The case for positive emotions in the stress process

For many decades, the stress process was described primarily in terms of negative emotions. However, robust evidence that positive emotions co-occurred with negative emotions during intensely stressful situations suggested the need to consider the possible roles of positive emotions in the stress process. About 10 years ago, these possibilities were incorporated into a revision of stress and coping theory (Folkman, 1997). This article summarizes the research reported during the intervening 10 years that pertains to the revised model. Evidence has accumulated regarding the co-occurrence of positive and negative emotions during stressful periods; the restorative function of positive emotions with respect to physiological, psychological, and social coping resources; and the kinds of coping processes that generate positive emotions including benefit finding and reminding, adaptive goal processes, reordering priorities, and infusing ordinary events with positive meaning. Overall, the evidence supports the propositions set forth in the revised model. Contrary to earlier tendencies to dismiss positive emotions, the evidence indicates they have important functions in the stress process and are related to coping processes that are distinct from those that regulate distress. Including positive emotions in future studies will help address an imbalance between research and clinical practice due to decades of nearly exclusive concern with the negative emotions.     

Stress, Positive Emotion, and Coping

There is growing interest in positive aspects of the stress process, including positive outcomes of stress and antecedents that dispose individuals to appraise stressful situations more as a challenge than as a threat. Less attention has been given to the adaptational significance of positive emotions during stress or to the coping processes that sustain positive emotions. We review evidence for the occurrence of positive emotions under conditions of stress, discuss the functional role that positive emotions play under such conditions, and present three types of coping that are associated with positive emotion during chronic stress. These findings point to new research questions about the role of positive emotions during stress and the nature of the coping processes that generate these positive emotions.     

应对与积极情绪研究:意义应对、积极情绪应对、情绪表露和情绪粒度

研究者们发现了应激状态下积极情绪与消极情绪共生的现象,这对于缓解压力提高应对效能有重要意义,积极情绪的研究成为应激和应对领域一个新的方向。为进一步明晰应对过程中积极情绪发生的特点、机制以及它们之间的关系,以应对过程中积极情绪发生的不同阶段为基点,探讨意义指向应对(应对失败之后),积极情绪指向应对(应对初始阶段),以及积极情绪的拓展建构(应对行为之前,并进一步探讨了情绪表露和情绪粒度两个与积极情绪密切相关的因素)。以后研究的重点主要有以下几点:应激源类型的划分,意义指向应对、积极情绪指向应对以及情绪表露和情绪粒度的进一步研究,并积极关注临床实践。     

Promoting positive emotions following relationship dissolution through writing

Past research shows that writing promotes coping following traumatic events, but pays limited attention to the benefits of writing following relationship dissolution. Research also largely overlooks the utility of positively-focused writing following stressful events. A total of 87 currently single participants (25 males, 62 females) who recently experienced relationship dissolution were randomly assigned to one of three writing conditions (negatively-focused, positively-focused, and neutral) to determine writing's impact on change in emotions. As hypothesized, participants in the positive writing condition increased in positive emotions from pretest to immediate posttest compared to both the negative writing and neutral writing conditions. There were no differences between conditions in the experience of negative emotions. These findings show how writing can help people cope with relationship dissolution.     

The Role of Positive Emotions in Reducing Depressive Symptoms Among Army Wives

The homecoming period following combat deployment can be as stressful to military spouses as the deployment itself. This study used the broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions to examine whether personal resources (adaptive coping, maladaptive coping, and resilience) mediate the relationship between positive emotions and depressive symptoms in Army wives (N = 252) following the homecoming of a deployed active-duty service member. Using path analysis, after controlling for demographic variables and marital satisfaction, positive emotions were related to all 3 personal resources (positively to adaptive coping and resilience, negatively to maladaptive coping). In turn, adaptive coping and resilience were related to fewer depressive symptoms and maladaptive coping to greater depressive symptoms. The direct path between positive emotions and depressive symptoms was nonsignificant, suggesting complete mediation. The final model accounted for 54% of the total variance in depressive symptoms. Results support the important role that positive emotions play in decreasing depressive symptoms in this high-risk population.     

