Father-Child and Mother-Child Interactions with Children with Anxiety Disorders: Emotional Expressivity and Flexibility of Dyads

This observational study examined whether emotional expressivity and emotional flexibility differed between parent-child dyads with and without children with an anxiety disorder (AD). Effects of parents’ own AD on emotional expressivity and flexibility of dyads was also studied. The sample consisted of 128 referred children (59.4% girls) with an AD (8–18-year-olds) and both of their parents, and 44 matched non-AD children (63.6% girls) and both of their parents. Father-child and mother-child dyads were videotaped while discussing a conflict. Measures of dyadic emotional expressivity (positive and negative affect) and dyadic emotional flexibility (transitions, dispersion, average duration) were derived from these interactions using state space grid analysis. No differences existed in emotional expressivity of parent-child dyads with or without AD children, however both father-child and mother-child dyads with a child with an AD displayed less emotional flexibility during interactions than healthy controls. Mother-child dyads where both mother and child had AD showed more emotional expressivity and less emotional flexibility compared to mother-child dyads with only AD children and to dyads without AD. In particular, the inability to flexibly move in and out of different emotions distinguishes healthy dyads from non-healthy dyads. Targeting emotional flexibility of dyads with children with an AD, and also emotional expressivity of dyads when mother has an AD, might be a valuable goal for family-based intervention.     

Effects of Self-Reported Wisdom on Happiness: Not Much More Than Emotional Intelligence?

Wisdom and emotional intelligence are increasingly popular topics among happiness scholars. Despite their conceptual overlap, no empirical research has examined their interrelations and incremental predictive validities. The aims of this study were (a) to investigate associations between multidimensional conceptualizations of self-reported wisdom (Ardelt in Res Aging 25(3):275–324, 2003, 2004) and emotional intelligence (Davies et al. in J Pers Soc Psychol 75:989–1015, 1998) and (b) to examine the joint effects of self-reported wisdom and emotional intelligence on dimensions of happiness (life satisfaction as well as positive and negative affect). Data were provided by two samples: 175 university students and 400 online workers. Correlations between a composite wisdom score, a composite emotional intelligence score, and happiness facets were positive and moderate in size. Regression analyses showed that the effects of composite wisdom on life satisfaction and positive affect (but not negative affect) became weaker and non-significant when composite emotional intelligence was controlled. Additional analyses including three dimensions of the self-reported wisdom (cognitive, reflective, and affective wisdom) and four dimensions of emotional intelligence (self- and others-emotions appraisal, use and regulation of emotion) revealed a more differentiated pattern of results. Implications for future research on wisdom and happiness are discussed.     

Longitudinal relations among parental emotional expressivity,children's regulation,and quality of socioemotional functioning

The role of regulation as a mediator of the relations between maternal emotional expressivity and children's adjustment and social competence was examined when children (N = 208) were 4.5 to just 8 years old (Time 1, T1) and 2 years later (Time 2, T2). At T2, as at T1, regulation mediated the relation between positive maternal emotional expressivity and children's functioning. When T1 relations and the stability of variables over time were controlled for in a structural equation model, T2 relations generally were nonsignificant, although parents' dominant negative expressivity predicted high regulation. In contrast, in regressions, the findings for parent positive expressivity, but not negative expressivity, held at T2 when T1 variables were controlled. Thus, relations for negative expressivity, but not positive expressivity, changed with age.     

The Role of Husbands’ and Wives’ Emotional Expressivity in the Marital Relationship

The current investigation was designed to examine the role of positive and negative emotional expressivity in the marital relationship. Data from 58 married couples were used to assess spouses’ levels of emotional expressivity and how these levels predicted reports of marital functioning. Regression analyses indicated that positive emotional expressivity had limited influence on marital functioning. Negative expressivity, however, had a strong impact on marital love, conflict, and ambivalence. Post-hoc analyses revealed significant differences between pairings in which the husband was high in negative expressivity, irrespective of wives’ negative emotional expressivity, and pairings in which both partners were low in negative emotional expressivity. These findings are discussed with respect to previous research that suggests that wives’ emotional expressivity is the major determinant of marital functioning.     

Clarifying the linguistic signature: measuring personality from natural speech

In this study, we examined the viability of measuring personality using computerized lexical analysis of natural speech. Two well-validated models of personality were measured, one involving trait positive affectivity (PA) and negative affectivity (NA) dimensions and the other involving a separate behavioral inhibition motivational system (BIS) and a behavioral activation motivational system (BAS). Individuals with high levels of trait PA and sensitive BAS expressed high levels of positive emotion in their natural speech, whereas individuals with high levels of trait NA and sensitive BIS tended to express high levels of negative emotion. The personality variables accounted for almost a quarter of the variance in emotional expressivity.     

