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1 Positive Emotion Regulation Positive Emotion Regulation: Patterns and Associations with Psychological Health Thesis Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Arts in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University By David Robert Cregg, B.S. Graduate Program in Psychology The Ohio State University 2017 Thesis Committee: Dr. Jennifer S. Cheavens, Advisor Dr. Daniel R. Strunk Dr. Baldwin M. Way 1 Copyrighted by David Robert Cregg 2017 2 Abstract Evidence to date suggests that a higher level of positive emotion is generally associated with improved psychological health (e.g., Tugade, Fredrickson, & Barrett, 2004). However, the specific features characterizing the ways in which upregulation of positive emotion is associated with good psychological functioning are less understood. I investigated how three factors may link regulation of positive emotions to greater psychological health: 1) the presence of both a large repertoire and persistent use of regulation strategies; 2) a “match” between the features of a situation and the strategy used; and 3) the use of specific categories of regulatory strategies, such as expression (capitalization), and less use of suppression. One-hundred and thirty-four undergraduates (mean age = 19.22; 73% female; 78% Caucasian) indicated the strategies they would use to maintain or improve their mood in response to eleven hypothetical positive situations. After their initial response, participants were prompted four more times to report how they would respond if their initial strategy was not working. Participants then completed a battery of self-report measures assessing psychological health variables, including measures of positive emotion and psychopathology. Coders rated the quality (effectiveness) of each strategy and assigned them to categories. Coders also rated each situation for its degree of ambiguity (how ambivalent the situation was), and whether it represented a more hedonic (i.e., short-term pleasure) or eudaimonic (i.e., long-term ii meaning) form of well-being. Data were analyzed with a series of correlations and regression models using the three factors above as predictors and the psychological health (PH) measures as criterion variables. Repertoire was associated with several indices of positive emotion, but was unrelated to measures of psychopathology. In contrast, persistence was unrelated to PH, except for an inverse association with intensity of positive emotion across situations. The use of suppression was related to greater borderline personality disorder features and lower ratings of happiness, whereas the use of planning, past focus, or expression was related to higher reports of positive emotion. Finally, individuals using expression more frequently in situations of a more eudaimonic nature reported a higher intensity of positive emotion across situations (β = .21, p = .02); likewise, individuals using cognitive awareness (savoring) more frequently in situations of a more hedonic nature also demonstrated a trend toward more intense positive emotion (β = .16, p = .07). Collectively, these findings preliminarily suggest the importance of “regulatory diversity” (Quoidbach, Berry, Hansenne, & Mikolajczak, 2010), i.e., varying one’s use of strategies, and hint at the role of situation-strategy matches in upregulating positive emotion. However, several limitations of this study warrant cautious interpretation of the results, such as the correlational nature of the data, the large number of tests conducted, and the disproportionality among the frequencies of strategy categories. Suggestions for future research are discussed, such as the use of real-world data and experimental work to clarify the connection between repertoire and positive affect. iii Dedication To Mom, Dad, and Shannon, for your unconditional love and support. iv Acknowledgments I would first like to express my sincere gratitude to my advisor, Dr. Jennifer S. Cheavens. I could not have finished this project without your enthusiasm, creativity, guidance, and support. Thank you for all the time you have invested in developing me as a student, and for encouraging me to put my best foot forward. It made this project better. I would also like to offer my thanks to my committee members, Dr. Daniel R. Strunk and Dr. Baldwin M. Way. Your insightful comments and good humor strengthened this project, and helped bring it to successful completion. This study would not have been possible without my colleagues in the Mood and Personality Studies Lab: Matthew Southward and Erin Altenburger, who designed and implemented the original data collection; Sara Moss, who co-trained the coding team with me; Kristen Howard, who also assisted with coding the data; and Anne Wilson and Cinthia Benitez for your helpful comments and encouragement in lab meetings. Finally, I am indebted to my research assistants who spent countless hours coding the data: Katya Bubeleva, Julia Wiedemann, and Allison Wittenberg. Thank you for all your hard work and sacrifice week after week throughout this process. v Vita 2010…………………………………………James E. Taylor High School 2014…………………………………………B.S. Psychology, The University of Texas at Austin 2014 – 2015……………………………........Research Coordinator, The Institute for Spirituality and Health at the Texas Medical Center 2015 to present………………………………Graduate Teaching Associate, Department of Psychology, The Ohio State University Fields of Study Major Field: Psychology Minor Field: Quantitative Psychology vi Table of Contents Abstract ............................................................................................................................... ii Dedication .......................................................................................................................... iv Acknowledgments............................................................................................................... v Vita ..................................................................................................................................... vi List of Tables ..................................................................................................................... ix List of Figures ..................................................................................................................... x Chapter 1: Introduction ....................................................................................................... 1 Positive and Negative Emotion Regulation .................................................................... 4 Strategies to Upregulate Positive Emotion ..................................................................... 7 Does Context of the Situation Matter?.......................................................................... 10 Flexibility in Emotion Regulation: Repertoire and Persistence .................................... 15 Current Study ................................................................................................................ 17 Hypotheses .................................................................................................................... 17 Chapter 2: Methods ........................................................................................................... 20 Participants .................................................................................................................... 20 Measures ....................................................................................................................... 20 Procedure ...................................................................................................................... 22 Data Preparation............................................................................................................ 22 Data Analytic Strategy .................................................................................................. 27 Chapter 3: Results ............................................................................................................. 30 Descriptives................................................................................................................... 30 Test of Hypothesis 1 – Associations of Repertoire, Persistence, and Suppression with Psychological Health .................................................................................................... 34 Test of Hypothesis 2 - Situational Context ................................................................... 35 Test of Hypothesis 3 - Specific Associations of Strategy Types .................................. 36 vii Chapter 4: Discussion and Future Directions ................................................................... 38 Support for Hypotheses................................................................................................. 41 Part One of the Model: Repertoire, Persistence, and Quality ....................................... 41 Part Two of the Model: Situational Context ................................................................. 48 Specific Associations of Strategy Types....................................................................... 50 Limitations .................................................................................................................... 51 Conclusion .................................................................................................................... 57 References ........................................................................................................................
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