Emotion regulation moderates the association between COVID-19 stress and mental distress: findings on buffering, exacerbation, and gender differences in a cross-sectional study from Norway

Abstract

BackgroundMaintaining good mental health is important during a crisis. However, little attention has been given to how people achieve this, or how they evaluate emotions associated with stressors, such as the COVID-19 pandemic. This study aims to (1) investigate whether emotion regulation, in particular cognitive reappraisal and suppression, moderates the relationship between COVID-19 stress and general mental distress and (2) examine gender differences in the interrelations between COVID-19 stress, emotion regulation, and mental distress.MethodsData from a population in Norway (n = 1.225) were collected using a cross-sectional survey during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic. Emotion regulation was measured using the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire Scale (ERQ), COVID-19 stress with the COVID-19 Stress Scale, and mental distress with the Patient Health Questionnaire 4 (PHQ-4). Moderation analyses were conducted using the PROCESS macro for SPSS.ResultsThere was a strong association between COVID-19 stress and general mental distress (r = 0.61). The moderation analyses showed substantial moderation effects of cognitive reappraisal and suppression on the relationship between COVID-19 stress and mental distress. Cognitive reappraisal served as a buffer (p = 0.001) and suppression (p = 0.002) exacerbated the relation between COVID-19 stress and mental distress. Men had higher scores of suppression (p < 0.001), and women had higher scores of cognitive reappraisal (p = 0.025). The buffering effect of cognitive reappraisal presented itself only in women (p < 0.001), while the exacerbation effect of suppression appeared only in men (p < 0.001).ConclusionThe current study suggests that COVID-19 pandemic-related stress is easier to deal with for those who have the tendency to cognitively reappraise. In contrast, suppression is associated with symptoms of depression and anxiety. The prevention of mental distress can be supported by guiding people about the importance of using healthy emotion regulation strategies, as well as helping them to become more aware of the way they interpret and regulate their emotions. Gender differences in emotion regulation suggest gender awareness, e.g., tailored programs for men and women.

Covid 19’s Social Quarantine-Moderated Self-Reported Mental Health and Substance Use Among US Adults

“…Ikegami et al [23] found that among a Japanese population-based sample job stress scores were lower among office workers who were allowed to be more frequent telecommuters; paralleling the present findings, their findings further underscore the role of COVID-19 social policies in moderating distress during this period. In particular, the present findings support those of Haver et al [22] that emotional regulation moderated the relationship between COVID-19 stresses and mental distress.…”

“…Only a couple studies could be located which examined the effects of moderator variables on the adverse effects of COVID-19 exposure. Haver et al [22] found that cognitive reappraisal buffered COVID-19 stress effects among women and that suppression exacerbated COVID-19 stress effects among men. In a nationwide health survey of Japanese office workers (N = 13.468), after controlling for several demographic factors, Ikegami et al [23] found that job control scores were higher and job stress scores were lower among Japanese office workers who were more frequent telecommuters.…”

Emotion regulation, hope, and optimism during the third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic: The role of age and personality

“…For instance, the effect of education on CR and hope-agency might reflect the involvement of cognitive resources in the emotion regulation strategy [ 33 , 34 ] and in hope’s agency component [ 17 ]. The effect of gender on the two emotion regulation strategy scales is in line with previous evidence showing females to more likely rely on CR and males to engage more ES [ 7 , 35 ], even within the COVID-19 pandemic context [ 36 ]. The effect of COVID-19 worries on ES and optimism suggests that such outcomes are likely affected by negative feelings (e.g., worry or fear) possibly arising from the prolonged crises individuals face [ 1 , 3 ].…”

Reliability and validity estimation of Urdu version of Children Emotion Management Scales (CEMS) in Pakistan

“…It was observed that children who use unhealthy emotion regulation strategies like inhibition and dysregulated expression showed a lack of cognitive reappraisal strategy in a time of an emotional crisis ( 61 ). Additionally, these children also showed a low score on the distress tolerance and self-esteem scale, which further signifies the use of a positive emotion regulation strategy to promote a healthy lifestyle and a positive self-image.…”