Conflict over emotional expression: Psychological and physical correlates.

Abstract

This study addresses the construct of conflict or ambivalence over emotional expression. Ambivalence is seen as an important mediator in the link between emotional styles and psychological and physical well-being. Using the "personal striving" framework, a questionnaire measure of ambivalent emotional strivings (AEQ) was designed. In Study 1,292 Ss completed this measure along with questionnaire measures of expressiveness, social desirability, and intense ambivalence. Women scored significantly higher than men on both the AEQ and expressiveness. In Study 2, scores on the AEQ were found to be negatively correlated with self-reported and peer-rated expressiveness. In Study 3, 48 Ss participated in a 21-day study of mood and health. Expressiveness was positively correlated with some measures of well-being and with daily negative affect. Ambivalence was positively correlated with several indices of psychological distress. Although the AEQ correlated with questionnaire measures of physical symptomatology, neither the AEQ nor the expressiveness measures correlated with daily symptom reports. Results support the contention that conflict over emotional expressiveness is a variable worthy of study in its own right, having implications for research on personality and health.

Measuring emotion regulation and emotional expression in breast cancer patients: A systematic review

“…Table 1 summarizes information about the instruments' characteristics. The most frequently reported measure was the Courtauld Emotional Control Scale (Watson & Greer, 1983; n = 32 studies; 56%) followed by the Emotional Approach Coping Scale (Stanton, Kirk, Cameron, & Danoff-Burg, 2000; n = 7 studies; 12%), the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (Bagby, Parker, & Taylor, 1994; n = 6 studies; 11%), the Weinberg Adjustment Inventory -Short Form (Weinberger, 1990; n = 6 studies; 11%), the Stanford Emotional Self-efficacy Scale -Cancer (Giese-Davis et al, 2004; n = 5 studies; 9%), the Cancer ehavior Inventory (Merluzzi, 2001; n = 3 studies; 5%), the Control of Feeling Scale (Benjamin & Friedrich, 1991; n = 3 studies; 5%); the Rationality/Emotional Defensiveness (Spielberger, 1988; n = 3 studies; 5%), the Ambivalence over Emotional Expression Questionnaire (King & Emmons, 1990; n = 2 studies; 4%), the Cognitive Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (Garnefski, Kraaij, & Spinhoven, 2002; n = 2 studies; 4%), and the Emotional Expressiveness Questionnaire (King & Emmons, 1990; n = 2 studies; 4%). A number of relevant scales were used only once: the Berkeley Expressivity Questionnaire (Gross & John, 1995), the COPE (Carver, Scheier, & Weintraub, 1989); the Emotion Self-Disclosure Scale (Snell, Miller, & Beck, 1988), the Marlowe Crowne Social Desirability Scale (Crowne & Marlowe, 1964), and the Ways of Coping Questionnairemodified (Reynolds et al, 2000).…”

“…The AEEQ was developed by King and Emmons (1990) to assess ambivalence or worries about expressing emotions. It is a one-dimensional scale and is composed of 28 items (e.g., "I want to express my emotions honestly but I am afraid that it may cause me embarrassment or hurt").…”

“…The EEQ is a measure developed by King and Emmons (1990) that aims to measure overall emotional expressiveness or the tendency to express emotional responses in ways that can be observable by others. It is a one-dimensional scale composed of 16 items (e.g., "When I am angry people around me usually know") scored on a 7-point Likert-type scale ranging from 1 (strongly disagree) to 7 (strongly agree).…”

Emotional (Non-)Expression and Health: Data, Questions, and Challenges

“…Below it will be shown that this distinction may be important in relation to hypertension. Type C individuals (Temoshok, 1987), Type D individuals (Denollet et al, 1996) and individuals who have ambivalent feelings towards emotional expression (King and Emmons, 1990) use a deliberate strategy of not expressing emotions in order to please others or to avoid interpersonal conflicts. Type C individuals deliberately suppress negative emotions and are passive in the face of stress (Temoshok, 1987); remarkable similarities can be found with the description of the 'cancer prone personality' (Eysenck, 1995).…”

“…Even negative affectivity (Watson and Pennebaker, 1989) can be considered to have an important emotional expression component. Consequently, there are several examples of questionnaires measuring emotional expressiveness as a personality characteristic (e.g., Watson and Greer, 1983;Roger and Narajian, 1989;King and Emmons, 1990;Gross and John, 1995).…”