Thesis advisor: James R. Mahalik / Epidemiological studies consistently identify markedly higher rates of depression and anxiety in women than in men. Susan Nolen-Hoeksema's (1991) response styles theory posits that women's higher use of rumination contributes to these differences in rates of depression. The purpose of this dissertation was to extend this theory with the inclusion of conformity to gender role norms as a meaningful predictor of women's and men's tendencies to use of a variety of cognitive emotion regulation strategies, including rumination. The current study also sought to examine relationships among cognitive emotion regulation strategies and both depression and anxiety. Adult women and men (N = 754) completed an online survey including measures of conformity to masculine and feminine gender role norms, 10 cognitive emotion regulation strategies (rumination, distraction, self-blame, acceptance, positive refocusing, refocus on planning, positive reappraisal, putting into perspective, catastrophizing, and other-blame), depression, and anxiety. Results of regression analyses indicated that use of particular cognitive emotion regulation strategies predicted levels of depression and anxiety. Specifically, self-blame, rumination, and distraction were associated with higher levels of both depression and anxiety. Other-blame was also associated with higher levels of anxiety. In contrast, acceptance and refocusing on planning were associated with lower anxiety scores. Women were more likely, by a small margin, to endorse use of both rumination and distraction, however, significant sex differences in reported levels of depression and anxiety were not found. Further, conformity to gender role norms did not explain the sex differences that were found in the use of rumination and distraction. Finally, analysis of a structural equation model, designed to examine an extended version of response styles theory, supported the regression findings and provided additional information about the relationships among conformity to gender role norms, cognitive emotion regulation strategies, and symptoms of depression. Implications for clinical practice and suggestions for future research are discussed, including the importance of exploring alternative meaningful components of within-group variability for women and men. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2013. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Counseling, Developmental, and Educational Psychology.

Objectives: This thesis includes two distinct pieces of work. The purpose of the systematic review was to address a gap in the literature by examining available evidence relating to the use of Emotional Regulation (ER) strategies (avoidance, problem solving, reappraisal, rumination, and suppression) on the wellbeing of older people. The empirical paper aimed to examine the role of ER strategies and ageism on adjustment and retirement satisfaction. It also sought to examine the impact of other contextual factors such as financial status, health, and social support on retirement wellbeing. Methods: A systematic review of cross-sectional studies examining a quantitative association between one aspect of ER (avoidance, problem-solving, reappraisal, rumination and /or suppression) and a self-reported quantitative well-being measure was completed via a comprehensive literature search of electronic databases. Studies were included if the participants were 60 years or older and without cognitive impairment. Wellbeing was explored in a broader way not only including measures of the absence of illness but positive constructs such as positive affect, positive social relations or autonomy. In the empirical study, participants completed a postal survey which included ER strategies, attitudes to ageing, adjustment and satisfaction with retirement and contextual factors such as financial status, health and social support. A series of hierarchical multiple regression analyses were conducted to examine the independent contributions of ER strategies and attitudes to aging to adjustment to, and satisfaction with, retirement. Results: Twenty studies met inclusion criteria for the systematic review. The relationship between life satisfaction, positive emotion and ER was explored by four studies while nineteen out of twenty studied the relationship between ER and anxiety and depression. Only a conclusion about ER and negative mood measures could be made given the scarcity of research examining the association between ER and positive psychological concepts. Rumination was found to be the ER strategy most strongly associated with symptoms of anxiety and depression in OP population, while mixed results were found for avoidance, problem solving, suppression and reappraisal. Findings from the empirical study indicated that traditional predictors of adjustment (wealth and health) accounted for 12% of the total variance in outcome. Problem-solving was the strongest variable in the model explaining 24% of the difference in adjustment. Interestingly, the retirees who reported not having used problem-solving as a mechanism to cope with retirement were the most adjusted. Regarding satisfaction, retirees tended to experience higher retirement satisfaction if they had a greater level of self-rated mental health and increased access to household income (explained 14% and 9% of the total variance respectively). However, retirees who reported high levels of rumination experienced lower retirement satisfaction (rumination accounted for 8% of the total variance). Ageism was not a predictor of retirement adjustment or satisfaction. Conclusions: According to the systematic review, rumination seems to be the ER strategy most strongly associated with symptoms of anxiety and depression in OP population. This finding was consistent despite the heterogeneity of the studied populations and a variety of outcome measures. Further research is needed to explore the impact of ER strategies on measures of physical health and wellbeing in OP. The results of the empirical paper support the role of traditional predictors (wealth and health) in satisfaction and adjustment with retirement. The retirees who adjusted better to retirement were those who did not use problem-solving as a strategy to confront retirement. Retirees who reported high levels of rumination experienced lower retirement satisfaction. Ageism did not predict retirement satisfaction or adjustment. These findings are discussed in the context of retirement planning and successful ageing.

