introduction to the special issue provides a basic review of emotion perspective research, spotlighting topics such as emotion beliefs, emotion mindsets, lay theories of emotion, and attitudes toward emotion. The second portion of the introduction presents themes that cut across papers in the special issue, with a discussion of future research directions throughout. The goal of this introduction and special issue is to serve as a guide for greater integration in emotion perspective research and to provide a roadmap for emotion perspective research moving forward.

Individual differences in social power: Links with beliefs about emotion and emotion regulation

OBJECTIVE

People differ in how they regulate their emotions, and how they do so is guided by their beliefs about emotion. We propose that social power-one's perceived influence over others-relates to one's beliefs about emotion and to emotion regulation. More powerful people are characterized as authentic and uninhibited, which should translate to the belief that one should not have to control one's emotions and, in turn, less suppression and more acceptance. More powerful people are also characterized as self-efficacious and confident, which should translate to the belief that one can control one's emotions and, in turn, more reappraisal and acceptance.

METHOD

Two preregistered studies using four samples (Ntotal  = 1286) tested these hypotheses using cross-sectional and longitudinal surveys as well as diaries.

RESULTS

In Study 1, power related to beliefs about emotion and emotion regulation in hypothesized ways. Study 2 also largely supported the hypotheses: The belief that one should not have to control one's emotions accounted for the links between power and suppression and acceptance, whereas the belief that one can control one's emotions accounted for the link between power and reappraisal.

CONCLUSION

Power and emotion regulation are interconnected, in part because of their links with beliefs about emotions.

Believe, express, and enjoy: utility beliefs about social emotion expression consistently predict satisfactory outcomes

The present study investigates the association between people's beliefs about emotion and their overall satisfaction with a social interaction. We focus on three specific aspects to examine this association: (a) utility beliefs-a dimension of emotion beliefs; (b) emotion expression-an emotion channel; and (c) four social emotions-anger, other-embarrassment, gratitude, and other-pride. We examine whether people's utility beliefs about expressing a social emotion can predict their evaluation of a social interaction when they express (vs. suppress) their social emotion. Results (N = 209) consistently show that when people express their social emotion, their utility beliefs positively predict their satisfaction with an event. However, when people suppress their gratitude, their utility beliefs negatively predict their satisfaction, an effect not observed in the other three emotion events. These findings corroborate the claim that emotion beliefs impact people's emotional lives. Implications for research on emotion beliefs and motivated emotion regulation are discussed.

Maladaptive task-unrelated thoughts: Self-control failure or avoidant behavior? Preliminary evidence from an experience sampling study

Introduction

Task-unrelated thoughts (TUT) play an important role in everyday life functioning (e.g., anticipating the future, or providing a mental break). However, TUT might also be maladaptive, impairing cognitive performance emotion regulation, and increasing the risk of psychological disorders. In the present study, we aimed to test how self-reported control over TUT and task valence moderate the link between task difficulty and TUT intensity, testing the context regulation and avoidant alternative hypotheses of TUT occurrence.

Method

Forty-nine participants took part in an experience sampling study. They were asked to answer five times a day for 5 days a series of questions assessing the intensity, valence, control over TUT, and their momentary affect along with characteristics of the task they were currently performing. They also filled in trait questionnaires assessing their tendency to daydream, ruminate, and their beliefs on emotions' usefulness and controllability.

Results

The results showed that both task difficulty and one's lower control over thoughts along with their interaction significantly increased TUT intensity. Task negative valence significantly predicted TUT intensity and moderated the link between task difficulty and TUT intensity. In addition, the tendency to daydream and beliefs in the controllability of negative emotions affect the relations in this model.

Discussion

To the best of our knowledge, this study is the first to provide quantitative evidence from an experience sampling study on the role of the valence of currently performed tasks and beliefs on emotions on TUT intensity. It might be an important indication for research and clinical practice that maladaptive TUT might not be only linked to self-control failure but also to emotion regulation strategies one is using.

