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Es gibt gute Gründe anzunehmen, dass Emotionsregulation über die Lebensspanne hinweg ein sozialer Prozess ist – eine Perspektive, die gerade hinsichtlich der derzeitigen kollektiven Krisen wichtige Implikationen hat. Dieser Beitrag zeigt, wie intrapersonelle Emotionsregulationsstrategien sich auch sozial manifestieren können – und was das für die Emotionsregulation bedeutet.

Perceived responsiveness, or the extent to which one feels understood, validated, and cared for by close others, has shown to play a crucial role in people’s health and well-being. Can this specific interpersonal process also play a protective role in suicidal ideation for people at risk? We assessed if fluctuations in suicidal ideation were associated with fluctuations in the degree of perceived responsiveness that psychiatric patients (admitted in the context of suicidal ideation or attempts or indicating suicidal ideation at intake) experienced in daily interactions immediately after discharge. Specifically, 57 patients reported repeatedly on suicidal ideation (5 times a day) and perceived responsiveness (daily) for 4 consecutive weeks. Effects of established risk factors – thwarted belongingness, perceived burdensomeness, and hopelessness- were assessed as well. Multilevel analyses revealed that the more patients felt that close others had been responsive to them, the less suicidal ideation they reported. At low levels of thwarted belongingness, perceived burdensomeness or hopelessness, perceived responsiveness seemed to play a protective role, negatively co-occurring with suicidal ideation. When thwarted belongingness, perceived burdensomeness and hopelessness were high, perceived responsiveness did not have an additional effect. These findings suggest that perceived responsiveness can be a protective factor for suicidal ideation for people at risk. In moments when their negative perceptions are too high, however, this seems to overwrite the positive effects of their social bonds.

The Interpersonal Emotion Regulation in Close Relationship (IER-CR) questionnaire measures habitual interpersonal emotion regulation strategies in seven subscales. It refers to habitual everyday emotion regulation behavior in close relationships. Interpersonal Emotion Regulation is here defined as emotion regulation that happens in social interaction (Horn & Maercker, 2015; Dworakowski et al., 2021). A transactional nature of interpersonal emotion regulation is proposed; the systemic nature of interpersonal processes suggests interpersonal emotion regulation as influencing both, one’s own and the interaction partner’s affective state and outcomes. Moreover, from a relationship science perspective it is supposed to be related to relationship quality and psychological intimacy as relational outcomes. Accordingly, as interactive emotion regulation affects not only the mental and but also the social realities of the regulating individual, it is supposed to be particularly broad in its effects. The IER-CR is addressed at assessing interpersonal strategies for regulating own affective states (sometimes referred to as intrinsic interpersonal emotion regulation). There is also a couple version available that measures self - and partner perception of these strategies. Most strategies in this questionnaire are the interpersonal manifestations of established intrapersonal emotion regulation strategies. Beside interpersonal emotion regulation realized in verbal communication -co-reappraisal, co-brooding, positive and negative humor (Samson & Gross, 2012)-, the questionnaire addresses the relationship as a resource for distraction (co-distraction) and reaching out for responsive touch transmitting physical affection (Debrot et al. 2012, 2013) as a non-verbal safety and proximity signal with regulatory effects (physical affection).

BACKGROUND Electronic health diaries hold promise in complementing standardized surveys in prospective health studies but are fraught with numerous methodological challenges. OBJECTIVE To investigate factors associated with response to an electronic health diary campaign in persons with multiple sclerosis, to identify recurrent topics in free text diary entries, and to assess the content validity of structured diary entries regarding current symptoms and medication intake compared with survey collected information. METHODS Data were collected by the Swiss Multiple Sclerosis Registry (SMSR) during a nested electronic health diary campaign and during the SMSR baseline assessment (serving as comparative data). The content of diary free text information was grouped using two descriptive natural language processing methods. The similarity between structured diary and survey collected symptom and medication intake data was examined using the Jaccard index. RESULTS Campaign participants were more often female, not working full-time, had a more advanced gait impairment, and were on average five years older compared to eligible non-participants. Diary free text entries most often contained references to body parts or body functioning (57.7%), work (56.4%), or health (55.8%). A high similarity between diary and survey collected data was observed for health-related quality of life, and stable or slow-changing symptoms such as fatigue or gait disorder – but not for immunomodulatory medication use. CONCLUSIONS Diary campaign participation seemed dependent on time availability and symptom burden, and was enhanced by reminder emails. Electronic health diaries are a meaningful complement to regular structured surveys but should ideally be embedded into promotional activities or tied to concrete research study tasks to enhance regular and long-term participation. CLINICALTRIAL ClinicalTrials.gov NCT02980640

