Negative Mood Regulation Expectancies Research Articles

Attenuated maladaptive emotion processing as a potential mediator of the relationship between dispositional mindfulness and mental health

The emotion processing and regulation mechanisms by which dispositional (personality trait) mindfulness exerts its positive effects on mental health remain unclear. Here, we tested, using structural equation modeling, whether the relationship between higher dispositional mindfulness and better mental health is mediated by reduced maladaptive processing of emotional information (e.g., expressive suppression, impoverished emotional experiences, unprocessed emotions, avoidance, externalizing strategies) and associated lower negative affect, enhanced adaptive processing of emotional information (e.g., cognitive reappraisal) and associated higher positive affect, or a combination of these two emotion processing styles. Dispositional mindfulness, mental health, diverse emotional constructs with adaptive and maladaptive dimensions (including range and differentiation of emotional experiences, use of specific emotion regulation strategies, emotion processing deficits, negative affect repair strategies, negative mood regulation expectancies), and positive and negative affect were assessed using self-report measures in a non-clinical sample of 256 adults. The relationship between higher dispositional mindfulness and better mental health was found to be best explained by reduced maladaptive emotion processing styles and associated lower negative affect, rather than by enhanced adaptive emotion processing and higher positive affect. Further research should investigate whether the same mechanisms explain psychological benefits of cultivated mindfulness in people with low dispositional mindfulness and/or with mental health disorders following mindfulness skills training.

How do we cope when we believe we can? A systematic review and meta‐analysis of studies on coping and negative mood regulation expectancies

AbstractNegative mood regulation expectancies (NMRE) are individuals’ beliefs about their ability to alleviate a negative mood. The literature on the relations between NMRE and coping often reports ambiguous results. The current review aims to integrate and summarize evidence on the associations between NMRE and coping. We searched the Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), Education Resources Information Center (ERIC), PsycInfo, PsycArticles, Scopus and Web of Science databases and found 19 articles for a systematic review and 17 articles for a meta‐analysis. There was a medium significant effect size for active coping (r = .31, 95% confidence interval [CI] [.26; .36]), and a small significant effect for avoidant coping (r = −.14, 95% CI [−.22; −.06]). Moderate to high levels of significant heterogeneity were observed, indicating differences in relationships between NMRE and coping across studies. Method of measuring coping was a significant moderator of its relationship to NMRE. Given the solid evidence of the positive relationship between NMRE and active coping, both variables should be considered in research and in psychological interventions. Further directions for the development of theory and for future research are suggested.

Negative Mood Regulation Expectancies Moderate the Effects of Acculturative Stress on Affective Symptoms Among Chinese International Students in Japan

AbstractThis study investigated interrelationships of negative mood regulation expectancies (NMREs), stressors, and affective symptoms among Chinese international students in Japan. NMREs represent one's confidence that one can reduce the intensity of the unpleasant moods one experiences. Data were collected from 527 participants using self‐report measures of NMREs, university stress, acculturative stress, depression, and anxiety. Results showed that NMREs buffered the effects on distress of acculturative stress but not of university stress: stronger NMREs protected international students from the negative consequences of acculturative stress. This suggests that being more confident in their emotion regulation made Chinese international students less vulnerable to the negative affective consequences of acculturative stress but not university stress. This difference may be because, for international students, acculturative stress is less personally controllable than university stress. Consequently, when active coping attempts fail to ameliorate one's stress, simply believing that one can make oneself feel better—stronger NMREs—may mitigate the effects of an uncontrollable stressor on one's well‐being. One implication of this research is that raising the NMREs of international students may reduce their risk of distress.

Negative Mood Regulation Expectancies (NMRE) as a Moderator of the Association Between Stress and Treatment Outcomes in Interdisciplinary Chronic Pain Treatment.