The ecological validity of the autonomic-subjective response dissociation in repressive coping

Background and Objectives: Repressive coping has been associated with elevated cardiovascular reactivity and diminished self-reported negative affect (so-called autonomic-subjective response dissociation, ASRD) in response to laboratory stressors. However, there is a lack of knowledge regarding the ecological validity of this response pattern. Design: An ambulatory assessment strategy was applied in order to analyze associations between ASRD and repressive coping throughout a day. Methods: A sample of 114 individuals was recruited. Heart rate was recorded via ECG and subjective reports of negative affect as well as the experience of demand and control (as indicators of stress) and situational characteristics were assessed several times a day via mobile electronic devices. Results: Repressive coping relative to other coping dispositions was accompanied by elevated ASRD during stressful episodes in daily life, thus supporting previous laboratory research. Conclusions: The findings suggest that repressive coping is associated with a discrepancy between subjective reports of negative affect and autonomic responding to stressful encounters in everyday life, which might impact health.     

Positive affect and the other side of coping

Although research on coping over the past 30 years has produced convergent evidence about the functions of coping and the factors that influence it, psychologists still have a great deal to learn about how coping mechanisms affect diverse outcomes. One of the reasons more progress has not been made is the almost exclusive focus on negative outcomes in the stress process. Coping theory and research need to consider positive outcomes as well. The authors focus on one such outcome, positive affect, and review findings about the co-occurrence of positive affect with negative affect during chronic stress, the adaptive functions of positive affect during chronic stress, and a special class of meaning-based coping processes that support positive affect during chronic stress.     

The relationship of coping and its perceived effectiveness to positive and negative affect in sport

This article examined the ability of six different coping strategies and their perceived effectiveness in predicting positive and negative affect in sport. Furthermore, it was investigated whether perceived coping effectiveness moderated the influence of coping strategies on affect. British University athletes (N = 356) were requested to recall a recent important competition in their sport when they had a stressful or challenging experience. They were then asked to rate the extent to which they relied on a number of different coping strategies to deal with the situation and the degree to which they found these effective. In agreement with the theoretical predictions of Folkman (1984), problem-focused coping predicted positive affect whereas emotion-focused coping predicted negative affect. Furthermore, for almost all the coping variables, their perceived effectiveness predicted, in a positive way, positive affect and negatively, negative affect. Moreover, the perceived effectiveness of the coping strategies of seeking social support, venting of emotions, and behavioural disengagement, moderated the influence of those strategies on affect. Lastly, a comparison between high and low effective coping groups showed that the former was associated with more pleasant affective experiences.     

Coping as a mediator of emotion

There is widespread conviction among health care professionals that coping affects emotion. Yet theory and research have traditionally emphasized the effects of emotion on coping. The present research addresses this imbalance by evaluating the extent to which coping mediated emotions during stressful encounters in two Caucasian, community-residing samples. Subjects' recently experienced stressful encounters, the ways they coped with the demands of those encounters, and the emotions they experienced during two stages of those encounters were assessed repeatedly. The extent to which eight forms of coping mediated each of four sets of emotions was evaluated with a series of hierarchical regression analyses (of residuals). Coping was associated with changes in all four sets of emotions, with some forms of coping associated with increases in positive emotions and other forms associated with increases in negative emotions.     

正、负性压力情境下教师应对方式的比较研究

采用修订的COPE量表对530名中小学教师进行调查,探讨中小学教师压力现状及其在正、负性压力情境下应对方式的异同。结果表明:(1)中小学教师总体压力水平为中等,但承受着较大的工作压力且负性多于正性;(2)中小学教师应对两类性质压力采用的方式趋于一致,具有一定的跨情境性。但在应对负性压力时,倾向于联合使用各种应对方式,且更倾向于采用精神寄托、行为解脱等非适应性应对方式。     

社会支持对抑郁影响的中介模型探讨

本研究旨在探索预先应对和积极情绪在社会支持和抑郁间的中介作用。采用两个时间点的纵向数据搜集方式对181名大学生施以量表,然后通过路径分析对假设的中介模型进行拟合度检验,结果表明：（1）预先应对是社会支持和积极情绪之间的部分中介变量;（2）积极情绪是社会支持和预先应对与抑郁间的中介变量。结论：社会支持是预防抑郁的重要途径,提升预先应对策略和积极情绪的体验可以进一步增进社会支持对抑郁的缓解作用。     