Objectives: Studies have shown age differences in adapting to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the processes explaining these age differences remain unclear. Intra- and interpersonal emotion regulation – such as ruminative brooding and co-brooding - play an important role in psycho-social adjustment and develop across the life-span. This study aims at investigating COVID-19-related adjustment disorder symptoms in relation to age and whether this relation can be explained by age-differences in rumination in a multi-national sample. As a second research goal, linguistic indicators of ruminative processing when writing about the pandemic will be examined with reference to age. Methods: N = 1401 participants (from USA, UK, Switzerland, and Germany, aged 18-88) filled out an online survey and completed a writing task. Measures include brooding, co-brooding, adjustment disorder symptoms, and language indicators of negative self-focus and communal focus while writing down thoughts and feelings regarding the pandemic. Findings: Older participants reported less adjustment disorder symptoms which was mediated by less (co-)brooding. Participants who reported more (co-)brooding wrote about COVID-19 more negatively. While in younger adults (age 18-40) more self-focus was associated with higher ruminative brooding, in older adults (age 59-88) it was associated with less maladaptive emotion regulation. Discussion: These findings contribute to a better understanding of regulatory mechanisms that help explain age differences in mental health. They warrant further research considering age-related differences, as our results suggest not only more adaptive emotion regulation as a resilience factor in older individuals, but also different qualities of self-focus while processing stressful events across the lifespan.

While experiencing the unpredictable events of the COVID-19 pandemic, we are likely to turn to people in order to regulate our emotions. In this research, we investigate how this interpersonal emotion regulation is connected to affective symptoms, above and beyond intrapersonal emotion regulation. Furthermore, we explore whether perceived psychosocial resources moderate these associations, i.e., if individuals reporting healthier social connections benefit differently from interpersonal emotion regulation. N = 1401 participants from the USA, UK, Germany, and Switzerland completed an online survey that included text samples. Affective symptoms (depression, adjustment disorder, fear of COVID-19) were examined based on self-reported as well as language-based indicators. As psychosocial resources, we examined social support, loneliness, attachment style, and trust. We defined latent variables for adaptive and maladaptive interpersonal emotion regulation and analyzed how they were associated with affective symptoms controlling for intrapersonal emotion regulation. Further, we analyzed how they interacted with psychosocial resources. Maladaptive interpersonal emotion regulation strategies were associated with affective symptoms. With lower psychosocial resources, the associations between interpersonal emotion regulation and depressive symptoms were more pronounced. The results highlight that maladaptive interpersonal emotion regulation is associated with worse mental health. These effects are not buffered by more psychosocial resources and are stronger for people with low psychosocial resources.

Background Electronic health diaries hold promise in complementing standardized surveys in prospective health studies but are fraught with numerous methodological challenges. Objective The study aimed to investigate participant characteristics and other factors associated with response to an electronic health diary campaign in persons with multiple sclerosis, identify recurrent topics in free-text diary entries, and assess the added value of structured diary entries with regard to current symptoms and medication intake when compared with survey-collected information. Methods Data were collected by the Swiss Multiple Sclerosis Registry during a nested electronic health diary campaign and during a regular semiannual Swiss Multiple Sclerosis Registry follow-up survey serving as comparator. The characteristics of campaign participants were descriptively compared with those of nonparticipants. Diary content was analyzed using the Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count 2015 software (Pennebaker Conglomerates, Inc) and descriptive keyword analyses. The similarities between structured diary data and follow-up survey data on health-related quality of life, symptoms, and medication intake were examined using the Jaccard index. Results Campaign participants (n=134; diary entries: n=815) were more often women, were not working full time, did not have a higher education degree, had a more advanced gait impairment, and were on average 5 years older (median age 52.5, IQR 43.25-59.75 years) than eligible nonparticipants (median age 47, IQR 38-55 years; n=524). Diary free-text entries (n=632; participants: n=100) most often contained references to the following standard Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count word categories: negative emotion (193/632, 30.5%), body parts or body functioning (191/632, 30.2%), health (94/632, 14.9%), or work (67/632, 10.6%). Analogously, the most frequently mentioned keywords (diary entries: n=526; participants: n=93) were “good,” “day,” and “work.” Similarities between diary data and follow-up survey data, collected 14 months apart (median), were high for health-related quality of life and stable for slow-changing symptoms such as fatigue or gait disorder. Similarities were also comparatively high for drugs requiring a regular application, including interferon beta-1a (Avonex) and glatiramer acetate (Copaxone), and for modern oral therapies such as fingolimod (Gilenya) and teriflunomide (Aubagio). Conclusions Diary campaign participation seemed dependent on time availability and symptom burden and was enhanced by reminder emails. Electronic health diaries are a meaningful complement to regular structured surveys and can provide more detailed information regarding medication use and symptoms. However, they should ideally be embedded into promotional activities or tied to concrete research study tasks to enhance regular and long-term participation.