The aim of this programme of research was to build on existing knowledge of impression management and self-presentation in the sport context. Theoretical advancement was made with the integration of two well-established social psychological frameworks of impression management phenomena; Leary’s (1995) topography of dispositional self-presentational motives, and Leary and Kowalski’s (1990) Two-Component Model of Impression Management – including situational impression motivation and impression construction – are complimentary, and their combination reflects a trait x state approach to understanding interpersonal behaviour in sport contexts. Athletes are assessed by team-mates, coaches, selectors, and the audience at a frequent rate. If they are aware of this, it could be viewed as an opportunity for personal and social development, or a threat to their existent identities. In both cases, the athlete must ensure that their performance is not affected by such thoughts, otherwise they risk conveying a negative impression regardless of their self-presentational motives (Leary, 1992). The present thesis incorporates three novel studies that address a multitude of first and second generation research questions (cf. Zanna & Fazio, 1982). Key findings include, but are not limited to: athletes have a strong dispositional motive to attain intra- and interpersonal goals via their self-presentations; if their impression efficacy does not match their impression motivation they tend to appraise this as a challenge, not a threat, contrary to theoretical expectations; in a laboratory setting, heightened impression motivation is associated with improved performance rather than increased distractibility and performance decrements (as was anticipated); impression management is important in developing desired social identities within university sport subcultures; and impression management is implicated in positive and negative group dynamics. In achieving its aims, the present thesis developed a new measurement scale, devised a successful experimental manipulation of impression motivation, and employed stimulated recall interview methodology; all novel or challenging approaches in sport psychology.

Background Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) is considered to be one of the most debilitating and difficult to treat mental disorders. Traditionally, studies investigating the aetiology and mechanisms associated with the development and exacerbation of BPD have relied on the use of clinical populations. As a consequence, the opportunities to understand vulnerabilities and fundamental processes that may contribute to the development and maintenance of the disorder have been limited. Objectives The aim of this study was to examine the potential interactions and mediating effects of metacognition and emotion regulation on the relationships among different forms of childhood abuse, attachment, and parental bonding with a composite of core BPD features designed to encompass major areas of personality functioning and pathological personality traits (per DSM-5 section III). Method: A non-clinical sample of 695 students in the city of Edinburgh, Scotland took part in an internet survey composed of a battery of self-report measures. This was geared to identify features associated with BPD, emotion regulation difficulties, characteristics of metacognition, adult insecure attachment, fundamental parental bonding styles and signs of childhood maltreatment. Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) was used to analyse the data. Results All variables of interest had a direct effect on the development of features associated with BPD. Metacognition was found to mediate the effects of all three forms of childhood abuse used in the study as well as the effects of adult insecure attachment on the development BPD related traits. Emotion regulation suppression was found to mediate the effects of sexual and physical childhood abuse (but not emotional abuse, adult insecure attachment, parental bonding indifference, or parental bonding overprotection) on the development of borderline features. In addition, the lack of emotion regulation reappraisal was found to mediate the effects of sexual abuse and adult insecure attachment (but not emotional or physical abuse, parental bonding indifference, or parental bonding overprotection) on the development of BPD related traits. Discussion These findings have important clinical and theoretical implications. The results provide support and understanding of the role of mediating mechanisms in the exacerbation and in the development of features associated with BPD. This is important because metacognition and emotion regulation may be more amenable to change than traumatic past experiences and/or deep seeded patterns of attachment. In addition, further development in this area of research has the potential to lead to better and more effective psychotherapeutic treatments for BPD.

