Lack Of Emotional Clarity Research Articles

PTSD Symptoms, Emotion Dysregulation, and Alcohol-Related Consequences Among College Students With a Trauma History

Objective: Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), alcohol use, and alcohol-related consequences have been linked to emotion dysregulation. Sex differences exist in both emotion regulation dimensions and alcohol use patterns. This investigation examined facets of emotion dysregulation as potential mediators of the relationship between PTSD symptoms and alcohol-related consequences and whether differences may exist across sexes. Methods: Participants were 240 college students with a trauma history who reported using alcohol within the past three months and completed measures of PTSD symptoms, emotion dysregulation, alcohol consumption, alcohol-related consequences, and negative affect. The six facets of emotion dysregulation were examined as mediators of the relationship between PTSD symptoms and alcohol-related consequences in the full sample and by sex. Results: There were differences in sexes on several variables, with women reporting higher PTSD scores and lack of emotional awareness. Men reported significantly more drinks per week in a typical week and a heavy week. There were significant associations between the variables for the full sample, with PTSD showing associations with five facets of emotion dysregulation subscales: impulse control difficulties when upset, difficulties engaging in goal-directed behavior, nonacceptance of emotional responses, lack of emotional clarity, and limited access to emotion regulation strategies. Alcohol-related consequences were associated with four aspects of emotion dysregulation: impulse control difficulties when upset, difficulties engaging in goal-directed behavior, nonacceptance of emotional reponses, and limited access to emotion regulation strategies. Two aspects of emotion regulation, impulse control difficulties and difficulties engaging in goal directed behavior, mediated the relationship between PTSD symptoms and alcohol-related consequences in the full sample, even after adjusting for the effects of negative affect. When examined separately by gender, impulse control difficulties remained a mediator for men and difficulties engaging in goal directed behavior for women. Conclusions: These analyses shed light on processes that may underlie “self-medication” of PTSD symptoms. Gender-specific interventions targeting emotion dysregulation may be effective in reducing alcohol-related consequences in individuals with PTSD. Women may possibly benefit from interventions that focus on difficulties engaging in goal-directed behavior, while men may benefit from interventions that target impulse control difficulties when upset.

Resting heart rate variability predicts self-reported difficulties in emotion regulation: a focus on different facets of emotion regulation.

The Model of Neurovisceral Integration suggests that vagally mediated heart rate variability (vmHRV) represents a psychophysiological index of inhibitory control and thus, is associated with emotion regulation capacity. Over the past decade, growing empirical evidence supports this notion, showing that those with higher resting vmHRV can regulate negative emotions more adequately. However, to our knowledge, no study has previously examined how resting vmHRV may relate to everyday perceived difficulties in emotion regulation. The present study attempts to examine such relationship in 183 undergraduate students (98 female, 60 minority, mean Age = 19.34). Resting vmHRV was collected during a 5-min resting baseline period, and everyday difficulties in emotion regulation were assessed using the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS). Controlling for potential covariates (including both trait anxiety and rumination), results revealed a negative relationship between resting vmHRV and DERS such that lower resting vmHRV was associated with greater difficulties in emotional regulation, especially a lack of emotional clarity and impulse control, as indicated by the respective subscales of the DERS. These findings provide further evidence for the Neurovisceral Integration Model, suggesting that emotion regulation and autonomic regulation share neural networks within the brain. Moreover, the present study extends prior research by highlighting two distinct facets of emotion regulation (impulse control and emotional clarity) that should be of particular interest when investigating the link between emotion regulation, resting vmHRV, and related health outcomes including morbidity and mortality.

Nonsuicidal self-injury in Asian versus Caucasian university students: who, how, and why?

The correlates of nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI) among Asian and Caucasian university students; differences in the rates, frequency, forms, severity, and emotional contexts of NSSI among self-injuring students; and whether Asian students who are highly oriented toward Asian culture differed from those less oriented toward Asian culture in NSSI characteristics were investigated. University students (N = 931), including 360 Caucasian students (n = 95, 26.4%, with a history of ≥ 1 episode of NSSI) and 571 Asian students (n = 107, 18.7%, with a history of NSSI), completed questionnaires assessing NSSI, acculturation, and putative risk factors for NSSI. Caucasian students were more likely to report NSSI, particularly cutting behavior, self-injured with greater frequency and versatility, and reported greater increases in positively valenced, high arousal emotions following NSSI, compared to Asian students. Among Asian students, obsessive-compulsive symptoms, experiential avoidance, and anger suppression increased the likelihood of reporting a history of NSSI. Among Caucasian students, lack of emotional clarity and anger suppression increased likelihood of NSSI. Finally, some tentative findings suggested potentially important differences in rates and frequency of NSSI among Asian students who were highly oriented toward Asian culture compared with those less oriented toward Asian culture.