Negative mood regulation expectancies (NMRE) describe the expectancies of an individual regarding his or her ability to regulate or reduce negative mood states by certain cognitive or behavioral strategies. NMRE are closely associated with the actual emotion regulation and potentially buffer the negative psychological and physical health consequences of stress. In the context of chronic pain, stress plays a central role, as long-term stress can have additional negative consequences regarding pain and its progression. The present study investigated the relationship of NMRE with treatment outcome, and more importantly, its buffering role in the association between stress and treatment outcomes. Two hundred six chronic pain inpatients (fulfilling the International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision [ICD-10] diagnosis of F45.41) of an interdisciplinary treatment completed standardized self-report questionnaires at intake and discharge. Hierarchical linear regression analyses were used to test the main effects of the Negative Mood Regulation Scale-Short Form on pain intensity, pain-related disability, and psychological distress as treatment outcomes and its moderating role in the association of stress and the 3 outcome measures. A significant main effect of NMRE on treatment outcome was only found for psychological distress. However, for all 3 outcome measures, a significant moderating effect of NMRE on the association between stress level and treatment outcome was found. NMRE appear to play an important role for the outcome of inpatient treatment for chronic pain. Due to their buffering effect on the negative association between stress and therapy outcome, they should be targeted in the treatment of chronic pain.

Negative mood regulation as a mechanism of change in cognitive therapy for depression.

The present study investigates the effects of negative mood regulation expectancies (NMRE) on symptom severity of depression in 2 cognitive therapies for depression. The sample included the first 146 consecutively recruited patients from a randomized controlled trial. Patients received 22 sessions of either cognitive-behavioral therapy or exposure-based cognitive therapy. They completed the Beck Depression Inventory and Negative Mood Regulation Scale at baseline and treatment termination, as well as after Sessions 7 and 14. Multilevel modeling was applied. We found a significant between-patient effect of NMRE on symptom severity of depression, when NMRE within-patient effects were set to random. There was no significant interactive effect of the between-patient NMRE with type of treatment. However, a significant moderation effect of the within-patient NMRE effect by treatment condition on depression severity was detected, with patients receiving cognitive-behavioral therapy benefiting more from improvements in NMRE. Together, these results empirically support NMRE as a relevant mechanism of change in cognitive therapy for depression. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

Exploring the Relationship Between Interpersonal Emotion Regulation and Social Anxiety Symptoms: The Mediating Role of Negative Mood Regulation Expectancies.

BackgroundThis study aimed to investigate the relationship between interpersonal emotion regulation (IER) and social anxiety symptoms and the mediating role of negative mood regulation expectancies (NMRE). We hypothesised that IER is positively associated with social anxiety symptoms, controlling for depression and intrapersonal emotion regulation strategies of suppression and reappraisal, and NMRE mediate this relationship.MethodsStudy 1 was conducted with a student sample (N = 400) and Study 2 included a community sample with 271 participants.ResultsStudy 1 showed that, of four IER strategies, soothing and social modeling were positively, and perspective-taking was negatively related to social anxiety symptoms controlling for depression, suppression and reappraisal. Study 2 replicated these findings and extended them by showing the mediated relationship between the two IER strategies (i.e. enhancing positive affect and soothing) and social anxiety symptoms through NMRE.ConclusionsThe results contribute to the limited research on IER by portraying its relationship with social anxiety symptoms and revealing the mediating role of NMRE in this relationship.

Evidence for the additive effects of dispositional negative mood regulation expectancies and placebo-induced expectancies on mood recovery.

Low negative mood regulation expectancies (NMRE) are associated with greater anticipated and experienced negative mood states, as well as with coping strategies that prolong these states. Individuals with low NMRE may be especially responsive to placebos because confidence in an external source of mood improvement can provide the positive mood expectancies and motivation for active coping that they typically lack. This study investigated how NMRE and placebo-induced expectancies contribute to mood recovery. Participants (N=125) completed personality scales, including NMRE, online. During a subsequent in-person session, participants were randomly assigned to one of three conditions: (1) placebo treatment-participants learned of a mood-enhancing treatment and received it; (2) treatment deprivation-participants learned of the same treatment, but did not receive it; (3) control-treatment was never mentioned. Participants also completed measures of mood, active coping, and expectations. NMRE was a stronger predictor of mood recovery than placebo-induced expectancies regardless of group assignment. Additionally, pessimistic expectations arose when participants believed treatment was being deprived, and these participants exhibited the least active coping. Our results confirm the reliability of NMRE in predicting affective outcomes and suggest that personality and placebo-induced expectations have additive effects on mood recovery.

