Emotion Regulation Strategies for Emotional Regulation Issues

Overseen By Matthew W Southward, Ph.D.

Age: 18+

Sex: Any

Trial Phase: Academic

Sponsor: Matthew Southward

Disqualifiers: Non-English, No smartphone, others

No Placebo Group All trial participants will receive the active study treatment (no placebo)

Compensation: Varies

Number of Visits: 8

Duration: 6 weeks

390 Participants Needed

Trial Summary

Will I have to stop taking my current medications?

The trial information does not specify whether you need to stop taking your current medications.

What data supports the effectiveness of the treatment Emotion Regulation Strategies for Emotional Regulation Issues?

Research shows that emotion regulation methods, including mindfulness and structured skill training, have a large positive effect on improving emotion regulation. Mindfulness, in particular, has been found effective in reducing both positive and negative emotions, even in individuals without prior experience. ^{1 2 3 4 5}

Is the use of emotion regulation strategies like mindfulness safe for humans?

Research suggests that mindfulness-based emotion regulation strategies are generally safe for humans, as they are associated with positive outcomes in emotional well-being and are widely used in therapeutic settings. ^{1 3 6 7 8}

How does the treatment 'Emotion Regulation Strategies for Emotional Regulation Issues' differ from other treatments?

This treatment is unique because it combines mindfulness (being present and aware), emotion awareness, and opposite action (doing the opposite of what your emotions urge you to do) to help manage emotions, which is different from other treatments that may focus solely on cognitive strategies or avoidance. ^{3 5 7 9 10}

What is the purpose of this trial?

This trial is testing whether different emotion management techniques help people reduce their negative emotions more effectively. It aims to find out which method works best for improving emotional well-being.

Research Team

Matthew W Southward, Ph.D.

Principal Investigator

University of Kentucky

Eligibility Criteria

This trial is for individuals with conditions like PTSD, OCD, depression, eating disorders, and anxiety who struggle with regulating their emotions. Participants must be proficient in English and have access to a smartphone. It's not suitable for those needing more than outpatient care.

Inclusion Criteria

Elevated emotion dysregulation

Exclusion Criteria

Lack of proficiency in English

My condition does not require hospitalization.

No access to smartphone

Timeline

Screening

Participants are screened for eligibility to participate in the trial

2-4 weeks

Treatment

Participants are taught personalized or standardized emotion regulation skills to decrease daily negative emotion intensity

6 weeks

4 visits (in-person or virtual)

Follow-up

Participants are monitored for changes in emotion regulation effectiveness and other psychological measures

6 weeks

4 visits (in-person or virtual)

Treatment Details

Interventions

• Checking the Facts
• Mindfulness of Current Emotions
• Opposite to Emotion Action

Trial Overview The study tests whether personalized or standardized emotion regulation skills can reduce negative emotions daily. It will also try matching participants to the best skill training based on initial data to see if this approach is effective and practical.

Participant Groups

Group I: Personalized Condition Active Control 3 Interventions

Participants will learn one of three emotion regulation skills (i.e., cognitive restructuring, opposite to emotion action, mindfulness) that is their personal strength, based on pre-Baseline emotion regulation capacities. They will watch an interactive video, created for the current study, in which they are taught the skill that is their personal strength. They will also be asked to complete a survey during the video in which they will input their own examples to practice the skill and to ensure attention to and comprehension of the material.

Group II: Standardized Condition Active Control 3 Interventions

Participants will learn all three ER skills: cognitive restructuring, opposite to emotion action, and mindfulness. Participants will be asked to watch three interactive videos that cover each skill to provide an analogue to clinical practice in which clinicians must choose whether to provide greater breadth or depth of skill coverage. These videos will be presented in a randomized order and will include the same surveys for attention and comprehension used in the Personalized Condition.

Who Is Running the Clinical Trial?

Matthew Southward

Lead Sponsor

Trials

1

Recruited

390+

National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)

Collaborator

Trials

3,007

Recruited

2,852,000+

Findings from Research

A systematic review of 10 studies and a meta-analysis of 26 studies involving 84 clients showed that therapist methods for emotion regulation (ER) significantly improve patients' ability to manage their emotions, with a large effect size of 0.82 from pre- to post-treatment.

Both affect-focused methods and structured skills training are effective in enhancing emotion regulation, highlighting the importance of considering cultural backgrounds in therapy to tailor approaches for individual patients.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Enhancing emotion regulation. Iwakabe, S., Nakamura, K., Thoma, NC.[2023]

The group intervention 'Managing Emotions: Emotions under control' effectively teaches emotion regulation strategies, showing large effect sizes in increasing reappraisal and acceptance while reducing rumination among 18 participants.

Participants with higher levels of mental strain experienced a significant reduction in overall psychopathology, with an effect size of 0.63, indicating the intervention's potential benefits for those struggling with severe emotional challenges.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

[Managing emotions--emotions under control]. Barnow, S., Löw, CA., Dodek, A., et al.[2014]

The Dual-mode Model of Mindful Emotion Regulation (D-MER) integrates mindfulness and emotion regulation by proposing two modes: Implementation, where mindfulness skills are actively used as strategies, and Facilitation, where mindfulness influences emotional processes over time.

