The psychology of emotion regulation: An integrative review

The present article reviews modern research on the psychology of emotion regulation. Emotion regulation determines the offset of emotional responding and is thus distinct from emotional sensitivity, which determines the onset of emotional responding. Among the most viable categories for classifying emotion-regulation strategies are the targets and functions of emotion regulation. The emotion-generating systems that are targeted in emotion regulation include attention, knowledge, and bodily responses. The functions of emotion regulation include satisfying hedonic needs, supporting specific goal pursuits, and facilitating the global personality system. Emotion-regulation strategies are classified in terms of their targets and functions and relevant empirical work is reviewed. Throughout this review, emotion regulation emerges as one of the most far-ranging and influential processes at the interface of cognition and emotion.     

How automatic is “automatic vigilance”? The role of working memory in attentional interference of negative information

Whereas attentional interference of negative information has previously been assumed to be automatic, the present research hypothesised that this effect depends on the availability of working-memory resources. In two experiments, participants judged the gender of angry versus happy faces. Working-memory load was manipulated by the presence or absence of a math task (Study 1) or mental rehearsal of a one- versus 8-digit number (Study 2). The results showed that angry faces interfered more with gender naming than happy faces, but only when working-memory load was low. As such, attentional interference of negative stimulus features can be modulated by top-down attentional control processes.     

Psychoanalytic Couple Therapy: Classical Style

In this essay, the core concepts of psychoanalysis are set forth as the context for the application of classical psychoanalytic theory to the practice of couple therapy. Infantile sexuality and aggression are shown to have a powerful role in the interpersonal lives of family members. The repetition compulsion structures marital interaction and intergenerational dynamics. The intrapsychic emphasis of classical ego-psychology is viewed in the interpersonal arena, and the author suggests adding to the Oedipus and Narcissus myths a myth that resonates with this shift in emphasis. In introducing the “Pygmalion–Galatea process,” the author captures the universal attempt to change the psychic dynamics of the other or others. This ultimately mutual process begins with the infant's mirroring of its caretakers—which includes language acquisition. Much of human interaction is fueled by subsequent attempts to create others in our own images of them and by their reactive compliance or resistance to that dynamic. Three case illustrations are presented to show how these phenomena manifest themselves in marital interaction and in dreams.     

Examining Spouse/Partner Presence as a Moderator in the Relationship Between Mental Health Symptoms and Alcohol Use in OEF/OIF Veterans

Veterans from the conflicts in Afghanistan (Operation Enduring Freedom; OEF) and Iraq (Operation Iraqi Freedom; OIF) have reported elevated rates of alcohol consumption, and greater depression and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms are associated with increased alcohol use. Presence of a spouse/partner, which has been associated with reduced drinking, may buffer the relationship between mental health symptoms and alcohol consumption. To examine this hypothesis, the current study utilized baseline survey data from OEF/OIF veterans (N = 325) enrolled in a brief alcohol intervention. Spouse/partner presence moderated the relationship between depression symptoms and alcohol consumption such that depression was positively associated with drinking for veterans without a spouse/partner. Exploratory analyses indicated that the relationship between depression and alcohol use may be particularly salient for veterans without a spouse/partner and a lower number of deployments. Spouse/partner presence did not moderate the relationship between PTSD symptoms and alcohol consumption. Implications of the findings are discussed.     

Functional hemispheric asymmetries of global/local processing mirrored by the steady-state visual evoked potential

While hemispheric differences in global/local processing have been reported by various studies, it is still under dispute at which processing stage they occur. Primarily, it was assumed that these asymmetries originate from an early perceptual stage. Instead, the content-level binding theory (Hübner & Volberg, 2005) suggests that the hemispheres differ at a later stage at which the stimulus information is bound to its respective level. The present study tested this assumption by means of steady-state evoked potentials (SSVEPs). In particular, we presented hierarchical letters flickering at 12 Hz while participants categorised the letters at a pre- cued level (global or local). The information at the two levels could be congruent or incongruent with respect to the required response. Since content-binding is only necessary if there is a response conflict, asymmetric hemispheric processing should be observed only for incongruent stimuli. Indeed, our results show that the cue and congruent stimuli elicited equal SSVEP global/local effects in both hemispheres. In contrast, incongruent stimuli elicited lower SSVEP amplitudes for a local than for a global target level at left posterior electrodes, whereas a reversed pattern was seen at right hemispheric electrodes. These findings provide further evidence for a level-specific hemispheric advantage with respect to content-level binding. Moreover, the fact that the SSVEP is sensitive to these processes offers the possibility to separately track global and local processing by presenting both level contents with different frequencies.     

