The Process Model of Emotion Regulation Questionnaire: Assessing Individual Differences in Strategy Stage and Orientation

Abstract

The study of individual differences in emotion regulation has typically focused exclusively either on the stage of the emotion generation process at which regulation occurs or on the engagement versus disengagement orientation of the regulation efforts. We introduce a new measure that samples equally across each stage of the process model of emotion regulation and from both engagement and disengagement orientations. Through five studies ( ntotal = 2,543), we present the development and convergent, discriminant, and predictive validity evidence for the Process Model of Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (PMERQ). We show the final 10-scale 45-item questionnaire has acceptable internal consistency, is invariant between genders and across the age range, and has sufficient convergent and discriminant validity. The PMERQ also predicts affective and relationship functioning with strategies occurring earlier in the process model generally showing the strongest effects. We propose the PMERQ is a valuable measure to assess individual differences in the use of emotion regulation strategies.

Contextual variations in emotion polyregulation: How do regulatory goals shape the use and success of emotion regulation strategies in everyday life?

“…HARTMANN, PRUESSNER, AND BARNOW 10 process model (Gross, 1998). Further, this finding corresponds to the distinction between engagement-and disengagement-oriented strategies by Olderbak et al (2022). Hence, individuals seem to frequently combine response modulation strategies to either hide their emotions from others or to verbalize them to receive safety or affiliation signals (Zaki & Williams, 2013).…”

“…This factor seems compatible with increasing ongoing experiences and provides evidence that synergistic and conceptually compatible emotion regulation strategies are more likely to be combined (Ford et al, 2019; Millgram et al, 2019; Sheppes & Gross, 2011). In contrast, an Unspecific Regulation dimension composed of various conceptually heterogeneous strategies, including both engagement (e.g., reappraisal) and disengagement (e.g., distraction) strategies, was found for contexts of maintenance goals (Olderbak et al, 2022). As these strategies might be further competing for the same cognitive resources, one might conclude that maintenance goals are more likely to be associated with a reduced synergy of strategies (Ford et al, 2019; Joormann & Tanovic, 2015; McRae et al, 2012; Sheppes, 2014; Sheppes & Meiran, 2008).…”

Integrating mindfulness into the extended process model of emotion regulation: The dual-mode model of mindful emotion regulation.

“…For example, instructing participants to "Observe your experiences, allowing them to come and go naturally" might be used to reflect monitoring; however, these instructions alone do not include the process awareness which defines monitoring as a strategy. Alternatively, self-report measures of habitual mindfulness-based strategy use may allow examination of long-term outcomes in a manner similar to that of other emotion regulation questionnaires (such as Gross & John, 2003;Kraaij & Garnefski, 2019;Olderbak et al, 2022). Such self-report and laboratory designs may mutually inform the use of intensive longitudinal designs (e.g., ecological momentary assessment, experience sampling methods) which assess the use and impact of mindfulnessbased strategies in daily life (e.g., Questions regarding facilitation may explore hypotheses such as those listed in Table 1, competing hypotheses, or other questions which investigate the role of mindfulness qualities or training on other processes.…”

Integrating Mindfulness Into The Extended Process Model Of Emotion Regulation: The Dual-Mode Model Of Mindful Emotion Regulation

“…This process is posited to unfold continuously over time with each cycle being the subject of subsequent cycles (for further details including model development, see Gross, 2015bGross, , 2015aSheppes et al, 2015;Webb, Schweiger Gallo, et al, 2012). Within the EPM, five "families" of strategies are posited to target specific components of emotion generation (Gross, 2015a;McRae & Gross, 2020;Olderbak et al, 2022;. Situation selection and modification act on the world (W) through efforts to choose or change stimuli.…”