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The Effects of Anxiety and Depressive Symptoms on Daily Positive Emotion Regulation

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Abstract

Individuals with anxiety and depressive symptoms exhibit disturbances in positive emotion regulation, which may hinder full recovery. By comparison, individuals with strong beliefs regarding their capacity to “savor” or maintain positive emotions (i.e., savoring beliefs) display more adaptive positive emotion regulation. The present daily diary study explores three momentary processes involved in positive emotion regulation, namely positive emotion reactivity, regulatory goals, and regulatory effectiveness, and examines the comparative effects of baseline anxiety and depressive symptoms versus savoring beliefs on such processes in real-life contexts. A sample of 164 nonclinical undergraduates provided baseline measures of anxiety and depressive symptom severity and savoring beliefs prior to completing 14 daily assessments of positive emotions and emotion regulatory responses to daily positive events. Results indicated that higher baseline anxiety and depressive symptom severity were associated with decreased positive emotion reactivity and increased down-regulation of positive emotions; higher baseline savoring beliefs were associated with increased positive emotion reactivity, decreased down-regulation and increased up-regulation of positive emotions. Potential clinical implications are discussed.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center for Anxiety and Related Disorders, Department of Psychology, Boston University, 648 Beacon Street, 6th Floor, Boston, MA, 02215, USA

    Jenna R. Carl, Johanna Thompson-Hollands & David H. Barlow

  2. Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University School of Medicine, Palo Alto, CA, USA

    Christopher P. Fairholme

  3. National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston University School of Medicine, National Center for PTSD (116B-2), VA Boston Healthcare System, 150 South Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA, 02130-4817, USA

    Matthew W. Gallagher

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  1. Jenna R. Carl
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Correspondence to Jenna R. Carl.

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Carl, J.R., Fairholme, C.P., Gallagher, M.W. et al. The Effects of Anxiety and Depressive Symptoms on Daily Positive Emotion Regulation. J Psychopathol Behav Assess 36, 224–236 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10862-013-9387-9

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