Coping profiles characterize individual flourishing,languishing, and depression

Abstract

According to the broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions, negative emotions narrow one's thought–action repertoire. In contrast, positive emotions have a broadening effect, expanding cognitive capacity, increasing potential coping strategies that come to mind, and enhancing decision-making, reaction, and adaptation to adversity. Fredrickson and Losada determined that a positivity ratio – the ratio of experienced positive to negative emotions – at or above 2.9 promotes human flourishing. A ratio below 2.9 is indicative of languishing individuals, whereas a ratio below 1.0 is a marker of depression. This study examined whether adaptive and maladaptive coping profiles differentiated those who flourish, languish, or are depressed in two convenience samples – military spouses (n =367) and public school teachers (n=267). Results were consistent with the theoretical predictions, as coping profiles of the groups differed significantly, with flourishing individuals favoring adaptive coping strategies more than those who were languishing or depressed. Conversely, depressed individuals reported greater use of maladaptive coping strategies than those who were languishing or flourishing. These results provide further empirical support for the mathematical model of Fredrickson and Losada, as the set of positivity criteria were predictive of coping profiles in two samples where successful coping and adaptation are important.     

混合情绪能促进心理健康吗？

摘 要 积极和消极情绪的同时体验,即混合情绪,是生活中常见的情绪状态。健康应对的共激活模型、情绪动态模型和积极比模型一致认为混合情绪与心理健康之间呈现非线性的关系,适当的混合情绪有利于个体在困境中全面加工和整合信息,寻求意义,获得控制感,进而实现健康应对和心理症状改善,获得幸福感。未来研究应关注对非线性关系的精确描述;低压力或非压力情境下混合情绪的意义;进一步研究混合情绪促进心理健康的内部机制和影响因素。     

If it changes it must be a process: study of emotion and coping during three stages of a college examination

This natural experiment provides substantial evidence for the following major themes, which are based on a cognitively oriented, process-centered theory of stress and coping: First, a stressful encounter should be viewed as a dynamic, unfolding process, not as a static, unitary event. Emotion and coping (including the use of social support) were assessed at three stages of a midterm examination: the anticipation stage before the exam, the waiting stage after the exam and before grades were announced, and after grades were posted. For the group as a whole there were significant changes in emotions and coping (including the use of social support) across the three stages. Second, people experience seemingly contradictory emotions and states of mind during every stage of an encounter. In this study, for example, subjects experienced both threat emotions and challege emotions. The complexity of emotions and their cognitive appraisals reflects ambiguity regarding the multifaceted nature of the exam and its meanings, especially during the anticipation stage. Third, coping is a complex process. On the average, subjects used combinations of most of the available forms of problem-focused coping and emotion-focused coping at every stage of the exam. Different forms of coping were salient during the anticipation and waiting stages. Problem-focused coping and emphasizing the positive were more prominent during the former, and distancing more prominent during the latter. Finally, despite normatively shared emotional reactions at each stage, substantial individual differences remained. Using selected appraisal and coping variables, and taking grade point averages (GPA) into account, approximately 48% of the variances in threat and challenge emotions at the anticipation stage was explained. Controlling for variance due to the grade received, appraisal, and coping variables accounted for 28% of the variance in positive and negative emotions at the outcome stage. Including grade, 57% of the variance in positive emotions at outcome and 61% of the negative emotions at outcome were explained.     

