Matching Items (8)
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- All Subjects: Emotions
- All Subjects: Affect
- Creators: Roberts, Nicole A.
Description
Previous research indicates that difficulties in emotion regulation and greater dissociation from one's emotions are often observed among trauma survivors. Further, trauma survivors often show greater negative emotions such as anger, and diminished positive emotions such as happiness. Relatively less is known about the relationship between posttraumatic stress symptoms, dissociation, emotion regulation difficulties, and non-trauma related emotional experiences in daily life. This study examined whether greater reports of posttraumatic stress symptoms, difficulties in emotion regulation, and dissociative tendencies were associated with greater intensity of anger and lower intensity of happiness during a relived emotions task (i.e., recalling and describing autobiographical memories evoking specific emotions). Participants were 50 individuals who had experienced a traumatic event and reported a range of posttraumatic stress symptoms. Participants rated how they felt while recalling specific emotional memories, as well as how they remembered feeling at the time of the event. Results showed that dissociative tendencies was the best predictor of greater intensity of anger and, contrary to the hypothesis, dissociative tendencies was predictive of greater happiness intensity as well. These findings are consistent with previous research indicating a paradoxical effect of heightened anger reactivity among individuals with dissociative tendencies. In addition, researchers have argued that individuals with a history of traumatization do not report lower positive emotional experiences. The present findings may suggest the use of dissociation as a mechanism to avoid certain trauma related emotions (e.g, fear and anxiety), in turn creating heightened experiences of other emotions such as anger and happiness.
ContributorsTorres, Dhannia L (Author) / Robinson Kurpius, Sharon (Thesis advisor) / Roberts, Nicole A. (Committee member) / Homer, Judith (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
Description
Previous studies have established a link between parenting style (e.g. authoritarian, authoritative, permissive) and depression in children and adolescents. Parenting factors are also implicated in the development of emotion regulation. There is a gap in the literature, however, concerning perceptions of parenting in relation to adult depression. The current study examined the effect of parenting on reported adult depressive symptoms. Of interest was the role of emotion regulation strategies in this relationship. Participants were recruited through Amazon Mechanical Turk, and the sample consisted of 302 adults (125 males, 177 females) ranging in age from 18 to 65. Measures of how participants were parented by their mothers and fathers, emotion regulation strategies most frequently utilized, and current depressive symptoms were collected using an online survey. The emotion regulation strategy, positive reappraisal, was found to moderate the relation between maternal authoritative parenting and depression. Permissive parenting was also significantly predictive of depression, but catastrophizing fully mediated only the relation between maternal permissive parenting and depressive symptoms. Authoritarian parenting was unrelated to depression and emotion regulation in this study. The findings of this study indicate that the effects of how an individual was parented may persist into adulthood. Implications of these findings and future directions for further research are discussed.
ContributorsHuisstede, Lauren van (Author) / Miller, Paul A. (Thesis advisor) / Tinsley, Barbara (Committee member) / Roberts, Nicole A. (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
Description
The present study examined daily survey data collected from married couples over the course roughly 14 days. I investigated the relationships of the morning quality ratings of three distinct spousal interactions conversation (physical affection, and sexual activity) reported in mornings on later-day positive and negative affect, as well as next-day intensity of negative somatic symptoms (e.g. headaches, dizziness, aches and pains). Hierarchical linear modeling was used to estimate path models for both husbands and wives. Direct and indirect effects were observed. Results showed that quality of conversation and physical affection increased later-day positive mood for both husbands and wives; however, positive quality activity increased later-day positive affect for wives only. Quality of sexual activity decreased later-day negative affect for wives only. Less later-day negative affect decreased next-day intensity of symptoms for both husbands and wives. Lastly, quality of sexual activity decreased later-day negative affect, which decreased next-day somatic symptoms for wives. This was the only significant indirect effect. Implications are that high marital quality is important for maintaining psychological health for both spouses, and physical health, particularly for wives.