Emotion regulation and obsessive–compulsive symptoms: A further examination of associations

Despite the potential transdiagnostic importance of emotion regulation, there has been a lack of research examining emotion regulation in the context of obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD). We examined associations between facets of emotion regulation corresponding to two contemporary models of emotion regulation and obsessive–compulsive symptoms in a community sample of adults (N=372). The targeted facets of emotion regulation included cognitive reappraisal, expressive suppression, nonacceptance of emotional responses, difficulty engaging in goal-directed behavior, impulse control difficulties, lack of awareness of emotions, limited access to strategies for emotion regulation, and lack of emotional clarity. Results from hierarchical regressions showed that expressive suppression, impulse control difficulties, and emotional clarity were the only facets of emotion regulation that shared unique associations with each obsessive–compulsive symptom dimension. These associations were not better accounted for by general distress. Conceptual and clinical implications are discussed.

Validación de la escala de dificultades en la regulación emocional en la población universitaria de Córdoba, Argentina

En este estudio se presenta la adaptación de la escala de dificultades en la regulación emocional (DERS) a la población de universitarios de Córdoba, Argentina. El análisis factorial exploratorio reveló la estructura original de seis factores subyacentes (50.79% de la varianza total). Se realizaron también estudios de consistencia interna y de validez concurrente con las escalas de Neuroticismo y Extraversión del cuestionario IPIP-FFM evidenciando resultados satisfactorios. Finalmente, estudios de contrastación según el género mostraron diferencias en el factor “falta de claridad emocional” en favor de las mujeres (t= 2.19; gl=209; p<.05; d=.17). Los resultados obtenidos son prometedores y posibilitan el desarrollo de investigaciones que indaguen el rol de las dificultades en la regulación emocional en el ámbito universitario de Córdoba.

Promoting Attachment-Related Mindfulness and Compassion: a Wait-List-Controlled Study of Women Who Were Mistreated During Childhood

Numerous studies have shown that mindfulness-based interventions contribute to a variety of positive outcomes in physical, cognitive, and affective domains. Less is known about how mindfulness influences variables associated with close interpersonal relationships. The present study evaluated a novel mindfulness-based intervention for promoting cognitive-emotional processes that are underdeveloped in people who have experienced unhealthy attachment relationships. In a sample of women who were mistreated in childhood, baseline measures confirmed that attachment anxiety was related to rumination and negative emotion; attachment avoidance was related to emotion suppression and lack of emotional clarity; and both kinds of insecurity were related to emotion dysregulation and lower levels of mindfulness. Across three measurement periods, a treatment group (N = 17), relative to a wait-list control group (N = 22), evinced significant improvements in the domains of rumination, emotion suppression, clarity of emotions, emotion regulation, and mindfulness. A multiple mediation analysis showed that, of these variables, improvements in rumination and emotional clarity mediated the gains in mindfulness for the treatment group. Also, participants in the treatment group showed significant changes in their use of mindfulness-based language when writing about stressful or traumatic childhood attachment experiences. Taken together, the results suggest that the intervention led to increases in mindfulness, primarily due to decreased rumination and increased emotional clarity, and these treatment-related changes were specifically related to participants’ thoughts and emotions regarding attachment.

Alcohol use and alcohol-related consequences: associations with emotion regulation difficulties

Background: Understanding factors associated with alcohol-related consequences is an important area of research. Emotional functioning has been associated with alcohol-related consequences but there is less research examining a comprehensive underlying model of emotional regulation. The Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS) is a recent measure developed to assess six facets of emotion regulation difficulties that contribute to overall emotional functioning. Objectives: The current study examines associations between these six facets of emotion regulation difficulties and problematic alcohol use. Methods: Participants (n = 1758 college students) were recruited as part of a larger study and were asked to complete online questionnaires assessing demographics, alcohol use and problems, and emotion regulation difficulties. Results: Negative binomial hurdle models for alcohol use and alcohol-related consequences were estimated. Impulse control difficulties were positively related to the number of drinks consumed during the week among active drinkers. Non-acceptance of emotional responses, impulse control difficulties, lack of emotional clarity, and difficulties engaging in goal-directed behavior were all positively associated with number of consequences endorsed. Difficulty engaging in goal-directed behavior was also positively associated with the likelihood of experiencing any alcohol-related consequences. Conclusions: The findings support previous research indicating that emotion-regulation difficulties are broadly associated with alcohol-related consequences. Results suggest exposure and/or mindfulness based prevention/interventions with emotion focused psychoeducation may offer one path to reducing alcohol-related consequences among college students.

