When is emotion regulation adaptive versus maladaptive: A multi-method examination

The aim of this research program is to examine how individuals can most successfully manage their emotional responses to stress. Although stress can powerfully impair our overall well-being, we may be able to protect ourselves by managing our emotions through the use of emotion regulation. Recent work has begun to suggest that the real-world outcomes of emotion regulation are crucially influenced by how and when it is used. The proposed research will systematically address how and when emotion regulation is used to uncover when emotion regulation is adaptive, and when it might even be maladaptive. 

 

This work will be highly useful not only to social psychologists and affective scientists, but also the general public which has great interest in knowing which factors can protect well-being in the face of stress. This is not surprising, given that one quarter of all Canadians report that more than half their days are moderately to severely stressful, and millions more report less frequent but still elevated levels of stress. Given that emotion regulation can help protect individuals from the effects of stress, the proposed research will help us understand how to improve the well-being of individuals across Canada and abroad.