ContributorsVincelette, Tara (Author) / Burleson, Mary H (Thesis advisor) / Roberts, Nicole A. (Committee member) / Schweitzer, Nicholas J (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2012
Description
Emotion regulation repertoire, or the number of emotion regulation strategies one is able to employ when needed, is an important element of emotion regulation flexibility. Emotion regulation flexibility, the ability to regulate in accordance with changing situational contexts and demands, is predictive of emotion regulation success. Currently, little is known about emotion regulation repertoire and its association with emotional health and well-being. In particular, more can be learned about how the different strategies in one’s repertoire interact, and which strategies show stronger relationships with mental health. The current study aimed to assess the relationship of different emotion regulation strategies to mental health, including their individual and combined influence. In addition, the interaction between the use of specific emotion regulation strategies and emotion regulation flexibility with respect to mental health was examined. I hypothesized (1a) reappraisal and (1b) acceptance, two strategies previously associated with positive psychological outcomes, would be significant predictors of mental health, and (2) better flexibility would predict better mental health. In addition, I hypothesized that (3) strategies often found to be maladaptive (suppression, distraction, rumination, and experiential avoidance) would have an inverse relationship with mental health. Finally, (4) maladaptive strategies would be associated with worse mental health for those lower in flexibility. These hypotheses were tested through a questionnaire as part of a larger in-lab study. Results revealed that reappraisal and rumination were the strongest predictors of mental health. Emotion regulation flexibility did not predict mental health or moderate the relationship between individual emotion regulation strategies and mental health. Results from this study suggest some emotion regulation strategies are stronger predictors of mental health than others. This will guide future research on specific emotion regulation strategies in a repertoire as well as their combined effect on mental health. Creating a clearer picture of how different strategies interact and influence mental health will also be vital for clinical interventions.
ContributorsSchmitt, Marin (Author) / Roberts, Nicole A. (Thesis advisor) / Burleson, Mary (Committee member) / Robles-Sotelo, Elias (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2018
Description
Lucid dreaming occurs in those who become aware they are dreaming, while still in the dreaming state. Although lucid dreaming has been studied with respect to personality characteristics and as a learned cognitive skill to enhance well-being via processes such as mindfulness, less research has been conducted on relationships between lucid dreaming and emotion. I collected self-reports from a college sample of 262 participants to examine the relationships between lucidity experienced in dreams and emotion regulation, dispositional positive emotions, interoceptive awareness, and mindfulness. Pearson correlations revealed that greater lucidity experienced within dreams was significantly related to more positive emotions, greater interoceptive awareness, and greater mindfulness; however, lucidity was not related to emotion regulation. Furthermore, regression analyses revealed that greater lucidity experienced within dreams predicted more dispositional positive emotions above and beyond emotion regulation and interoceptive awareness. It is important to note that these relationships were tested across people who self-identified as lucid dreamers as well as those who identified as non-lucid dreamers. Overall, lucidity may be beneficial for anyone who recalls his or her dreams, in that higher lucidity was associated with more positive affect during waking. Positive emotions experienced during waking also may translate into greater awareness during dreaming.