Changes in Explanatory Flexibility Among Individuals with Generalized Anxiety Disorder in an Emotion Evocation Challenge

Seventy-eight undergraduates, 39 with self-reported generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), completed measures of mood and explanatory flexibility (the capacity to assign causes to negative events with a balance of historical and contextual factors) prior to and directly after a musical priming challenge that consisted of listening to negatively-valenced emotional music and thinking about a personally relevant negative event. After the emotion evocation, participants also completed a measure of state emotion regulation. Despite comparable increases in negative affect, GAD analogues evidenced drops in explanatory flexibility whereas non-GAD Controls did not. Drops in explanatory flexibility among GAD analogues covaried significantly with lack of emotional clarity. Findings suggest that for individuals with GAD, emotionally evocative experiences may result in a constricted perspective when apprehending the causes for negative events. This perspective may serve to dampen arousal, but perhaps at the cost of failing to inform one’s actions with important emotional information.

Negative affect intensity influences drinking to cope through facets of emotion dysregulation

Of all the motives for drinking, drinking to cope is the strongest predictor of problematic alcohol use, particularly for adolescent and college-age drinkers, with limited work assessing predictors of drinking to cope for community adult samples. At least for young adults, drinking to cope is associated with heightened negative affect and may serve as a substitute for more adaptive emotion regulation strategies. The current study tested an indirect relationship between negative affect intensity, or the propensity to experience strong negative affect, and drinking to cope via difficulties in emotion regulation, using a multiple mediator model. The model was tested using bootstrapping estimates of indirect effects in a combined sample of 566 college students (Mage=19.75%, 40.8% women) and 104 non-college student adults (Mage=35.40%, 36.5% women). Results revealed that negative affect intensity indirectly predicted drinking to cope through lack of emotional clarity and limited emotional strategies, with no moderation by sample. Results indicate that problems in clearly identifying specific emotional experiences appear to be important in predicting drinking to cope for people who experience intense negative emotions, suggesting that treatment and prevention efforts focused on teaching emotional clarity and/or learning multiple regulation strategies may be important in reducing coping-motivated drinking.

A structural model of mechanisms predicting depressive symptoms in women following childhood psychological maltreatment

Two underlying mechanisms, emotion dysregulation and negative internalized beliefs, were examined as potential mediators of the association between childhood psychological maltreatment (PM) and depression in emerging adult women. PM was assessed as a multi-faceted construct including aspects of psychological abuse (e.g., corrupting) and psychological neglect (e.g., emotional unresponsiveness) that occurred by parents. Female undergraduates (n=771) completed anonymous, retrospective, self-report surveys assessing childhood PM, current depressive symptoms, emotion dysregulation (lack of emotional clarity and regulation strategies), and negative internalized beliefs (mistrust, shame, and defectiveness). Psychological maltreatment was represented as four subtypes of psychological abuse or neglectful behavior: Emotional Non-Responsiveness, Spurning/Terrorizing, Corrupting, and Demanding/Rigid (i.e., controlling behavior). Both emotion dysregulation and negative internalized beliefs significantly mediated the link between childhood PM and depressive symptoms, accounting for approximately 68% of the variance in symptomatology. Findings suggest the importance of focusing intervention on development of emotion regulation capacity including emotional awareness and regulatory strategies, as well as a focus on core negative beliefs including shame, defectiveness, and mistrust of others. Implications for future research are discussed.

Emotion dysregulation and impulsivity additively predict borderline personality disorder features in Italian nonclinical adolescents

The present study aimed to test if measures of emotion dysregulation and impulsivity additively predicted dimensional scores of borderline personality disorder assessed using the Borderline Personality Disorder Scale of the Personality Diagnostic Questionnaire-4+ in two independent samples of Italian nonclinical adolescents. Hierarchical regression analyses showed that three dimensions of emotion dysregulation (difficulties controlling impulsive behaviours when distressed, limited access to effective emotional regulation strategies and lack of emotional clarity) were significantly associated with BPD features in both samples. Further, impulsivity scores accounted for a significant amount of additional variance in BPD features above and beyond emotion dysregulation.