This model suggests that mindfulness can enhance the effectiveness of emotion regulation strategies and that its benefits may become more automatic as individuals develop mindfulness as a trait, providing a framework for future research and clinical applications.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Integrating mindfulness into the extended process model of emotion regulation: The dual-mode model of mindful emotion regulation. Raugh, IM., Strauss, GP.[2023]

This review highlights the differences between traditional emotion regulation models, like cognitive behavior therapy, and mindfulness-based approaches, emphasizing that they address different underlying processes.

The authors propose a new model for 'mindful emotion regulation' that outlines critical processes and mechanisms, aiming to better integrate mindfulness with emotion regulation strategies.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Mindful emotion regulation: An integrative review. Chambers, R., Gullone, E., Allen, NB.[2022]

A study with 45 participants showed that brief mindfulness induction can effectively reduce positive emotions, similar to reappraisal, compared to expressive suppression and a control condition.

Participants using mindfulness exhibited less positive affect and different facial expressions, indicating that mindfulness can influence emotional regulation even in those without prior meditation experience.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Mindful regulation of positive emotions: a comparison with reappraisal and expressive suppression. Lalot, F., Delplanque, S., Sander, D.[2021]

Mindfulness, particularly the facet of nonjudgmental acceptance, is linked to reduced rumination, which can help decrease negative emotions and maintain positive emotions in daily life, as shown in studies with 70 students and 179 middle-aged adults.

The study suggests that mindfulness can enhance the effectiveness of emotion regulation strategies, indicating that being more mindful can inhibit maladaptive strategies like rumination and influence overall emotional well-being.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Thinking mindfully: How mindfulness relates to rumination and reflection in daily life. Blanke, ES., Schmidt, MJ., Riediger, M., et al.[2021]

The Hindi version of the Behavioural Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (BERQ-H) has been validated in a sample of 358 individuals, confirming its reliability and the replicability of its five-factor structure for assessing emotion regulation strategies.

Specific subscales of the BERQ-H, such as Withdrawal and Actively Approaching, were found to have negative correlations with depression and anxiety, indicating their potential role in emotional well-being, while Seeking social support showed unexpected associations with psychological distress.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Adaptation and psychometric validation of Hindi version of the Behavioural Emotion Regulation Questionnaire. Bhat, NA., Devdutt, J., Johnson, JA., et al.[2021]

Mindfulness practices have been shown to have beneficial clinical effects, but the underlying neural mechanisms are still not fully understood, leading to differing views on whether mindfulness acts as a 'top-down' or 'bottom-up' emotion regulation strategy.

The review suggests that short-term mindfulness practitioners primarily utilize 'top-down' emotion regulation, while long-term practitioners engage in 'bottom-up' regulation, indicating that the effects of mindfulness may evolve with practice duration.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Mindfulness: top-down or bottom-up emotion regulation strategy? Chiesa, A., Serretti, A., Jakobsen, JC.[2012]

The 18-item version of the Cognitive Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (CERQ-18) demonstrated better internal structure and reliability compared to the 27-item version (CERQ-27) in a study involving the Argentinean population.

Both versions of the CERQ showed similar associations with the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS), but the CERQ-18 is recommended for use due to its more consistent psychometric properties.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Psychometric Analysis of Two Brief Versions of the CERQ in the Argentinean Population: CERQ-18 and CERQ-27. Dominguez-Lara, S., Moretti, L., Ezequiel Flores-Kanter, P., et al.[2023]

In a 9-month study with 332 participants, two specific mental training modules—Perspective and Affect—were found to significantly enhance the use of adaptive emotion regulation strategies, particularly acceptance and cognitive reappraisal.

The Presence module, which focused on attentional skills, did not lead to any notable changes in emotion regulation, suggesting that different types of mental training have distinct effects on how individuals manage difficult emotions.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Socioaffective versus sociocognitive mental trainings differentially affect emotion regulation strategies. Hildebrandt, LK., McCall, C., Singer, T.[2020]

References

1. England pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Enhancing emotion regulation. [2023]

2. Germany pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

[Managing emotions--emotions under control]. [2014]

3. United States pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Integrating mindfulness into the extended process model of emotion regulation: The dual-mode model of mindful emotion regulation. [2023]

4. United States pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Mindful emotion regulation: An integrative review. [2022]

5. Switzerland pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Mindful regulation of positive emotions: a comparison with reappraisal and expressive suppression. [2021]

6. United States pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Thinking mindfully: How mindfulness relates to rumination and reflection in daily life. [2021]

7. Netherlands pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Adaptation and psychometric validation of Hindi version of the Behavioural Emotion Regulation Questionnaire. [2021]

8. United States pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Mindfulness: top-down or bottom-up emotion regulation strategy? [2012]

9. Russia (Federation) pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Psychometric Analysis of Two Brief Versions of the CERQ in the Argentinean Population: CERQ-18 and CERQ-27. [2023]

10. United States pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Socioaffective versus sociocognitive mental trainings differentially affect emotion regulation strategies. [2020]