Good things better? Reappraisal and discrete emotions in acquired brain injury

Abstract

There has been substantial interest in emotion after acquired brain injury (ABI), but less attention paid to emotion regulation (ER). Research has focused primarily on the ER strategy of reappraisal for regulating negative emotions, without distinguishing between classes of emotion, and there has been no attempt at exploring these differences in patients with ABI.The present study explored components of reappraisal, across classes of emotion, and their associated neuropsychological mechanisms. Thirty-five patients with ABI and twenty-two matched healthy control participants (HCs) completed two questionnaires, a battery of cognitive tasks, and an emotion regulation task (the Affective Story Recall Reappraisal task).Results suggest that those with ABI take longer, and generate fewer reappraisals than HCs across several discrete emotions. Notably, their ability to decrease emotional intensity did not differ significantly to HCs for negative emotions, but findings suggest that their reappraisals are less effective when up-regulating neutral emotions to positive. Working memory was the only significant predictor of the total number of reappraisals generated, and the time taken to produce a first reappraisal. Implications of these findings are discussed in the context of neuropsychological rehabilitation, including the role of the relatives in implementing and reinforcing micro-interventions.

Traumatic Brain Injury and Its Relationship to Previous Convictions, Aggression, and Psychological Functioning in Dutch Detainees

“…Although previous studies have shown that TBI might result in higher levels of impulsivity (Votruba et al, 2008), lower intelligence (Raymont et al, 2011), and impaired emotional processing or control (Rowlands et al, 2019), no differences were found in the current study. The detainees showed higher levels of impulsivity and lower intelligence when compared to nonincarcerated controls, but these differences are likely not the result of experienced TBI.…”

“…Patients who have experienced a TBI may show deficits in various domains, including emotion processing, self-control, impulsivity, IQ, and aggression (Hartikainen et al, 2010;Levin & Hanten, 2005;Parker & Rosenblum, 1996;Wall et al, 2006). Reduced emotion regulation abilities following TBI have received relatively little attention but seems to be impaired after TBI (Rowlands et al, 2019). A decrease in such functions may result in erroneously interpreting situations in everyday life, and may impair problemsolving abilities through dialogue or negotiation, which in turn may increase the chance of violent and aggressive behavior (Leon-Carrion & Ramos, 2003).…”

This time it’s personal: reappraisal after acquired brain injury

“…In particular, patients with brain injury took longer to generate a reappraisal (referred to as reappraisal difficulty), but when time was not considered they were able to produce a similar number of reappraisals (referred to as reappraisal productivity) to neurologically healthy controls (Salas et al, 2014). Extending on these findings, Rowlands et al (2019) found that patients with ABI were impaired across both reappraisal productivity and difficulty on an autobiographical recall reappraisal task, and reported less effective use of reappraisal to up-regulate positive emotions.…”

“…In the second phase, the reappraisal needs to be maintained (using working memory), to shield it from the initial meaning (Kalisch, 2009). Recent evidence suggests that working memory may also play a role in the early phase, perhaps to keep the goal of reappraising in mind (Rowlands et al, 2019). Some inconsistencies are, however, notable in previous studies.…”

“…For example, Falquez, Couto, Ibañez, and colleagues (2014) found that lesions to the right superior frontal gyrus, an area responsible for inhibitory control, were associated with poorer reappraisal effectiveness. Additionally, investigations of the generative components of reappraisal have identified inhibition, verbal ability (Salas, Turnbull, & Gross, 2014;Salas, Gross, Rafal, Viñas-Guasch, & Turnbull, 2013), and working memory (Rowlands, Coetzer, & Turnbull, 2019) as key components of the process. These generative components of reappraisal involve the timely construction of positive re-interpretations, and thus the creation of a reappraisal itself (i.e.…”