Clarifying the Linguistic Signature: Measuring Personality From Natural Speech

In this study, we examined the viability of measuring personality using computerized lexical analysis of natural speech. Two well-validated models of personality were measured, one involving trait positive affectivity (PA) and negative affectivity (NA) dimensions and the other involving a separate behavioral inhibition motivational system (BIS) and a behavioral activation motivational system (BAS). Individuals with high levels of trait PA and sensitive BAS expressed high levels of positive emotion in their natural speech, whereas individuals with high levels of trait NA and sensitive BIS tended to express high levels of negative emotion. The personality variables accounted for almost a quarter of the variance in emotional expressivity.     

The Distress Disclosure Index: a research review and multitrait-multimethod examination

The Distress Disclosure Index (DDI; J. H. Kahn & R. M. Hessling, 2001) is a brief self-report measure of one's tendency to disclose personally distressing information. The purpose of this article was to summarize what is known about the DDI, present new validity evidence, and make recommendations for use of the DDI. This article reviews research on the DDI from the past decade that indicates that distress disclosure is associated with well-being, professional help-seeking attitudes and intentions, and success in brief psychotherapy. On the basis of the reviewed literature, the authors report a reliability generalization study of DDI scores that strongly supports the internal consistency and test-retest reliability of DDI scores, and they review criterion-related and construct validity evidence. Next, the authors present a new multitrait-multimethod validity study of the DDI. Participants (N = 153) and peer informants (N = 153)--one per participant--completed paper-and-pencil questionnaire packets. Convergent validity of self-reported DDI scores was supported by a strong association with self-reports of emotional self-disclosure in response to a specific, unpleasant event, and self- and peer reports on the DDI were moderately correlated. DDI scores were not strongly associated with cognitive reappraisal and ambivalence over emotional expression, thus supporting discriminant validity. DDI scores were strongly associated with expressive suppression, and correlations between DDI scores and affect, depression symptoms, coping, and emotional expressivity were similar to those found with expressive suppression. The authors offer possible hypotheses explaining the overlap between distress disclosure and expressive suppression and present recommendations for future use of the DDI.     

Emotion, physiology, and expression in old age

Emotion-specific autonomic nervous system (ANS) activity was studied in 20 elderly people (age 71-83 years, M = 77) who followed muscle-by-muscle instructions for constructing facial prototypes of emotional expressions and relived past emotional experiences. Results indicated that (a) patterns of emotion-specific ANS activity produced by these tasks closely resembled those found in other studies with younger Ss, (b) the magnitude of change in ANS measures was smaller in older than in younger Ss, (c) patterns of emotion-specific ANS activity showed generality across the 2 modes of elicitation, (d) emotion self-reports and spontaneous production of emotional facial expressions that occurred during relived emotional memories were comparable with those found in younger Ss, (e) elderly men and women did not differ in emotional physiology or facial expression, and (f) elderly women reported experiencing more intense emotions when reliving emotional memories than did elderly men.     

A Synthesis and Extension of the Weiner and Kelley Attribution Models

Attribution theory and research has centered around 2 basic models: (a) the achievement-motivation model, which has been concerned primarily with self-attributions and is characterized by the work of Weiner and his colleagues (e.g., Weiner, 1986; Weiner et al., 1971), and (b) Kelley's cube, which has been used primarily to describe how observers use information to make attributions for the behavior of others (e.g., Green & Mitchell, 1979). The presence of these 2 distinct models, each with a different area and scope of application, has presented a number of problems for researchers in: comparing self- and social attributions; synthesizing the results of different studies; and examining the leader-member attribution process, particularly with respect to actor-observer biases. This article examines these problems and proposes a synthesized model integrating the dimensions of both models. The synthesis provides a theoretical foundation for classifying and comparing self- and social attributions while explicating the process by which informational cues map onto attributional dimensions and explanations.     