ContributorsRosenbusch, Kaylee Michael Ann (Author) / Roberts, Nicole A. (Thesis advisor) / Burleson, Mary H (Committee member) / Neal, Tess (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2016
Description
Background: When studying how humans regulate their affect, it is important to recognize that affect regulation does not occur in a vacuum. As humans are an inherently social species, affect plays a crucial evolutionary role in social behavior, and social behavior likewise assumes an important role in affect and affect regulation. Emotion researchers are increasingly interested the specific ways people help to regulate and dysregulate one another’s affect, though experimental examinations of the extant models and theory are relatively few. This thesis presents a broad theoretical framework for social affect regulation between close others, considering the role of attachment theory and its developmental foundations for social affect regulation in adulthood. Affectionate and responsive touch is considered a major mechanism of regulatory benefit between people, both developmentally and in adulthood, and is the focus of the present investigation. Method: A total sample of 231 heterosexual married couples were recruited from the community. Participants were assigned to engage in affectionate touch or sit quietly, and/or engage in positive conversation prior to a stress task. Physiological data was collected continuously across the experiment. Hypotheses: Phasic respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) was used to index the degree of regulatory engagement during the stressor for those who did and did not touch. It was hypothesized that touch would reduce stress appraisal and thus the need for regulatory engagement. This effect was predicted to be greater for those more anxiously attached while increasing the need for regulatory engagement in those more avoidantly attached. Secondarily, partner effects of attachment on sympathetic activation via pre-ejection period (PEP) change were tested. It was predicted that both attachment dimensions would predict a decrease in partner PEP change in the touch condition, with avoidant attachment having the strongest effect. Results: Hierarchical linear modeling techniques were used to account for nonindependence in dyadic observations. The first set of hypotheses were not supported, while the second set were partially supported. Wives’ avoidance significantly predicted husbands’ PEP change, but in the positive direction. This effect also significantly increased in the touch condition. Theoretical considerations and limitations are discussed.
ContributorsParkhurst, David Kevin (Author) / Burleson, Mary H (Thesis advisor) / Roberts, Nicole A. (Committee member) / Mickelson, Kristin D (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2017
Description
The Balanced Scorecard (BSC) is a strategic planning and management system that causally links actions and subsequent financial and nonfinancial outcomes. The primary goal of the BSC is to motivate actions that are congruent with the organization's long-term strategy. A secondary purpose of the BSC is to facilitate the performance evaluation of managers charged with advancing the corporate strategy. To serve this second purpose the BSC must include a time dimension. Specifically, the strategic plan must recognize time lags between actions taken, lead outcomes (often nonfinancial in nature) and lagged outcomes (usually financial success measures). If an evaluator is not provided with timeline information a subordinate may be evaluated based on inappropriate performance metrics; that is, a subordinate may be held accountable for an outcome beyond the subordinate's time span of control. This study evaluates the effect on performance evaluations and bonus allocations when evaluators are provided (or not provided) with a strategy implementation timeline. This issue has not been previously examined in the literature. This study also examines the moderating effect of experience, management buy-in to the corporate strategy, and affect on performance evaluations and bonus allocations. Results from an experiment conducted with evening MBA students show that inclusion of a strategy implementation timeline leads to more normatively correct performance evaluations, but only for experienced participants. Higher levels of both positive and negative affect were found to result in choice avoidance behavior. Buy-in to the corporate strategy was not found to have an effect.
ContributorsBartlett, Geoffrey (Author) / Reckers, Philip M.J. (Thesis advisor) / Lowe, D. Jordan (Committee member) / Hwang, Yuhchang (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2012
Description
Emotions help shape prosocial behavior from early childhood through adulthood (Rivera & Dunsmore, 2011). Thus, it is important to further our understanding of how emotions are perceived and expressed during adolescence, a time where individuals are establishing their independence, solidifying their individuality, and expanding their understanding of expectations. In this context, it is necessary to consider what influences how emotions are socialized in adolescents. Parents play a central role in the development of children’s understanding of emotions, but less is known about how this influence may extend into adolescence (Feldman & Klien, 2003; Cassidy et al., 1992; Cohn & Tronick, 1987). Indeed, previous literature has found that culture and social support may influence how emotions are expressed and perceived and how they impact mental health (Crockett, et.al., 2007; Torres and Rollock, 2007; Torres, 2010; Padilla et. al., 1988). This study aims to bridge these factors to create a more comprehensive understanding of parent attitudes toward adolescents’ emotions by comparing White and Hispanic parents of adolescents. Specifically, this study examines whether parent gender (mothers versus fathers) and greater acculturation enhance these relationships and whether more positive attitudes about emotions and adolescents’ emotion expression influence parents’ own mental health.
ContributorsOrnelas, Daisy Iyeni (Author) / Roberts, Nicole A. (Thesis advisor) / Burleson, Mary H (Committee member) / Horne, Zachary S (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2019