A systematic review of correlates of negative mood regulation expectancies

Negative mood regulation expectancies (NMRE) are associated with different kinds of affect, different behaviors, and various psychological and physiological characteristics. However, the extent to which they are related to particular areas of physiological or psychological functioning has not been determined yet. The purpose of this review was to systematically identify the variables associated with NMRE in correlational studies. Forty studies met the criteria and were included in the narrative synthesis. NMRE correlates were classified into five categories: (1) affect; (2) coping, adjustment, and emotion regulation; (3) attachment and relationships; (4) psychological and physiological symptoms; (5) general characteristics and psychological resources. There is strong evidence of a relationship between NMRE and affect, and high NMRE are often associated with low depression and low anxiety. Many studies show a positive relationship between NMRE and adaptive coping and a negative relationship of NMRE to maladaptive situational coping and somatic symptoms. Mixed results were found for the relationships of NMRE to stress and social desirability. This review shows which NMRE correlates have rarely been studied and can guide further research. Understanding the correlations between NMRE and various psychological and physiological factors is the first step to planning research on cause-and-effect mechanisms and to designing health-related interventions.

Alexithymia and Adult Attachment: Investigating the Mediating Role of Fear of Intimacy and Negative Mood Regulation Expectancies.

Literature suggests an association between alexithymia and insecure adult attachment, but the mediation factors involved in this relationship are under-investigated. The study was carried out to test the possible mediation roles of the fear of intimacy and negative mood regulation expectancies in explaining this relationship. A convenience sample of 258 Polish adults (mean age: 30; 45% male), completed self-reporting measures related to adult attachment (RAAS), alexithymia (TAS-20), fear of intimacy (FIS) and negative mood regulation expectancies (NMRE). The results showed that alexithymia directly and indirectly predicts insecure adult attachment. Alexithymia positively predicts the fear of intimacy, which, in turn, positively predicts insecure adult attachment. Finally, alexithymia negatively predicts NMRE which, in turn, predict insecure adult attachment. It emerges from our data that the fear of intimacy and NMRE may be mediating factors in the relationship between alexithymia and adult attachment. Limitations, future directions of research and guidance for intervention are discussed.

Affective correlates of negative mood regulation expectancies: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Negative mood regulation expectancies (NMRE) are individuals’ beliefs about their ability to ease unpleasant emotions. Such beliefs may influence affective states; there is, however, little knowledge on what types of affect are related to NMRE. The current review aims to identify and discuss the affective correlates of NMRE in non-clinical adult samples. We found 44 studies exploring 22 affective correlates of NMRE. There is strong and consistent evidence of relations between NMRE and depression, anxiety, stress, negative affect, and positive affect, with low NMRE related to high negative affect variables and low positive affect variables. Limited evidence indicates negative relationships of NMRE to burnout, shame, and loneliness. The results are relevant to clinical practice, research, and theory development.

Risk factors for alcohol, marijuana, and cigarette polysubstance use during adolescence and young adulthood: A 7-year longitudinal study of youth at high risk for smoking escalation

IntroductionAlcohol, nicotine, and marijuana are the three most widely used substances among adolescents and young adults, with co-use of multiple substances being common. Few longitudinal studies have examined risk factors of alcohol, marijuana, and nicotine poly-substance use. We examined frequency of alcohol, marijuana, and cigarette poly-substance use over time and how key risk factors contribute to this substance use during adolescence and young adulthood. MethodsParticipants (N = 1263 9th and 10th graders) were oversampled for ever-smoking a cigarette at baseline from 16 Chicago-area high schools between 2004 and 2006. Many participants progressed to heavier cigarette use, as well as alcohol and marijuana use over time. Participants completed questionnaires assessing substance use and psychosocial factors at baseline, 6-, 15-, 24-, 33-months, and 5-, 6-, and 7-years. ResultsLongitudinal multi-level models demonstrated that at baseline and over time, more depression symptoms, more anxiety symptoms, negative mood regulation expectancies, and lower grade point average (GPA) were each associated with more poly-substance use over time. In addition, there were a number of interaction effects of gender (e.g., depression was related to substance use in males) and developmental stage moderated these relationships. ConclusionsDepression, anxiety, negative mood regulation expectancies, and GPA all significantly influence both initial and longitudinal levels of substance use across adolescence and young adulthood. Our findings underscore the importance of identifying and treating youth with depression and anxiety symptoms, as well as providing resources early for those struggling in school in order to help with substance use prevention and intervention efforts.