Role of emotion dysregulation in the relationship between childhood abuse and probable PTSD in a sample of substance abusers

This study examined associations among childhood abuse, emotion dysregulation, and probable posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) within a sample of 93 substance use disorder (SUD) patients in residential treatment. SUD patients with probable PTSD (vs. non-PTSD) reported (a) greater severity of childhood sexual, physical, and emotional abuse and (b) significantly higher levels of overall emotion dysregulation and the specific dimensions of difficulties engaging in goal-directed behavior when upset, difficulties controlling impulsive behaviors when distressed, limited access to effective emotion regulation strategies, and lack of emotional clarity. Additionally, significant positive associations were found between both childhood physical and emotional (but not sexual) abuse on the one hand and dimensions of emotion dysregulation on the other. Further analyses indicated that difficulties controlling impulsive behaviors when distressed accounted for the associations of both childhood physical and emotional abuse with probable PTSD status. Findings of the present study highlight a potential mechanism underlying the relationships between both childhood emotional and physical abuse and PTSD in SUD patients.

Difficulties in emotion regulation and personal distress in young adults with social anxiety

The aim of this study was to assess the association between social anxiety and difficulties in emotion regulation in a sample of Italian young adults. Our convenience sample was composed of 298 Italian young adults (184 women and 114 men) aged 18-34 years. Participants were administered the Interaction Anxiousness Scale (IAS), the Audience Anxiousness Scale (AAS), the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS), and the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI). A Two Step cluster analysis was used to group subjects according to their level of social anxiety. The cluster analysis indicated a two-cluster solution. The first cluster included 163 young adults with higher scores on the AAS and the IAS than those included in cluster 2 (n=135). A generalized linear model with groups as dependent variable indicated that people with higher social anxiety (compared to those with lower social anxiety) have higher scores on the dimension personal distress of the IRI (p<0.01), and on the DERS non acceptance of negative emotions (p<0.001) and lack of emotional clarity (p<0.05). The results are consistent with models of psychopathology, which hypothesize that people who cannot deal effectively with their emotions may develop depressive and anxious disorders.

Évaluation multidimensionnelle de la régulation des émotions : propriétés psychométriques d’une version francophone du Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale

Plusieurs psychopathologies se caractérisent par des difficultés de régulation des émotions. Actuellement, aucun instrument de langue française ne permet une évaluation multidimensionnelle de ces difficultés. Cette recherche examine les propriétés psychométriques d’une traduction francophone du Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS) (Gratz et Roemer, 2004 [9] ), un instrument mesurant diverses difficultés de régulation des émotions, auprès de 454 adultes. La structure factorielle, la fidélité, la stabilité temporelle et la validité de l’instrument sont examinées. Les résultats appuient la qualité de la traduction et confirment que la version francophone du DERS présente d’excellentes propriétés psychométriques similaires à celles de la version originale anglaise. Cette traduction s’avère un instrument de choix pour le clinicien et le chercheur désirant évaluer diverses difficultés de régulation des émotions chez des adultes francophones, à partir d’un seul instrument. The amount of research into emotion regulation has grown significantly over the last few decades. It is now recognized that some psychopathologies are characterized by difficulties in emotion regulation. In spite of an increase in interest in the study of emotion regulation, there is still no consensus over the definition or explanatory model of emotion regulation. Generally speaking, emotion regulation refers to a process by which an individual modulates their emotions to respond appropriately to the environmental demands. Similarly, there are also few tools to evaluate emotion regulation or the difficulties adults face with this process. These tools reflect the differences between the proposed models, and have the disadvantage of either targeting and evaluating only one or some of the aspects of emotion regulation, or of evaluating closely-related constructs of emotion regulation. Furthermore, there are few tools translated into and validated in French, and currently no French language tool to evaluate the multidimensional aspects of these difficulties. Gratz and Roemer have developed the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS) (Gratz et Roemer, 2004 [9] ) which provides a model defining emotion regulation as a multidimensional construct implying: awareness, understanding and acceptance of emotions; ability to control impulsive behaviors and behave in accordance with desired goals when experiencing negative emotions; ability to use situationally appropriate emotion regulation strategies flexibly to modulate emotional responses as desired in order to meet individual goals and situational demands. The DERS examines six difficulties in emotion regulation: non-acceptance of negative emotions, difficulties engaging in goal-directed behavior, impulse control difficulties, limited access to emotion regulation strategies perceived as effective, lack of emotional awareness, and lack of understanding of these emotions defined as a lack of emotional clarity. This research examined the factorial structure, fidelity, temporal stability and convergent validity of a French translation of the DERS, l’Échelle des Difficultés de Régulation des Émotions (EDRE) [23] , on 454 French university students. In addition to responding to the EDRE, participants completed depression, situational anxiety and trait anxiety tests. The order of tests was counterbalanced. Five weeks later, 89 students completed the EDRE again in order to evaluate its temporal stability. The results supported the quality of the translation and confirm that the French version of DERS presents excellent psychometric properties. The confirmatory factor analysis supported the factorial structure of six factors corresponding to the six postulated dimensions of emotion regulation. Thus, the results supported the multidimensional conceptualization of emotion regulation based on the elaboration of the DERS as well as the structure of the French version of the tool. In addition, the results showed that the EDRE items possess excellent internal coherence, which supports its fidelity. The results also confirmed the temporal stability of the tool following an interval of 5 weeks. The convergent validity of the EDRE was also proven when the tool was correlated to measures of anxiety and depression. These results were similar to those obtained by the authors of the original English version of the tool, as well as by studies that have adapted and validated this tool in other languages. In conclusion, this study supports the psychometric qualities of the French version of the DERS. The EDRE constitutes one of the first tools in measuring emotion regulation difficulties in adults validated in French. Contrary to other available measures, it has the advantage of simultaneously evaluating several dimensions of emotion regulation. This translation is therefore a tool of choice for the practitioner and researcher who wish to evaluate various difficulties in emotion regulation in French-speaking adults, using a single tool.

Depression and interpersonal stress: The mediating role of emotion regulation

Maladaptive emotion regulation is a risk factor for depression when an individual is experiencing stressful interpersonal events. Although emotion regulation has several different dimensions, little is known about which of these mediate the relationship between interpersonal stress and depressive symptoms. The current study examined self-ratings of emotion regulation, interpersonal stress, and depression in a sample of non-clinical undergraduate students (N = 152). Our results indicated that two facets of emotion regulation (i.e., lack of emotional clarity and limited access to emotion regulation strategies) fully mediate the relationship between interpersonal stress and depression. Hence, to minimize depressive symptoms when experiencing interpersonal stress, our findings suggest that it is important for individuals to be clear about their feelings and to attempt to transition from negative feelings to alternative feelings.

The relative and unique contributions of emotion dysregulation and impulsivity to posttraumatic stress disorder among substance dependent inpatients

BackgroundDespite elevated rates of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among substance use disorder (SUD) patients, as well as the clinical relevance of this co-occurrence, few studies have examined psychological factors associated with a PTSD–SUD diagnosis. Two factors worth investigating are emotion dysregulation and impulsivity, both of which are associated with PTSD and SUDs. Therefore, this study examined associations between PTSD and facets of emotion dysregulation and impulsivity within a sample of trauma-exposed SUD inpatients. MethodsParticipants were an ethnically diverse sample of 205 SUD patients in residential substance abuse treatment. Patients were administered diagnostic interviews and completed a series of questionnaires. ResultsPatients with PTSD (n=58) reported significantly higher levels of negative urgency (i.e., the tendency to engage in impulsive behaviors when experiencing negative affect) and lower sensation seeking, as well as higher levels of emotion dysregulation and the specific dimensions of lack of emotional acceptance, difficulties engaging in goal-directed behavior when upset, difficulties controlling impulsive behaviors when distressed, limited access to effective emotion regulation strategies, and lack of emotional clarity. Further, overall emotion dysregulation emerged as a significant predictor of PTSD status, accounting for unique variance in PTSD status above and beyond facets of impulsivity (as well as other relevant covariates). ConclusionsResults suggest that emotion dysregulation may contribute to the development, maintenance, and/or exacerbation of PTSD and highlight the potential clinical utility of targeting emotion dysregulation among SUD patients with PTSD.

