Deck 15: Emotion Regulation

Question 1

According to your textbook, which of the following best defines the term emotion regulation?

A) The low dispositional experience of unpleasant emotions
B) The ability to use emotional expressions to manipulate other people, and control their actions toward us
C) The strategies we use to control which emotions we have, when we have them, and how strongly we experience and express them
D) The ability to avoid allowing emotions to interfere with rational decision-making

Answer 1

C

Question 2

Which of the following best articulates the distinction between emotion regulation and coping, as defined by your textbook?

A) Emotion regulation generally refers to the strategies people use to control some aspect of their emotions, whereas coping refers specifically to reducing negative emotion in response to a stressful event.
B) Emotion regulation refers to efforts to control the emotions of other people, whereas coping refers to strategies used to control one's own emotions.
C) Emotion regulation refers to the ability to manage one's feelings, whereas coping refers to the ability to manage external situations effectively.
D) There is no difference between the meaning of the terms emotion regulation and coping; they can be used interchangeably.

Answer 2

A

Question 3

Which early psychologist developed a taxonomy of coping strategies?

A) William James
B) Sigmund Freud
C) Walter Cannon
D) John Bowlby

Answer 3

B

Question 4

According to Sigmund Freud, the is the part of the human mind charged with finding compromises between fundamental human desires and drives and the constraints imposed by civilized society.

A) id
B) ego
C) superego
D) psyche

Question 5

According to Sigmund Freud, the is the human conscience, or internalization of the constraints imposed by civilized society.

A) id
B) ego
C) superego
D) psyche

Question 6

According to George Vaillant, what is the defining feature of a psychologically mature coping strategy?

A) The coping strategy is maximally effective at reducing one's anxiety and distress.
B) It is automatic, so effortful thought is not needed to implement the coping strategy
C) The coping strategy objectively solves the problem causing the distress.
D) The coping strategy is used intentionally and leads to prosocial, constructive behavior.

Question 7

Why is James Gross's (2002) taxonomy of emotion regulation strategies called the process model of emotion regulation?

A) The different emotion regulation strategies are conceptualized as psychological processes.
B) The theory assumes that all emotion regulation strategies have an underlying process in common.
C) The taxonomy differentiates emotion regulation strategies in terms of where they occur in the process of emotion generation.
D) The theory assumes that the strategies in the taxonomy are used to process emotional experience in a healthy way.

Question 8

Which of the following emotion regulation strategies has been found to promote psychological resilience, even in intensely stressful situations?

A) Avoiding unpleasant aspects of the situation as much as possible
B) Making time for a simple, pleasant event or experience despite the larger stressor
C) Pretending to others that the experience is not stressful for you
D) All of the strategies above have been found to promote resilience.

Question 9

According to your textbook, what is the primary drawback of situation selection as an emotion regulation strategy?

A) It is rarely possible to avoid unpleasant situations.
B) People have little or no control over the situations around them.
C) When people avoid stressful situations they keep thinking about them anyway, and these thoughts create distress.
D) Avoidance of all potentially stressful situations limits people's opportunities and relationships.

Question 10

Your textbook describes several studies linking high situational avoidance (as a strategy for avoiding distress) to negative mental and physical health outcomes. By what mechanism are these effects thought to occur?

A) Avoidance-based coping is physiologically stressful, taking a toll on people's health.
B) Only people who have extreme emotional responses to negative events, and are therefore likely to develop health problems, use avoidance-based coping.
C) People who rely primarily on avoidance-based coping fail to take actions that could help improve their health and well-being.
D) People who rely primarily on avoidance-based coping become socially isolated, and isolation has negative health consequences.

Question 11

Which of the following emotion regulation strategies has been linked to better-than-average health and well-being?

A) Avoiding stressful and unpleasant situations entirely
B) Modifying stressful situations to solve or improve the problem causing distress
C) Concealing one's emotional expressions, so others do not know what you are feeling
D) None of the strategies above has been linked to better health and well-being.

Question 12

Which of the following has been found to increase probability of a successful outcome in dealing with a challenging or stressful situation?

A) Visualizing the situation in advance, thinking about how difficult it is likely to be
B) Visualizing in advance the actions you can take that will promote success
C) Visualizing in advance the successful outcomes for which you are hoping
D) None of the above have been found to increase probability of a successful outcome.

Question 13

Ari needs to have a talk with a close friend, Gilad, about something that has been bothering him - a conflict in their relationship. Ari is concerned that the conversation will be stressful, and that Gilad will become angry and defensive. In order to prepare for the conversation, Ari has a practice conversation with another friend, asking this person to pretend to be Gilad and respond as Gilad might. This is an example of:

A) situational avoidance.
B) rumination.
C) psychological inoculation.
D) detached reappraisal.

Question 14

In the novel Gone With the Wind, Scarlett O'Hara frequently says "I won't think about that now - I'll think about it tomorrow, when I can stand it" when facing a painful situation. According to your textbook, this is an example of .

A) avoidance-based coping
B) attentional control
C) detached reappraisal
D) expressive suppression

Question 15

Virginia had a bad day at work. One of her colleagues snapped at her unfairly, and her computer crashed partway through a tedious project, so she had to start all over again. When she gets home, she decides to watch one of her favorite sitcoms to take her mind off of the bad day. This is an example of .

A) situation modification
B) distraction
C) positive reappraisal
D) detached reappraisal

Question 16

Which of the following statements about distraction as an emotion regulation strategy is FALSE

A) Frequent use of distraction as an emotion regulation strategy is associated with higher psychological well-being.
B) Research shows that it is easier to focus attention away from one target if you are directing it toward another target.
C) In laboratory studies, distraction has proved effective as a strategy for reducing distress.
D) None of the statements above are false; all are true.