Intolerance of uncertainty and anxiety: The role of beliefs about emotions

BACKGROUND

Intolerance of uncertainty (IU) is a dimensional trait fundamental to most psychopathologies, and anxiety disorders in particular, making it an important transdiagnostic construct for researchers and clinicians. Current psychological therapies focus on changing underlying cognitive assumptions related to uncertainty. However, we posit that IU conveys beliefs about emotions too. In line with established findings on beliefs about emotions in general, we tested the hypothesis that the relationship between IU and anxiety is mediated by beliefs about the controllability and/or usefulness of emotions.

METHODS

Participants (N = 2260) were administered the Emotions Beliefs Questionnaire (EBQ); the General Anxiety Disorder 7-item (GAD-7), and the Intolerance of Uncertainty Scale (IUS - 12). A confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) on the EBQ was conducted followed by Pearson correlation coefficients among the central measures, and a parallel mediation analysis to address the central research question.

RESULTS

Our CFA supported the intended factor structure of the EBQ. The results of our mediation analysis supported the prediction that the association between IU and anxiety is partially mediated by general beliefs about emotions.

LIMITATIONS

Although our sample size was large, the age range was limited so future research could expand the age range to maximise generalizability. This is a cross-sectional study so causal inferences are restricted.

CONCLUSION

Given the present findings, current interventions for IU and their focus on beliefs about uncertainty, might benefit from incorporating strategies to improve beliefs about emotions, and thus improve therapeutic effectiveness.

Beliefs About the Uncontrollability and Usefulness of Emotion in the Schizophrenia-Spectrum: Links to Emotion Regulation and Negative Symptoms

Background

Beliefs about the usefulness and controllability of emotions are associated with emotion regulation and psychological distress in the general population. Although individuals with schizophrenia-spectrum disorders evidence emotion regulation abnormalities, it is unclear whether emotional beliefs contribute to these difficulties and their associated poor clinical outcomes.

Methods

Participants included 72 individuals with schizophrenia-spectrum diagnoses (outpatients with schizophrenia n = 38; youth at clinical high-risk for psychosis, n = 34) and healthy controls (CN: n = 61) who completed the Emotional Beliefs Questionnaire, Emotion Regulation Questionnaire, and measures of clinical symptom severity.

Results

Those with schizophrenia-spectrum diagnoses reported believing that emotions were less controllable than CN; however, groups did not differ regarding beliefs about the usefulness of emotion. Greater beliefs of the uncontrollability of emotion were associated with greater use of suppression, less use of reappraisal, and increased negative symptoms. Emotion regulation partially mediated the association between emotional beliefs and negative symptoms.

Conclusions

Individuals in the schizophrenia-spectrum display superordinate beliefs that emotions are uncontrollable. These beliefs may influence emotion regulation strategy selection and success, which contributes to negative symptoms. Findings suggest that beliefs of emotional uncontrollability reflect a novel process related to both emotion regulation and negative symptoms that could be targeted in psychosocial treatments.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10608-023-10357-w.

Public mental health during and after the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic: Opportunities for intervention via emotional self-efficacy and resilience

Importance

During the pandemic, the number of United States adults reporting clinically significant symptoms of anxiety and depression sky-rocketed, up from 11% in 2020 to more than 40% in 2021. Our current mental healthcare system cannot adequately accommodate the current crisis; it is therefore important to identify opportunities for public mental health interventions.

Objective

Assess whether modifiable emotional factors may offer a point of intervention for the mental health crisis.

Design setting and participants

From January 13 to 15, 2022, adults living in the United States were recruited via Amazon Mechanical Turk to complete an anonymous survey.

Main outcomes and measures

Linear regressions tested whether the primary outcomes during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic (depressive and anxiety symptoms, burnout) were associated with hypothesized modifiable risk factors (loneliness and need for closure) and hypothesized modifiable protective factors (the ability to perceive emotions and connect with others emotionally; emotion-regulation efficacy; and resilience, or the ability to "bounce back" after negative events).