Background: Negative forms of self-relating such as self-criticism and self-judgement are known to contribute to poor mental health across diagnoses including eating disorders. Negative self-relating can lead to avoidance or suppression of emotions, and poor attachment relationships can lead to deficits in self-reassuring abilities. Self-compassion is a construct which is gaining attention in clinical research as a potentially important and healthy way of relating to the self in the face of painful or difficult experiences. Systematic review: A systematic review of the literature eating disorders and self-compassion suggested that lower levels of self-compassion are related to worse eating disorder pathology, particularly emotional eating, and body image dissatisfaction. Findings suggest that self-compassion training may have a role in multimodal prevention and treatment approaches for eating disorders, disordered eating and body image problems, particularly bulimia or binge eating disorders. The role in restrictive eating behaviour is less clear and warrants further research. Aims: This study was a cross-sectional study design with a purpose of conducting Confirmatory factor analysis on the Self-Compassion Scale – Short Form, and correlational analysis of the relationship between self-compassion, (as measured on SCS-SF) with emotion regulation difficulties, alexithymia and distress. Participants and procedure: 297 people referred to an adult clinical psychology service in Scotland completed the SCS-SF and measures of emotion regulation, alexithymia and distress. Results: CFAs did not support six factor or hierarchical models for SCS-SF. Instead a two-factor model was supported. Correlation analysis indicated that self-compassion is inversely associated with difficulties in emotion regulation, alexithymia and distress. Hierarchical regression analyses indicated that self-compassion was a unique predictor of distress. Implications: Further clarification of the construct of self-compassion, its role in psychopathology and how it should be measured is required. It is important that as research involving self-compassion and its role in mental health services progresses, that psychometrically valid measures are employed. Furthermore, correlation and regression analyses suggest convergent validity for the construct of self-compassion, and support theoretical links with emotion regulation. Conclusions: Self-compassion appears to be an important variable in eating disorders pathology and appears to be linked with adaptive emotion regulation in clinical populations. However results suggest longitudinal research and a more robust measure is required for use in clinical populations, especially if information about facets of the construct are to be understood.

The hierarchical taxonomy of psychopathology (HiTOP) is a novel classification system that adopts both a dimensional and hierarchical approach to psychopathology to address shortcomings. However, the HiTOP framework is descriptive in nature and requires additional research to consider potential mechanisms for the onset and maintenance of psychopathology, such as cognitive-behavioral emotion regulation strategies. To redress this gap, a sample of 341 adults who endorsed ongoing mental health concerns completed self-report measures of emotion regulation strategies and psychopathology. The data revealed a three-spectra HiTOP model consisting of internalizing, thought disorder, and antagonistic externalizing. Results found that psychopathology was most strongly associated with avoidance, catastrophizing, expressive suppression, and self-blame. In contrast, adaptive strategies were generally unrelated to the HiTOP spectra. This pattern was strongest for internalizing, distress, and detachment. Fewer, yet noteworthy unique relationships between the strategies and specific spectra/subfactors were also found. These findings suggest that psychopathology may be best conceptualized as an overutilization of maladaptive emotion regulation strategies. Furthermore, the results indicate there is added benefit to considering these strategies within a hierarchical approach to psychopathology. These associations alert clinicians to potential treatment targets and contribute to an ongoing literature that seeks to identify underlying mechanisms of the structure of psychopathology.

The concept of emotion and how to regulate it is a central aspect of modern psychology. Within the process model of emotion regulation (Gross, 1998), one issue is how attentional deployment affects emotion regulation and how this can be measured. In task 1, pictures of positive or negative valence were showed in two conditions, either attend or decrease emotional reaction, while participants’ eye movements were followed with an eye tracker. Ratings of arousal and valence were significantly affected by instruction, but dwell times were only significant for positive pictures. In task 2, participants were directed either to emotional or non-emotional parts of emotional pictures while skin conductance was recorded. Arousal and valence ratings decreased significantly in non-emotional areas, but no effect could be found for skin conductance data. Results were generally weak in regards to the effectiveness of measuring gaze to indicate emotion regulation in the form of attentional deployment. For future studies, research of individual differences in habitual usage of attentional deployment for emotion regulation was suggested.

Tvångsmässig shopping, compulsive buying, är en störning som innebär att individen har svårigheter att motstå shoppingimpulser. I huvudsak är det kvinnor som uppvisar tvångsmässig shopping och genomsnittsåldern är 30-31 år. Det finns dock forskningsresultat som tyder på att genus- och åldersskillnaderna minskar (Dittmar, 2005). Tvångsmässiga shoppare har också framträdande materialistiska värderingar och/eller svårigheter att reglera känslor visar separata studier. Syftet med denna studie var att undersöka relationen mellan tvångsmässig shopping, materialistiska värderingar och emotionsregleringsförmåga i en och samma studie. Tre etablerade mätinstrument användes i studien. Deltagarna, 136 varav 94 kvinnor,var huvudsakligen studenter vid Mälardalens högskola. Resultatet visade dessutom att kvinnor tvångsshoppar mer. Det fanns inget signifikant samband mellan tvångsmässig shopping och ålder. Studien visade att tvångsmässig shopping var signifikant relaterat till både materialistiska värderingar och bristande emotionsregleringsförmåga oberoende av varandra. Framtida forskning bör testa ytterligare hur emotionsreglering och materialistiska värderingar tillsammans eller var för sig producerar tvångsshopping.