Question 17

Jessica just learned that she has not been accepted to any of her top-choice medical schools. She was accepted to a school nearby, however; although it was one of her "safety schools" it is a good program, and she plans to attend. Rather then being distressed at the rejection from her dream schools, she thinks: "Whatever school I attend I'll still come out as a doctor - I'm excited to start training. Also, this way I don't have to move!" Jessica is engaging in .

A) denial
B) avoidance-based coping
C) cognitive reappraisal
D) distraction

Question 18

Which of the following is NOT considered a form of cognitive reappraisal?

A) Thinking about positive aspects of an otherwise distressing situation
B) Making a good-natured joke about the situation
C) Taking another person's perspective, understanding how the situation looks through their eyes
D) All of the above are considered forms of cognitive reappraisal.

Question 19

Which of the following emotion regulation strategies has NOT been linked to psychological resilience-the ability to recover relatively easily from negative events?

A) Avoiding potentially unpleasant situations whenever possible
B) Participating in simple, pleasant activities, even while the negative event is ongoing
C) Thinking about positive aspects and implications of an otherwise negative situation
D) All of the above have been associated with resilience.

Question 20

Which of the following cognitive processes has been linked to higher risk of depression, when used regularly in negative situations?

A) rumination
B) detached reappraisal
C) positive reappraisal
D) attentional control

Question 21

Which of the following has NOT been found to help improve people's emotions, at least in the term?

A) Avoidance - staying away from potentially unpleasant situations
B) Distraction - engaging in some other activity to stop thinking about the unpleasant situation
C) Rude humor - making a mean-spirited joke about the situation
D) Catharsis - venting emotions strongly in order to get them out of your system

Question 22

Which of the following interventions has NOT been found to produce positive health and/or well-being outcomes?

A) Interventions increasing physical exercise
B) Interventions in which people write about past negative events for a while each day
C) Interventions in which people receive mindfulness meditation training
D) Interventions in which people are encouraged to express their emotions intensely

Question 23

Activity increases in the while participants engage in cognitive reappraisal.

A) prefrontal cortex
B) amygdala
C) insular cortex
D) hippocampus

Question 24

Deon is having a tough morning - his alarm didn't go off in time, his dog had peed on the clothes he was planning to wear, and he was out of coffee. However, Deon's roommate offers him a ride to work so that he doesn't have to take the bus. This is an example of .

A) distraction
B) positive reappraisal
C) instrumental social support
D) emotional social support

Question 25

Which of the following has NOT been observed as an effect of suppressing emotional expression?

A) Reduced subjective experience of negative emotion
B) Reduced activity in the prefrontal cortex
C) Reduced memory for the content of conversations that take place while suppressing
D) All of the above have been observed as effects of suppressing emotional expression.

Question 26

Research evidence supports Sigmund Freud's assertion that people have an innate desire to have sex with their mother or father-whoever is the opposite-sex parent.

Question 27

Frequent avoidance of potentially unpleasant or stressful situations has been found to predict positive mental and physical health outcomes.

Question 28

Research indicates that believing you have control over a painful stimulus reduces the subjective experience of pain, even if you actually have no control.

Question 29

Evidence suggests that visualizing desired outcomes increases the chance that you will actually achieve those outcomes.

Question 30

People can effectively reduce their distress just by thinking about positive or neutral aspects of otherwise unpleasant situations.

Question 31

Venting your emotions, such as crying during a sad movie or punching a pillow, is an effective way to reduce distress.

Question 32

Suppression of emotional expression is associated with increased activity in the prefrontal cortex.

Question 33

In the laboratory, individuals with East Asian cultural backgrounds show fewer negative effects of suppressing emotional expressions than those with European American backgrounds.

Question 34

Individuals who report frequently controlling their emotional expressions tend to be well-liked, and form new friendships easily.

Question 35

List three of the ego defense mechanisms proposed by Sigmund Freud in his early taxonomy of coping strategies. For each, give its definition and a novel example, not previously discussed in class or in your textbook.

Question 36

In a well-known study (Wegner et al., 1987), researchers found that participants who were explicitly instructed to avoid thinking about white bears for 5 minutes actually thought about them more than participants instructed to think about white bears. Explain the implications of this study for emotion regulation.

Question 37

Every emotion regulation strategy has a combination of advantages and limitations. Much research has addressed the strategy of cognitive reappraisal. List three benefits of reappraisal, discussed in class or in your textbook, and one limitation.

Question 38

You textbook notes that cognitive reappraisal can take many forms. List three different types of cognitive reappraisal, and give an example of each.

Question 39

Studies have repeatedly shown that activity increases in the prefrontal cortex while participants engage in cognitive reappraisal. Explain researchers' interpretation of the meaning of this finding.

Question 40

Explain the difference between instrumental and emotional social support, and give one novel example of each, not previously discussed in class or your textbook.

Question 41

James Gross's (2002) process model of emotion regulation proposes three main categories of emotion regulation strategies: situation-focused strategies, cognition-focused strategies, and response-focused strategies. Begin your essay by describing a recent, upsetting or stressful experience you have had in which emotion regulation was necessary. Then define each of the three categories above, and offer an example of how you might have used a strategy within each of these categories to regulate your emotions in this situation. In your conclusion, state which of the three strategies is the best fit for the particular situation you experienced, and explain your answer.