Variations in the regulation of affective neural responses across three cultures.

Abstract

In the present research, we assessed the effects of culture on the ability to regulate affective neural responses. Using an event-related potential design focusing on the centroparietal late positive potential (LPP), we found that cultural groups differed in their ability to intentionally regulate these responses. As a group, European Americans demonstrated successful up-regulation of the LPP in response to positive and negative valence images, as did participants from Mexican cultural backgrounds who also showed successful down-regulation of the LPP in response to positive valence images. As a group, participants from Chinese cultural backgrounds did not show evidence of successful up- or down-regulation of LPP responses. This work confirms and extends preliminary findings of cultural variation in emotion regulation abilities.

The Development of Cognitive Reappraisal From Early Childhood Through Adolescence: A Systematic Review and Methodological Recommendations

“…Future research should also consider the potential effects of culture and socioeconomic status on the emergence and developmental course of cognitive reappraisal. For example, there is some evidence from studies with adults that the neural correlates of reappraisal differ between participants from European American, Chinese, and Mexican backgrounds (Qu and Telzer, 2017 ; Hampton et al, 2021 ). To examine whether cultural and ethnic differences influence the developmental course of cognitive reappraisal, we first need to increase the systematic reporting of the racial/ethnic and cultural identities of research participants.…”

How Personality Impacts Remote Workers in Mainland China: A Qualitative Study

“…Participants F and G spent the most time effacing their abilities. In Chinese culture, people down-regulate their emotions due to the cultural emphasis on promoting social harmony and respect for societal roles (Hampton et al, 2021). Participants A and F were the most effusive in their praise for their boss.…”

Effects of Natural Mentoring Relationships on College Students’ Mental Health: The Role of Emotion Regulation

“…This type of analysis may be especially relevant to students who hold multiple marginalized identities, given that they often experience stressors from simultaneous forms of oppression (Jones et al, 2020; Kelly et al, 2019). Moreover, given evidence that certain emotion regulation strategies may be more normative and/or adaptive within certain cultural contexts (Butler et al, 2007; Ford & Mauss, 2015; Hampton, et al, 2019; Matsumoto et al, 2008), it is essential to continue exploring interactions between students’ social identities and psychosocial functioning. Such research can play a key role in informing culturally responsive mentoring and mental health care (Bennett et al, 2016; Skilbeck et al, 2020).…”

“…However, it is also worth noting that the vast majority of the empirical work focused on identifying adaptive versus maladaptive emotion regulation strategies has been conducted in Western, primarily individualistic contexts, and these findings may not be culturally universal. For example, evidence suggests that individuals from more collectivist cultures, such as Japanese, Chinese, or Mexican cultural heritages, may be more likely to use emotion suppression as an adaptive strategy to down‐regulate emotions (Butler et al, 2007; Ford & Mauss, 2015; Hampton et al, 2019; Matsumoto et al, 2008). Thus, it is essential to test the role of supportive relationships in fostering different types of emotion regulation across more diverse groups of individuals, including individuals from backgrounds historically underrepresented in our research contexts, including lower‐income, immigrant, and non‐White individuals.…”