Daily changes in state emotion regulation abilities predict positive and negative affect

Abstract

Emotion regulation (ER) abilities involve the capacity to manage the onset and course of emotions in service of situational goals, which facilitates affective changes dependent upon the contextual parameters. Despite the importance of ER abilities to psychopathology, understanding ER abilities across days, and how daily fluctuations in ER abilities relate to mood, is limited. This study examined the role of state ER in predicting positive and negative affect using a daily diary design (2812 daily surveys). Participants differed in within-individual variability for each domain of perceived state ER, and within- and between-individual fluctuations in perceived ER abilities predicted positive and negative affect. Findings support ER theory, given the importance of contextual, momentary changes in informing theoretical ER models. Implications for momentary assessment and intervention are discussed, focusing on contextual behavioral science.