Psychological Adjustment Following Diagnosis and Treatment of Cancer: An Examination of the Moderating Role of Positive and Negative Emotional Expressivity

Abstract

In support of cognitive processing models, emotional expression appears to reduce associations between intrusions and psychological distress. Past research has focused primarily on the role of the expression of negative emotion, or emotion in general, in cognitive processing and adjustment. In the present study, we examined the role of both positive and negative emotional expressivity on relations between intrusions and both distress and avoidance among 93 individuals diagnosed with and treated for cancer. We hypothesized stronger negative associations between intrusive thoughts and both distress and avoidance for those individuals lower in positive or negative expressivity. Results generally supported hypotheses with regard to relations of intrusions and distress in association with positive expressivity. Negative expressivity, however, moderated relations between intrusions and distress, but not intrusions and avoidance. These findings underscore the importance of examining the impact of individual differences in negative, as well as positive, emotional expression on cognitive processing and psychological adjustment.