应对的研究设计、测量、类别及未来研究方向

应激和应对是现代心理学研究中最广泛的一个主题, 但是目前此领域的研究存在着停滞不前的情况。应对的研究设计、测量和类别三方面是应对现有研究中具有挑战性的问题, 研究设计方面提倡纵向的动态设计, 注重情境因素的作用; 测量方面提倡加大对应对的生态瞬时评估、叙事方法的研究, 且要注意根据研究内容的需要选择合适的方法; 应对类别方面注重对意义应对的研究。应对领域未来研究方向主要包括面向未来的主动应对、二元模式的应对、应对与积极情绪三个方面。     

Social anxiety,disengagement coping,and alcohol-use behaviors among adolescents

Background and Objectives: Although research indicates that social anxiety (SA) is associated with problematic drinking, few studies have examined these relations among adolescents, and all alcohol-related assessments have been retrospective. Socially anxious youth may be at risk to drink in an effort to manage negative affectivity, and a proclivity toward disengagement coping (e.g. avoidance of aversive stimuli) may enhance the desire to drink and learning of coping-related use. Design: Adding to research addressing adolescent SA and alcohol use, the current study examined (1) proportional drinking motives (subscale scores divided by the sum of all subscales), (2) current desire to drink in a socially relevant environment (introduction to research laboratory), and (3) the indirect effect of retrospectively reported disengagement in social stress contexts on proportional coping motives and desire to drink. Method: Participants were 70 community-recruited adolescents who reported recent alcohol use. Level of SA, disengagement coping, drinking motives, and desire to drink following laboratory introduction were assessed. Results: Proclivity toward disengagement in prior socially stressful contexts accounted for significant variance in the positive relations between SA and both proportional coping motives and current desire to drink. Conclusions: These data complement existing work. Continued efforts in building developmentally sensitive models of alcohol use are needed.     

待岗人员的应付方式、控制感特点及其关系研究

对待岗人员的应付方式和控制感进行调查发现：（1）待岗人员对待压力的应付方式依次为退避、合理化、求助、自责、发泄。女性更多地采用这五种应付方式,年龄偏大组更倾向于选择合理化和退避,30岁是应付方式发展的转折时期;（2）待岗人员的控制感由高至低依次为环境变化、人际关系、情绪情感和生活方面的控制感。女性更能控制情绪情感;（3）在待岗人员应付待岗后各种压力的情境下,可将退避归为积极的应付方式,将自责、求助、发泄归为消极的应付方式。     

Regulation of Positive Emotions: Emotion Regulation Strategies that Promote Resilience

The regulation of emotions is essential in everyday life. In this paper, we discuss the regulation of positive emotional experiences. Our discussion focuses on strategies aimed at maintaining and increasing experiences of positive emotions. We discuss the importance of these strategies for well-being, and suggest that cultivating positive emotions may be particularly useful for building resilience to stressful events. Then, we explore possible mechanisms that link positive emotions to coping for resilient people, with a focus on the automatic activation of positive emotions while coping. We conclude by discussing alternative models and proposing future directions in the work on positive emotion regulation and resilience.     

Understanding the utility of emotional approach coping: evidence from a laboratory stressor and daily life

Background: Dispositional emotional approach coping (EAC) marks an adaptive tendency to process and express emotions. EAC's association with cognitions, affect, and intra- and interindividual characteristics that may account for its utility was examined in response to an acute stressor and in daily life. Design: This study included a laboratory stress task and ecological momentary assessment. Methods: Healthy undergraduate students (n = 124; mean age: 20; women: 56%) completed a laboratory component (baseline survey, speech stress task, pre- and posttask measures) and five subsequent days of surveys via palm pilot (six surveys/day). Results: Controlling for sex, neuroticism, and social support, greater EAC was associated with more positive cognitive appraisals, personal resources, and positive affect and less-negative affect during the lab stressor, and with more perceived control and positive affect in daily life. Significant EAC × sex interactions were found for poststressor affect: men with high EAC reported more positive affect and women with high EAC reported less negative affect. Conclusions: Findings provide support that EAC's utility may be independent of intra- and interindividual characteristics, and that men and women may benefit from EAC in different ways in regards to affect. The proclivity to use EAC may come with a resiliency that protects against stress and promotes general well-being.     

积极的应对研究

积极心理学是当前心理学的趋势,应激与应对研究中亦体现着这种特点。从应激源、应对方式与过程以及应对后果(复原力)三方面,综合探讨了当前应激与应对研究领域内的新变化,认为应激与应对研究正处于积极的应对研究潮流中,并展望了对未来应激与应对的研究发展。