Depression is a serious mental health concern affecting nearly 20% of the population (Kessler, 2002). A hallmark feature of depression is a prolonged period (i.e., 2 weeks or more) of sad mood. Because of this, recent conceptualizations have described Major Depressive Disorder as a dysfunction of emotion regulation (e.g., Kring & Bachorowski, 1999). However, the nature of this emotion regulation dysfunction in MDD is not well understood. The current study examined whether experimentally manipulating emotion regulation during a stressful task would help depressed individuals more effectively regulate subjective and physiological emotional responses. Although theorists have speculated that depression may potentiate certain emotional states, few empirical studies have been completed. One study found that depressed individuals reacted with significantly greater anger in response to a distressing and frustrating task than non-depressed individuals (Ellis, Fischer & Beevers, 2010). That study suggested that emotion regulation difficulties may contribute to the potentiation of some negative emotions, such as anger, among depressed individuals. Altering the emotion regulation strategies typically used by depressed individuals could therefore attenuate emotional reactivity to stressful experiences. Gross (1998) posits that emotion regulation can occur at two distinct points--either manipulating the input or the output of the emotional process. He refers to these as antecedent-focused (e.g., reappraisal of cognitions) or response-focused (e.g., acceptance of experience) emotion regulation. This theoretical framework provides a model through which to examine strategies to reduce distress and anger in depression. Specifically, the current dissertation examined the differential effects of manipulating an emotional response before generated (reappraisal; antecedent-focused) and after elicited (acceptance; response-focused). Depressed and non-depressed individuals were randomized to an emotion regulation strategy: reappraisal, acceptance or no strategy. They then completed a standardized, distressing task previously shown to potentiate anger (Ellis et al., 2010) and affect physiological responding (Matthews & Stoney, 1988). Subjective (i.e., anger, anxiety) and physiological (i.e., heart rate, galvanic skin response, respiration) emotional responses were collected to determine whether manipulating emotion regulation attenuates emotional reactivity to the distressing task. Results indicated that depressed individuals responded with greater anger, had lower galvanic skin conductance response, and persisted for shorter duration on the task than non-depressed individuals. Results also indicated that instructions to accept emotions increased anger during the task compared to reappraisal or no strategy. However, depression status and emotion regulation strategy did not interact, suggesting the effect of emotion regulation strategy did not differ across depression groups. Further, there were no differences between strategies for task persistence or skin conductance. Results suggest that acceptance is not an effective strategy for the acute reduction of anger. Results also emphasize the importance of anger potentiation and distress intolerance and highlight the need for continued work that identifies more effective strategies for emotion dysregulation in depression. / text

Despite adolescence and emerging adulthood being a time of peak physical ability, it is marked by a dramatic increase in morbidity and mortality, primarily driven by poor behavioral and emotional control (Dahl, 2004). Multiple lines of recent research are now focusing on how maturation of decision-making impacts risk-taking, and more specifically, what role emotion regulation plays (Weinberger et al., 2005; Steinberg, 2007). Rather than avoiding risk factors, a call is made for strength and skills-based approaches to risk-taking interventions. The purpose of the current exploratory study was to assess the efficacy of an experiential learning (EL) intervention designed to increase participants’ emotion regulation skills and decrease risk-taking. Twenty-eight emerging adults participated; 15 were assigned to the experimental group and presented with two separate sessions on emotional regulation and risk-taking using EL methodology (low and high element activities). The control group’s 13 participants were presented with two separate powerpoint lectures on emotion regulation and risk-taking. Participants’ difficulty with emotion regulation and risk-taking were assessed prior to the first session, between sessions, and one week following the second session. Qualitative interviews assessed participants’ understanding of how emotions and risk-taking are connected and process measures assessed the emotional impact of the intervention activities. While hypotheses were not confirmed, results revealed a significant decline in difficulty with emotion regulation across time for all participants. Unexpectedly, however, there were no significant differences between the groups on emotional regulation and the group x time interaction was also not significant. Additionally, risk-taking significantly increased across time. The control group reported more risk-taking across the three time periods than the experimental group. The time x group interaction approached significance [F(2,56) =2.68, p =.07], showing consistent increases for the control group but relatively low levels for the experimental group. Qualitative data revealed that participants had clear notions of how emotions drive risk-taking, how the thrill of risk- taking can be used to displace negative feelings, and how one’s need to connect to others can lead to risk-taking. Experimental group participants demonstrated a shift from global thinking about emotions and risk-taking to more specific thoughts about emotional awareness as a key skill. / text