ERIC Number: EJ1200828
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2019-Jan
Pages: 11
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0165-0254
EISSN: N/A
Emotion Regulation in Action: Use, Selection, and Success of Emotion Regulation in Adolescents' Daily Lives
Lennarz, Hannah K.; Hollenstein, Tom; Lichtwarck-Aschoff, Anna; Kuntsche, Emmanuel; Granic, Isabela
International Journal of Behavioral Development, v43 n1 p1-11 Jan 2019
Successful emotion regulation (ER) is a central aspect of psychosocial functioning and mental health and is thought to improve and be refined in adolescence. Past research on ER has mainly focused on one-time measurements of habitual ER. Linking regulatory strategies to emotions in daily lives is key to understanding adolescents' emotional lives. Using an Experience Sampling Method with 78 adolescents (M[subscript age] = 13.91, SD[subscript age] = 0.95, 66% girls), we investigated the use, selection, and success in down-regulating negative emotions of eight ER strategies across 44 assessments. Acceptance was the strategy employed most often followed by problem-solving, rumination, distraction, avoidance, reappraisal, social support, and suppression. Interestingly, negativity of the event influenced the use of ER strategies: With low intensity negative emotions, acceptance was more likely to be used, and with high intensity negative emotions, suppression, problem-solving, distraction, avoidance, social support, and rumination were more likely to be used. With regard to success, multilevel models revealed that problem-solving, reappraisal, and acceptance were more successful in down-regulating negative emotions than rumination. Further, among girls, no relations between the momentary use of ER strategies and depressive symptoms was found. Among boys, a negative relation between acceptance and depressive symptoms emerged. Results from this study suggest that there is a reciprocal relationship between the intensity of negative emotions and ER strategies and that gender differences may exist. Taken together, this study showed which ER strategies are used by a healthy adolescent sample, and these results are discussed with regard to their theoretical and practical importance.
Descriptors: Emotional Response, Adolescents, Adolescent Attitudes, Middle School Students, High School Students, Psychological Patterns, Student Experience, Affective Behavior, Emotional Experience, Foreign Countries, Gender Differences, Negative Attitudes, Problem Solving, Well Being, Daily Living Skills
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Middle Schools; Secondary Education; Junior High Schools; High Schools
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Netherlands
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A