Cultural differences in emotion regulation during self-reflection on negative personal experiences |
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Authors: | William Tsai Anna S. Lau |
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Affiliation: | 1. Department of Psychology , University of California , Los Angeles , CA , USA willtsai@ucla.edu;3. Department of Psychology , University of California , Los Angeles , CA , USA |
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Abstract: | Reflecting on negative personal experiences has implications for mood that may vary as a function of specific domains (e.g., achievement vs. interpersonal) and cultural orientation (e.g., interdependence vs. independence). This study investigated cultural differences in the social-cognitive and affective processes undertaken as Easterners and Westerners reflected on negative interpersonal and performance experiences. One hundred Asian Americans and 92 European-American college students were randomly assigned to one of three conditions: interpersonal rejection, achievement failure, or a control condition. Results revealed that Asian Americans experienced greater distress than European Americans after self-reflecting over a failed interpersonal experience, suggesting cultural sensitivity in the relational domain. Consistent with theoretical predictions, analysis of the social cognitive and affective processes that participants engaged in during self-reflection provided some evidence that self-enhancement may buffer distress for European Americans, while emotion suppression may be adaptive for Asian Americans. |
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Keywords: | Negative self-reflection Culture Mood |
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