Transdiagnostic emotion regulation processes explain how emotion-related factors affect co-occurring PTSD and MDD in relation to trauma

BackgroundPosttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and major depressive disorder (MDD) co-occur at high rates and greater disorder severity. Studies examining the contributions of specific emotion regulation (ER) processes and negative affect (NA) to PTSD and MDD co-occurrence are scarce. This study investigated a transdiagnostic understanding of the nature of PTSD and MDD co-occurrence by examining the roles of NA, ER processes, and negative mood regulation (NMR) expectancies in PTSD and MDD in relation to trauma. MethodsStructural equation modeling was used to examine the roles of emotionality, PTSD, and MDD constructs in 200 individuals with primary PTSD. ResultsER processes fully mediated the relationships between NA and PTSD (β = .40, p < .001) and MDD (β = .48, p < .001), and NMR expectancies and PTSD (β = −.31, p < .001) and MDD (β = −.37, p < .001). ConclusionsNA and NMR expectancies exert their effects on PTSD and MDD almost entirely through ER processes. ER appears to be a transdiagnostic process, partly accounting for the co-occurrence between PTSD and MDD. Co-occurrence models could benefit by incorporating ER processes to inform diagnostic classification and criteria and clinical intervention improved by specifically targeting ER processes.

Negative mood regulation expectancies moderate the effect of childhood maltreatment on compulsive buying.

Two studies investigated childhood maltreatment, alexithymia-the inability to identify one's mood-and negative mood regulation expectancies (NMRE)-confidence that one can alleviate one's negative moods-as predictors of compulsive buying (CB). Participants were recruited from internet CB forums and undergraduate psychology classes. Online, they completed questionnaires and a behavioral task that assessed impulsive spending. In Study 1 (N = 646), analyses indicated that NMRE, alexithymia, and childhood maltreatment were significant independent predictors of CB. For Study 2, a subset of participants from the Study 1 pool (N = 295) who met the criterion for clinical levels of CB were selected, based on their self-report. Analyses revealed that NMRE buffered the effect of maltreatment: among participants with high NMRE-higher levels of maltreatment were associated with minimal increases in CB and impulsive spending behavior. Being confident that one can control one's unpleasant moods was a protective factor from the maladaptive consequences of childhood maltreatment. Increasing NMRE early in psychotherapy for CB may result in clients' using more adaptive coping strategies.

Interpersonal Emotion Regulation and Psychological Distress: What Is the function of Negative Mood Regulation Expectancies in This Relationship?

Individuals' tendency to use their interactions with others in the management of their own emotions is called Interpersonal Emotion Regulation (IER). Limited studies have explored the association between IER and psychological distress with none focusing on the role of mediating variables in this relationship. The current study aims to explore the role of negative mood regulation expectancies (NMRE), which is defined as one's confidence in the effectiveness of their coping skills while dealing with difficult emotions, as a possible mechanism underlying the association between IER and psychological distress. The data were collected from 204 (164 women) Turkish speaking individuals whose age ranges between 18 and 32 (M = 22.78, SD = 3.21). The participants completed measures of IER, NMRE and psychological distress. The results have indicated that NMRE has a significant mediating role in the relationship of Soothing dimension of IER with psychological distress. The present findings highlighted the maladaptive function of Soothing as an IER strategy in addition to shedding light on the important role of NMRE in this relationship.

Interpersonal emotion regulation strategies: How do they interact with negative mood regulation expectancies in explaining anxiety and depression?