Emotion Dysregulation Mediates the Link between Childhood Emotional Maltreatment and Young Adult Romantic Relationship Satisfaction

This study examined the mediating role of emotion dysregulation in the relation between retrospective reports of childhood emotional maltreatment and current satisfaction in a romantic relationship. Participants included 492 (135 male, 357 female) young adults in current romantic relationships. Results indicated that total emotion regulation difficulties mediated the relation between childhood emotional maltreatment and romantic relationship satisfaction. Multiple mediator analyses indicated that nonacceptance of emotional responses, impulse control difficulties, and lack of emotional clarity uniquely mediated this relation when controlling for other emotion regulation difficulties. These findings contribute to increasing research examining the interpersonal relationships among maltreated individuals, and guide future research by elucidating the factors that increase the risk for future maladaptation.

An Investigation of the Relationships among Negative Affect, Difficulties in Emotion Regulation, and Features of Borderline Personality Disorder

This study investigated the indirect effects of problematic emotion regulation on features of Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) when accounting for negative affect in 456 participants from two distinct geographic regions. Participants completed the Affect Intensity Measure (AIM), Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS), the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (ERQ), and the Borderline Symptom List (BSL). Results from this study supported a model in which there were significant indirect effects of both a lack of emotional clarity and limited access to emotion regulation strategies on features of BPD when accounting for negative affective intensity. Results also supported a second model in which there were significant indirect effects of both limited access to emotion regulation strategies and difficulties engaging in goal-directed behavior on features of BPD when accounting for negative affective reactivity. The results highlight important inter-relationships among features of BPD, difficulties regulating emotions, and negative affective intensity and reactivity.

Intrapersonal and Interpersonal Functions of Non suicidal Self‐Injury: Associations with Emotional and Social Functioning

Understanding the functions of nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI) has important implications for the development and refinement of theoretical models and treatments of NSSI. Emotional and social vulnerabilities associated with five common functions of NSSI-emotion relief (ER), feeling generation (FG), self-punishment (SP), interpersonal influence (II), and interpersonal communication (IC)-were investigated to clarify why individuals use this behavior in the service of different purposes. Female participants (n = 162) with a history of NSSI completed online measures of self-injury, emotion regulation strategies and abilities, trait affectivity, social problem-solving styles, and interpersonal problems. ER functions were associated with more intense affectivity, expressive suppression, and limited access to emotion regulation strategies. FG functions were associated with a lack of emotional clarity. Similar to ER functions, SP functions were associated with greater affective intensity and expressive suppression. II functions were negatively associated with expressive suppression and positively associated with domineering/controlling and intrusive/needy interpersonal styles. IC functions were negatively associated with expressive suppression and positively associated with a vindictive or self-centered interpersonal style. These findings highlight the specific affective traits, emotional and social skill deficits, and interpersonal styles that may render a person more likely to engage in NSSI to achieve specific goals.

The Relationship Between Emotion Dysregulation and Deliberate Self‐Harm Among Female Undergraduate Students at an Urban Commuter University

Despite the theoretical emphasis on the role of emotion dysregulation in deliberate self‐harm (DSH), few studies have examined this relationship. The present study sought to examine the role of emotion dysregulation in DSH by extending the findings of Gratz (2006) regarding the environmental (i.e. childhood maltreatment) and individual (i.e. emotional inexpressivity and affect intensity/reactivity) factors associated with DSH among 249 female undergraduates. Specifically, the present study examined whether emotion dysregulation (a) is associated with DSH above and beyond these other risk factors and (b) mediates the relationship between these risk factors and DSH. Findings indicate that overall emotion dysregulation distinguished women with frequent DSH from those without a history of DSH, adding reliably to the prediction of DSH status above and beyond maltreatment, inexpressivity, and affect intensity/reactivity. Moreover, among self‐harming women, emotion dysregulation accounted for a significant amount of additional variance in DSH frequency and mediated the relationship between emotional inexpressivity and DSH frequency. Results also suggest the particular relevance of two specific dimensions of emotion dysregulation to DSH: limited access to effective emotion regulation strategies and a lack of emotional clarity, each of which reliably improved the prediction of DSH status and accounted for unique variance in DSH frequency among self‐harming women above and beyond the other risk factors in the models. Results suggest the potential utility of teaching self‐harming women more adaptive ways of responding to their emotions, including nonavoidant strategies for modulating emotional arousal and the ability to identify, label, and differentiate among emotional states.