父母元情绪理念、情绪表达与儿童社会能力的关系

对341名学前儿童及其父母进行问卷调查, 考察父母元情绪理念、情绪表达与儿童社会能力的直接与间接关系。结果表明：(1) 父亲情绪教导对儿童社会能力有促进作用, 而情绪紊乱对儿童社会能力有阻碍作用; 父亲的积极情绪表达对儿童社会能力有促进作用, 消极情绪表达则有负向作用; 此外, 父亲情绪教导、情绪紊乱除了对儿童社会能力具有直接作用外, 还通过其情绪表达对儿童社会能力具有间接影响。(2) 母亲情绪教导对儿童社会能力具有积极作用, 而情绪紊乱则具有消极影响; 母亲积极情绪表达对儿童社会能力有促进作用, 而消极情绪表达对儿童社会能力无显著预测关系; 母亲情绪教导通过其积极情绪表达对儿童社会能力具有间接促进作用。     

Phobic tendency within the Five-Factor and HEXACO models of personality structure

Recent research has indicated that the various specific phobias are only modestly correlated with the personality dimensions of the Big Five or Five-Factor Model (B5/FFM). We tested the hypothesis that the specific phobias would be more strongly associated with the dimensions of an alternative framework, the HEXACO model of personality structure. Self-reports on the Phobic Stimuli Response Scales (PSRS) were obtained along with self- and peer reports on measures of the B5/FFM and HEXACO dimensions from a sample of 248 non-clinical participants. The PSRS variables assessing specific phobias showed stronger correlations with the HEXACO Emotionality factor than with any B5/FFM dimension, and a stronger multiple correlation with the HEXACO factors than with the B5/FFM dimensions. Findings were similar across self- and peer reports of the personality variables. The results suggest that phobic tendency can be understood in terms of normal personality variation as conceptualized in the HEXACO framework.     

Emotional intelligence and job performance: The role of enactment and focus on others’ emotions

The link between emotional intelligence (EI) and job performance was examined focusing on the interplay between self- and other-focused EI dimensions. Two diary studies were conducted among divorce lawyers and salespersons. We adopted a two-level perspective including individual differences in EI (person-level EI) and within-person fluctuations in the usage of EI (enacted EI). It was hypothesized that a focus on others’ emotions predicts job performance in social jobs. Multilevel analyses showed that others-emotion appraisal contributed more to subjective (Studies 1 and 2) and objective (Study 2) job performance than other EI dimensions. This link was more apparent in person-level EI in Study 1 and in enacted EI in Study 2. Furthermore, EI dimensions interacted with regard to job performance, such that appraising the emotions of one person was more effective than appraising the emotions of two persons (other and self), and appraising others’ emotions was more effective when one’s own emotions were also used or regulated.     

Does Perceived Emotional Intelligence and Optimism/pessimism Predict Psychological Well-being?

In this study we examined the associations between perceived emotional intelligence, dispositional optimism/pessimism and psychological well-being. In addition to correlational analyses, we examined a model by structural equation modeling (SEM). The study of psychological well-being in the field of positive psychology from the paradigmatic approach to happiness developed by Ryff and Singer (Psychother Psychosomat 65(1):14–23, 1998) is very important and essential, due in part to the lack of studies analyzing the predictors of Ryff’s PWB model by contemplating emotional and cognitive factors. In this framework, our study examines the possible role of optimism and PEI as possible predictors of the psychological well-being dimensions proposed by Ryff, with a specific pattern of relationships as a model. Our results show positive relationships between clarity and emotional regulation and the psychological well-being components. With regard to dispositional optimism versus pessimism, positive relationships were found between optimism and psychological well-being dimensions and negative relationships between pessimism and dimensions of psychological well-being. Our model also includes some relationships, not initially raised, between the dimensions of perceived emotional intelligence and some dimensions of psychological well-being. Our results suggest relationships between emotional attention and purpose in life as well as with personal growth dimensions of psychological well-being. Implications and limitations are discussed.     

A dimensional approach to the circular ordering of the emotions

A circular ordering of eight primary emotional categories was derived from the postulated underlying dimensions of hedonic and autonomic arousal. The model was contrasted with other approaches in the literature and then compared with a similar model proposed by Plutchik (1980) in postdicting the pattern of results in several studies in the literature. The results of two empirical studies based upon the present model were then presented. It was concluded that sufficient empirical support and advantage, compared with other models, was found to warrant further research.     