Interpersonal emotion regulation (IER) strategies are considered as individuals’ tendency to make use of other individuals to get a sense of safety or reduce the severity of distress. Despite the emerging evidence on the association of IER strategies with measures of psychological distress, examination of its interaction with other vulnerability or resilience factors is essential for better understanding of this concept. Negative Mood Regulation Expectancies (NMRE) is a resilience factor, that is conceptualized as an individual’s beliefs in the effectiveness of the strategies that they use to deal with difficult emotions and the present study aimed to examine how IER interact with NMRE in the prediction of depression and anxiety. Data were collected from 433 adults (M = 29.47, SD = 9.01) through questionnaires assessing IER, NMRE, depression, and anxiety. Results indicated that perspective taking was not significantly related to depression among individuals who have high levels of NMRE. On the other hand, low frequency of using perspective taking as an emotion regulation mechanism appeared to be linked with higher depression in individuals who have reported low levels of NMRE. It was concluded that IER strategies might have a buffering role in the case of low inner sources to deal with difficulties.

Attachment and psychological distress: The mediator role of Negative Mood Regulation Expectancies.

The current study aims to examine the relation between different dimensions of attachment with psychological distress, by specifically focusing on the mediator role of Negative Mood Regulation Expectancies (NMRE), which are considered as a form of coping self-efficacy. There is ample evidence showing the role of emotion regulation strategies predicting the relationship between attachment and psychological disorders. However, little is known about how NMRE might mediate the relationship between attachment dimensions and psychological distress. Four hundred and two (318 women) individuals between ages 18 and 62 (mean = 29.65; standard deviation [SD] = 8.96) completed measures of NMRE, attachment dimensions, and psychological distress. NMRE mediated the relationship between anxious attachment dimension and all dimensions of psychological distress (e.g., anxiety, depression, stress). However, NMRE mediated the relationship of avoidant attachment only with stress. Distinct mechanisms explain the relationship between two dimensions of attachment with NMRE and different forms of psychological distress.

Further Specifying the Cognitive Model of Depression: Situational Expectations and Global Cognitions as Predictors of Depressive Symptoms

The cognitive model of depression assumes that depressive symptoms are influenced by dysfunctional cognitions. To further specify this model, the present study aimed to examine the influence of different types of cognitions on depressive symptoms, i.e., situational expectations and global cognitions. It was hypothesized that situational expectations predict depressive symptoms beyond global cognitions. The present study examined a clinical (N = 91) and a healthy sample (N = 80) using longitudinal data with a baseline assessment and a follow-up five months later. Although the study was not designed as an interventional trial, participants from the clinical study received non-manualized cognitive-behavioral treatment after the baseline assessment. We examined situational expectations, intermediate beliefs, dispositional optimism, and generalized expectancies for negative mood regulation as predictors of depressive symptoms. Hypotheses were tested using multiple hierarchical linear regression analyses. Results indicate that, although there were significant correlations between the cognitive factors and depressive symptoms, in both samples neither global cognitions, nor situational expectations significantly predicted depressive symptoms at the five-month follow-up. The present study could, contrary to the hypotheses, not provide evidence for a significant impact of cognitive vulnerabilities on depressive symptoms, presumably due to high drop-out rates at follow-up. Limitations of the study and directions for future research are critically discussed. Situational and global cognitions were examined as predictors of depressive symptoms. In a healthy and a clinical sample, cognitive factors were correlated with depressive symptoms. However, in both samples depressive symptoms at follow-up were not predicted by cognitive factors. Situational and global cognitions were examined as predictors of depressive symptoms. In a healthy and a clinical sample, cognitive factors were correlated with depressive symptoms. However, in both samples depressive symptoms at follow-up were not predicted by cognitive factors.

