What is distress tolerance? Presenting a need for conceptual clarification based on qualitative findings

Abstract

Distress tolerance is often defined as one's ability to withstand negative and/or uncomfortable emotional states. However, after two decades of research, there is still no consensus on how to best conceptualize and measure distress tolerance. Previous attempts to conceptualize distress tolerance have relied on researchers' understandings of distress tolerance; however, our goal was to gain further insight into distress tolerance through examining how participants may define distress tolerance and related constructs. Thus, in a sample of university students (N = 1013), we conducted a qualitative investigation into how individuals define key terms used in self-report measures of distress tolerance and whether they view their ability to tolerate distress as stable versus variable. Thematic analysis showed that participants' understandings of distress tolerance and related constructs varied dramatically across individuals, and the vast majority of participants reported differences in their ability to tolerate distress across time and settings.