An anxiety-induced bias in the perception of a bistable point-light walker

Human sensitivity for social cues is exquisite, as illustrated by the ease with which simplified point-light movements invoke social and emotional responses. Compared to faces, these biological motion stimuli only recently started to be used to explore questions regarding social cognition and anxiety. We presented human point-light walkers that could be perceived as facing towards or facing away from the observer, and tested whether participants with high social anxiety would perceive these bistable stimuli differently, because this type of stimuli has particular relevance for them. The results showed that observers with high social anxiety tended to see walkers as facing away more frequently than those with low social anxiety. This may mean that high socially anxious observers are biased towards the more positive perceptual alternative because they are motivated to protect themselves against threatening social experiences, but we also explore alternative explanations. The findings are in line with the evidence for a positivity bias in perception, also called wishful seeing, but in contrast with the attentional negativity bias often found in social anxiety. We discuss reasons for this divergence and possible limitations of the current study.     

Beweislastverteilung und Intuitionen in philosophischen Diskursen

Allocating the burden of proof and intuitions in philosophical disputes.– This paper criticises the view that in philosophical disputes the onus probandi rests on those who advance a position that contradicts our basic intuitions. Such a rule for allocating the burden of proof may be an adequate reconstruction of everyday justification, but is unreasonable in the area of philosophy. In philosophy it is not only difficult to determine the plausibility of a proposition, at the same time contradictory claims may be equally plausible. – In contrast to such common sense proposals I try to show that in philosophical disputes the burden of proof does not depend on the material content of speech acts. A speaker simply bears the burden of proof for a proposition p if he has asserted that p and has agreed to justify it. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Influence of win-loss ratio on performance,satisfaction and preference for opponents

Hypotheses about the preference for opponents in competitive situations, about performance under various win-loss ratios, and about task and opponent satisfaction under various win-loss ratios were tested. A 5 × 5 latin square with four replications and a repeated measure factor of trials was the design used with 20 female college students as subjects. The five different win percents were W₁₀, W₃₀, W₅₀, W₇₀, and W₉₀. A manipulative maze task was used with subjects receiving 20 trials against each of five confederate opponents. Results indicated that (a) when a person knows little or nothing about her ability level she initially prefers to compete with opponents of low ability but with each subsequent contest opponents of higher ability levels are preferred; (b) subjects performed better in the W₅₀ condition; (c) task satisfaction is higher when the percent of wins is equal to or greater than the percent of losses; and (d) opponent satisfaction is greater for opponents who perform equal to or better than the subject.     

The use of modeling to increase independent behavior

Three experiments were conducted aimed at increasing independence via use of modeling procedures in, respectively, two samples of neurotic outpatients and a sample of psychiatric inpatients. Significant gains in independence emerged in all three investigations. Subsidiary findings are reported regarding the operation in clinical contexts of ‘modeling-enhancers’ of demonstrated effectiveness in laboratory settings.     

Influence of Child Factors on Health-Care Professionals’ Recognition of Common Childhood Mental-Health Problems

Early recognition of childhood mental-health problems can help minimise long-term negative outcomes. Recognition of mental-health problems, needed for referral and diagnostic evaluation, is largely dependent on health-care professionals’ (HCPs) judgement of symptoms presented by the child. This study aimed to establish whether HCPs recognition of mental-health problems varies as a function of three child-related factors (type of problem, number of symptoms, and demographic characteristics). In an online survey, HCPs (n = 431) evaluated a series of vignettes describing children with symptoms of mental-health problems. Vignettes varied by problem type (Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Generalised Anxiety Disorder (GAD), Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), Conduct Disorder (CD) and Major Depressive Disorder), number of symptoms presented (few and many), and child demographic characteristics (ethnicity, gender, age and socio-economic status (SES)). Results show that recognition of mental-health problems varies by problem type, with ADHD best recognised and GAD worst. Furthermore, recognition varies by the number of symptoms presented. Unexpectedly, a child’s gender, ethnicity and family SES did not influence likelihood of problem recognition. These results are the first to reveal differences in HCPs’ recognition of various common childhood mental-health problems. HCPs in practice should be advised about poor recognition of GAD, and superior recognition of ADHD, if recognition of all childhood mental-health problems is to be equal.