Results

The sample included 1,323 adults (mean [SD] age 41.42 [12.52] years; 636 women [48%]), almost half of whom reported clinically significant depressive (29%) and/or anxiety (15%) symptoms. Approximately 90% of participants indicated feeling burned out at least once a year and nearly half of participants (45%) felt burned out once a week or more. In separate analyses, depressive symptoms (Model A), anxiety symptoms (Model B), and burnout (Model C) were statistically significantly associated with loneliness (βModel A, 0.38; 95% CI, 0.33-0.43; βModel B, 0.30; 95% CI, 0.26-0.36; βModel C, 0.34; 95% CI, 0.28-0.41), need for closure (βModel A, 0.09; 95% CI, 1.03-1.06; βModel B, 0.13; 95% CI, 0.97-0.17; βModel C, 0.11; 95% CI, 0.07-0.16), recent stressful life events (βModel A, 0.14; 95% CI, 0.10-0.17; βModel B, 0.14; 95% CI, 0.11-0.18; βModel C, 0.10; 95% CI, 0.06-0.15), and resilience (βModel A, -0.10; 95% CI, -0.15 to -0.05; βModel B, -0.18; 95% CI, -0.23 to -0.13; βModel C, -0.11; 95% CI, -0.17 to -0.05). In addition, depressive and anxiety symptoms were associated with emotional self-efficacy (βModel A, -0.17; 95% CI, -0.22 to -0.12; βModel B, -0.11; 95% CI, -0.17 to -0.06), and beliefs about the malleability of emotions (βModel A, -0.08; 95% CI, -0.12 to -0.03; βModel B, -0.09; 95% CI, -0.13 to -0.04). Associations between loneliness and symptoms were weaker among those with more emotional self-efficacy, more endorsement of emotion malleability beliefs, and greater resilience, in separate models. Analyses controlled for recent stressful life events, optimism, and social desirability.

Conclusion and relevance

Public mental health interventions that teach resilience in response to negative events, emotional self-efficacy, and emotion-regulation efficacy may protect against the development of depressive symptoms, anxiety, and burnout, particularly in the context of a collective trauma. Emotional self-efficacy and regulation efficacy may mitigate the association between loneliness and mental health, but loneliness prevention research is also needed to address the current mental health crisis.

Psychological Resilience: An Affect-Regulation Framework

Exposure to adversity (e.g., poverty, bereavement) is a robust predictor of disruptions in psychological functioning. However, people vary greatly in their responses to adversity; some experience severe long-term disruptions, others experience minimal disruptions or even improvements. We refer to the latter outcomes-faring better than expected given adversity-as psychological resilience. Understanding what processes explain resilience has critical theoretical and practical implications. Yet, psychology's understanding of resilience is incomplete, for two reasons: (a) We lack conceptual clarity, and (b) two major approaches to resilience-the stress and coping approach and the emotion and emotion-regulation approach-have limitations and are relatively isolated from one another. To address these two obstacles,we first discuss conceptual questions about resilience. Next, we offer an integrative affect-regulation framework that capitalizes on complementary strengths of both approaches. This framework advances our understanding of resilience by integrating existing findings, highlighting gaps in knowledge, and guiding future research.

The relationship between social acknowledgment and prolonged grief symptoms: a multiple mediation effect of beliefs about the goodness and controllability of grief-related emotions

Background: Social acknowledgment is a protective factor for survivors of trauma. However, the role of social acknowledgment in association with prolonged grief symptoms has not yet been established.Objectives: The current study aims to explore the relationship between social acknowledgment and prolonged grief via two beliefs foundational to how people think about grief-related emotions (1) goodness (i.e. whether emotions are desirable, useful, or unwanted and harmful), and (2) controllability (i.e. whether emotions are regulated according to our will or involuntary, arising of their own accord). These effects were explored in two different cultural samples of bereaved people.Methods: One hundred and fifty-four German-speaking and two hundred and sixty-two Chinese bereaved people who lost their loved ones completed questionnaires assessing social acknowledgment, beliefs about the goodness and controllability of grief-related emotions, and prolonged grief symptoms.Results: Correlation analyses showed that social acknowledgment was positively linked with stronger beliefs about the goodness and controllability of grief-related emotions and negatively related to prolonged grief symptoms. Beliefs about the goodness and controllability of grief-related emotions correlated negatively with prolonged grief symptoms. Multiple mediation analyses suggested that beliefs about the controllability and goodness of grief-related emotions mediated the link between social acknowledgment and prolonged grief symptoms. Cultural groups did not moderate the above model.Conclusion: Social acknowledgment may be related to bereavement adjustment consequences via the roles of beliefs about the goodness and controllability of grief-related emotions. These effects seem to be consistent cross-culturally.