Interpersonal relationships are vital to our well-being. In recent years, it has become increasingly common to seek relationship help through anonymous online platforms. Accordingly, we conducted a large-scale analysis of real-world relationship help-seeking to create a descriptive overview of the nature and substance of online relationship help-seeking. By analyzing the demographic characteristics and language of relationship help-seekers on Reddit ( N = 184,631), we establish the first-ever big data analysis of relationship help-seeking and relationship problems in situ among the general population. Our analyses highlight real-world relationship struggles found in the general population, extending beyond past work that is typically limited to counseling/intervention settings. We find that relationship problem estimates from our sample are closer to those found in the general population, providing a more generalized insight into the distribution and prevalence of relationship problems as compared with past work. Further, we find several meaningful associations between relationship help-seeking behavior, gender, and attachment. Notably, numerous gender differences in help-seeking and romantic attachment emerged. Our findings suggest that, contrary to more traditional contexts, men are more likely to seek help with their relationships online, are more expressive of their emotions (e.g., discussing the topic of “heartache”), and show language patterns generally consistent with more secure attachment. Our analyses highlight pathways for further exploration, providing even deeper insights into the timing, lifecycle, and moderating factors that influence who, what, why, and how people seek help for their interpersonal relationships.

In dyadic interaction, a verbal focus on one individual (“you-talk,” “I-talk”), rather than on the couple (“we-talk”) has predominantly been linked to dysfunctional relationship processes. However, context differences in these links have not yet been systematically examined. Is it functional to asymmetrically focus on one partner during support interactions but problematic during conflict? Does a high level of couple-focus represent a resource across contexts? In this preregistered study, we investigated dyad-level pronoun use (we-/I-/you-talk) and their link to situational relationship functioning (SRF) across three interaction tasks (one conflict, two dyadic coping tasks) within couples (N ¼ 365). More specifically, we examined associations of couple-means, i.e. pronoun use as a shared resource/vulnerability between partners, and couple-differences, i.e. functional/dysfunctional asymmetric pronoun use with observed interaction positivity and relationship climate. Results revealed both context differences and similarities. Asymmetric partner-focus (i.e. you-talk) was dysfunctional in conflict, whereas asymmetric partner- and self-focus (i.e., you-talk/I-talk; focus on the stressed partner) were functional in dyadic coping. Beyond asymmetry, you-talk (couple-mean) showed consistent negative associations with SRF in all tasks studied. We-talk (couple-mean) was positively linked to SRF, but only in conflict interactions. In conflict, couple-focus thus represented a shared resource that can buffer from dysfunctional conflict interaction characterized by partner-focus. In line with conceptual frameworks, the dyadic coping results emphasize the importance of focusing on the partner in need. The study corroborates the prospect of pronoun use as a context-specific indicator of relationship functioning. Gender differences, implications for future research and possible interventions are discussed., Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 38 (11), ISSN:0265-4075, ISSN:1460-3608

Background Corona contact tracing apps are a novel and promising measure to reduce the spread of COVID-19. They can help to balance the need to maintain normal life and economic activities as much as possible while still avoiding exponentially growing case numbers. However, a majority of citizens need to be willing to install such an app for it to be effective. Hence, knowledge about drivers for app uptake is crucial. Objective This study aimed to add to our understanding of underlying psychological factors motivating app uptake. More specifically, we investigated the role of concern for one’s own health and concern to unknowingly infect others. Methods A two-wave survey with 346 German-speaking participants from Switzerland and Germany was conducted. We measured the uptake of two decentralized contact tracing apps officially launched by governments (Corona-Warn-App, Germany; SwissCovid, Switzerland), as well as concerns regarding COVID-19 and control variables. Results Controlling for demographic variables and general attitudes toward the government and the pandemic, logistic regression analysis showed a significant effect of self-focused concerns (odds ratio [OR] 1.64, P=.002). Meanwhile, concern of unknowingly infecting others did not contribute significantly to the prediction of app uptake over and above concern for one’s own health (OR 1.01, P=.92). Longitudinal analyses replicated this pattern and showed no support for the possibility that app uptake provokes changes in levels of concern. Testing for a curvilinear relationship, there was no evidence that “too much” concern leads to defensive reactions and reduces app uptake. Conclusions As one of the first studies to assess the installation of already launched corona tracing apps, this study extends our knowledge of the motivational landscape of app uptake. Based on this, practical implications for communication strategies and app design are discussed.

Depressive symptomatology is manifested in greater first-person singular pronoun use (i.e., I-talk), but when and for whom this effect is most apparent, and the extent to which it is specific to depression or part of a broader association between negative emotionality and I-talk, remains unclear. Using pooled data from N = 4,754 participants from 6 labs across 2 countries, we examined, in a preregistered analysis, how the depression-I-talk effect varied by (a) first-person singular pronoun type (i.e., subjective, objective, and possessive), (b) the communication context in which language was generated (i.e., personal, momentary thought, identity-related, and impersonal), and (c) gender. Overall, there was a small but reliable positive correlation between depression and I-talk (r = .10, 95% CI [.07, .13]). The effect was present for all first-person singular pronouns except the possessive type, in all communication contexts except the impersonal one, and for both females and males with little evidence of gender differences. Importantly, a similar pattern of results emerged for negative emotionality. Further, the depression-I-talk effect was substantially reduced when controlled for negative emotionality but this was not the case when the negative emotionality-I-talk effect was controlled for depression. These results suggest that the robust empirical link between depression and I-talk largely reflects a broader association between negative emotionality and I-talk. Self-referential language using first-person singular pronouns may therefore be better construed as a linguistic marker of general distress proneness or negative emotionality rather than as a specific marker of depression. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).