Facets of Emotion Regulation and Emotional Disorder Symptom Dimensions: Differential Associations and Incremental Validity in a Large Clinical Sample

A growing literature suggests robust associations between dimensions of emotion regulation and emotional disorder psychopathology. However, limited research has investigated associations of emotion regulation dimensions across several emotional disorders (transdiagnostic associations), or the incremental validity of emotion regulation versus the higher-order construct of neuroticism. The current study used exploratory structural equation modeling and a large clinical sample (N = 1,138) to: (a) develop a multidimensional emotion regulation measurement model, (b) evaluate the differential associations between latent emotion regulation dimensions and five latent emotional disorder symptom dimensions (social anxiety, depression, agoraphobia/panic, obsessions/compulsions, generalized worry), and (c) determine the incremental contribution of emotion regulation in predicting symptom dimensions beyond neuroticism. The best-fitting measurement model of emotion regulation included four dimensions: Problematic Responses, Poor Recognition/Clarity, Negative Thinking, and Emotional Inhibition/Suppression. Although many zero-order associations between the four latent emotion regulation dimensions and five latent symptom dimensions were significant, few associations remained significant in a structural regression model that included neuroticism. Specifically, Negative Thinking and Problematic Responses incrementally predicted depression symptoms, while Emotional Inhibition/Suppression predicted both social anxiety and depression symptoms. Associations between neuroticism and the emotional disorder dimensions were similar regardless of whether the emotion regulation dimensions were held constant. These results suggest that self-reported emotion regulation dimensions are associated with the severity and expression of a range of emotional disorder symptoms, but that some emotion regulation dimensions have limited incremental validity after accounting for general emotional reactivity. Studies of emotion regulation should assess neuroticism as a key covariate.     

Evidence for universality in phenomenological emotion response system coherence

The authors reanalyzed data from Scherer and Wallbott's (Scherer, 1997b; Scherer & Wallbott, 1994) International Study of Emotion Antecedents and Reactions to examine how phenomenological reports of emotional experience, expression, and physiological sensations were related to each other within cultures and to determine if these relationships were moderated by cultural differences, which were operationally defined using Hofstede's (2001) typology. Multilevel random coefficient modeling analyses produced several findings of note. First, the vast majority of the variance in ratings was within countries (i.e., at the individual level); a much smaller proportion of the total variance was between countries. Second, there were negative relationships between country-level means and long- versus short-term orientation for numerous measures. Greater long-term orientation was associated with lowered emotional expressivity and fewer physiological sensations. Third, at the individual (within-culture) level, across the 7 emotions, there were consistent and reliable positive relationships among the response systems, indicating coherence among them. Fourth, such relationships were not moderated by cultural differences, as measured by the Hofstede dimensions.     

Patterns of situational appraisal in experiences of worry and anxiety

Abstract

Three studies investigating differences in people's appraisals of worry and anxiety situations are presented. First, data from a study by Reisenzein & Spielhofer (1994) were reanalyzed. Second, two further studies were conducted to replicate the findings of the reanalysis and to explore whether any additional appraisal dimensions were relevant for a differentiation of worry and anxiety situations. In sum, results showed that appraisals associated with situations in which worry and anxiety were experienced differed on eight appraisal dimensions. Compared to experiences of anxiety, experiences of worry were more often associated with positive self-evaluation, positive social-relationship evaluation, feelings of closeness, and sentiments of importance, and less often associated with feelings of inferiority. Moreover, in worry experiences, focus was often not on the self, but on other persons. Finally, with respect to temporal dimensions, worry situations were less often associated with notions of suddenness and momentariness than anxiety situations. Implications of these findings are discussed with respect to models of emotional appraisal and research on worry and generalized anxiety disorder.     

Relationships between individual-level factors and burnout: A meta-analysis of Chinese participants

We meta-analytically tested the relationships between job burnout dimensions (emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and reduced personal accomplishment) and five factor model personality traits, personal resources, and coping strategies in Chinese participants. It showed that most of the variables considered were significantly related to job burnout dimensions in the expected direction. A comparison of the results of this study with Alarcon’s meta analysis showed that the correlations of burnout with individual level factors were in the same direction, but the magnitudes of the effect sizes differed to a certain extent. Implications of the findings and future research directions were discussed.     

亲子依恋、自我概念与大学生自我伤害的关系

以广州市四所高校562名大学生为被试,检验了亲子依恋、自我概念与自我伤害之间关系的三种模型,以讨论其内部关系。结果表明：1）父子依恋和自我概念、母子依恋和自我概念均对自我伤害行为具有保护作用,支持了累加效应模型;2）父子依恋和母子依恋均通过自我概念的部分中介作用对自我伤害产生间接影响,支持了中介效应模型;3）父子依恋和母子依恋对自我伤害的保护作用在低自我概念组中明显,支持了保护因子-保护因子排除假说。