Abstract
The assumption that people differ in affective awareness (i.e., the extent to which a person's subjective affective experience matches their affective bodily state) is central to emotional competence. To test this assumption empirically, we used a physiology-based approach to investigate individual differences in affective awareness. Participants (N = 255) viewed 76 pictures with affective content and rated their experienced affect. Facial muscle activity during picture presentation was assessed via electromyography (EMG) as a direct physiological measure of affective reactions. We used a multilevel model to quantify affective awareness as the strength of the intraindividual relationship between a person's EMG reactions and affect ratings. This relationship was positive on average and differed significantly between participants. These individual differences in affective awareness were reliable and stable over time. Affective awareness was higher for women than for men and went along with generally strong affective EMG reactivity and better socioemotional abilities. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved).
Published Version
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