Differentiating adults who think about self-harm from those who engage in self-harm: the role of volitional alcohol factors

BackgroundSelf-harm, an act of self-poisoning or self-injury irrespective of motivation, is a major public health concern. Use of alcohol prior to or alongside acts of self-harm is common but little is known about the alcohol-related mechanisms of self-harm enaction. We utilised an ideation-to-action approach to clarify the extent to which volitional alcohol factors differentiated those who have thoughts of self-harm but do not act on them (self-harm ideation) and those who engage in self-harm (self-harm enaction).MethodsCross-sectional analyses of the baseline phase of the Health Lifestyle and Wellbeing study: 1546 adults (1079 female; Mean age = 34 y; 92% White) resident in Scotland completed measures of demographics, lifetime self-harm, volitional alcohol factors and psychosocial factors. Multinomial logistic regression compared those with a history of self-harm thoughts (‘ideation’, n = 297), self-harm acts (‘enaction’, n = 346) and ‘controls’ (n = 897) to identify volitional alcohol factors associated with self-harm enaction.ResultsVolitional alcohol factors differentiated those with a history of self-harm enaction from those with a history of self-harm ideation (as well as those with no history) in initial models adjusted for demographics and depressive symptoms: the self-harm enaction group reported stronger alcohol-related negative urgency (OR = 1.74, 95% CI 1.41–2.16, p < .001), more frequent heavy drinking (OR = 1.46, 95% CI 1.24–1.72, p < .001) and stronger expectancies that drinking alcohol leads to negative self-perceptions (OR = 1.33, 95% CI 1.03–1.72, p = 0.03) and markers of self-harm risk (OR = 1.64, 95% CI 1.18–2.30, p = 0.004). Alcohol-related negative urgency and heavy-drinking frequency continued to differentiate those in the self-harm enaction group from those in ideation group in multivariate models. Consistent with theoretical models positing phase-specific moderators of self-harm ideation and enaction, psychosocial factors (perceived stress, support, negative mood regulation expectancies) differentiated those with a history of self-harm ideation from those without but not those in the ideation and enaction groups.ConclusionsManagement of self-harm risk requires better understanding of alcohol-related mechanisms of self-harm enaction. Volitional alcohol factors may play a role in governing the translation of self-harm thoughts into self-harm acts.

Mood Induction Changes Negative Alcohol Expectancies Among Japanese Adults with Problematic Drinking: Negative Mood Regulation Expectancies Moderate the Effect

One’s beliefs about effects of alcohol, known as alcohol expectancies, are important constructs for understanding drinking behavior, but the literature on the influences of mood on alcohol-related negative beliefs and on memory accessibility is limited. The current study examined effects of a mood induction on alcohol expectancies and alcohol-related autobiographical memories; also, whether negative mood regulation expectancies (NMRE), which are beliefs about one’s ability to control negative affect, moderated these effects. Recruited from the community, 485 Japanese problem drinkers first completed measures of NMRE and alcohol expectancies. A week later, participants completed an online experiment: they received a musical mood induction (238 participants were randomly allocated to a positive mood induction group and 239 participants to a negative mood induction group). Then, participants completed measures of alcohol expectancies and alcohol-related autobiographical memories. Results showed the mood induction significantly weakly affected two negative alcohol expectancies (physical ailments and dysphoria). NMRE moderated the effect of mood induction on negative alcohol expectancies for dysphoria. Findings suggest the importance of mood as an influence on negative beliefs about the effects of drinking among Japanese problem drinkers. Additionally, NMRE alter the impact of mood on more specific expectancies. Limitations about the online method of this experiment are discussed.

An exploration of moderator effect of Negative Mood Regulation Expectancies (NMRE) in the association of Looming Cognitive Style (LCS) with trait anxiety

Negative Mood Regulation Expectancies (NMRE) refer to the beliefs that one has concerning his/her ability to control and regulate a negative mood state. NMRE play an important role in development of psychological disorders since it is known to buffer the negative impact of various risk factors for emotional distress. The present study aims to test the interaction of NMRE with Looming Cognitive Style (LCS), a cognitive vulnerability factor specific for anxiety disorders and the role this interaction plays in subjectively felt anxiety. Data were collected from 326 university students (251 female) through self-report questionnaires assessing LCS, NMRE, anxiety and depression. The results showed that both LCS and NMRE are significantly associated with anxiety scores while controlling for the overlap between anxiety and depression. Moreover, NMRE was found to be significantly able to moderate the association between LCS and anxiety. That is; tendency to generate looming cognitions appeared to be linked to higher anxiety when the individuals have low levels of confidence in their capacities for mood regulation and coping.