Emotional Regulation: Past, Present, and Future

Emotion Regulation: Past, Present, Future

James J. G ross

Stanford University, California, USA

M odern em ot ion th eor ies empha sise the adap t ive va lue of emot ions. Emo -tions are by no means always helpfu l, however. They often must be regu lated .The study of emot ion regu lation has its o r igins in the psychoa na lytic andstress and cop ing trad it ions. Recent ly, increa sed interest in emot ion regu la-tion has led to crucia l boundary ambiguit ies that n ow threaten progress inth is domain . I t is a rgued that d istinct ions need to be m ad e between(1) regu lat ion of emo t ion and regu lation by emot ion ; (2) emot ion regu lat ionin self and emot ion regu lation in o thers; and (3) conscious and nonconsciousemot ion regu lat ion . U sing a process model o f emot ion generat ion , th is reviewconsiders p rom ising research on basic p rocesses and ind ividua l d ifferences inemot ion regu lat ion and poses ®ve theoretical cha llenges.

INTRODUCTION

C on tem p ora ry concep t ion s o f em otio n em p hasise em otion s’ posit ive ro le in

adap ta t ion (e.g. L aza ru s, 1991; Too by & C o sm id es, 1990). E m o tion s a re

sa id to ta ilor cogn it ive style to situa t iona l dem a nds (C lore, 1994), t o facil-

it a te d ecision -m ak ing (O a t ley & Joh nson-L a ird , 1987 ), to p repa re the

in d ivid ua l for rap id m o to r respon ses (F r ijda , 1986), and to p rom o te lea rn -

in g (C ah ill, P r ins, Weber, & M cG a ugh , 1994) . I n ad d it ion to t hese in tr a -

o rgan ism ic fu nct io ns, em otio ns a lso a re t hou gh t to h ave im por tan t socia l

fun ct io ns. Fo r exa m p le, em o tio ns a re h eld t o p rovid e in fo rm a t ion abo u t

behavio u ra l in ten t io ns (E km an , F riesen , & E llswo rth , 1972; F r id lu nd ,

1994 ), to give clues a s t o whether som eth ing is goo d o r b ad (Wa lden ,

1991 ), and to ¯exib ly scr ip t com plex so cia l behavio u r (Averill, 1980) .

A t ten t ion to the fu nct ions em o tion s serve h as p rovided a forcefu l an d

m uch-n eeded cou n terp o in t t o th e lon g-st an d ing view o f em ot io ns a s

CO G N IT IO N AN D E M O TIO N , 1999, 13 (5), 551±573

Request s for rep r in ts sh ou ld be sen t to D r. James J. G ross, D epar tm ent o f Psycho logy,

Stan ford U n iversity, St an fo rd, CA 94305-2130; E-m a il: jam es@psych .st an fo rd.ed u .

Prepar ation o f this a r t icle was su ppo rt ed by G rant M H 53859 from the N ationa l In st itu te o f

M ental H ealth . The autho r wou ld like to th ank Bram F ridhandler, Judy M oskowitz, Jerry

Pa rrot t , two anonym ous reviewers, and mem bers o f th e St anford P sychophysio logy L abora -

to ry fo r helpful com men ts on an earlier d ra ft of this a r ticle.

q 1999 P sychology P ress L td

dysfunct ion a l and d isru p t ive (You ng, 1943 ). I ndeed , the trend toward

fu nct ion a l app ro aches has ga th ered su ch m om en tu m tha t it n ow m ust be

asked : A re em otion s ever to b e regu la ted ?

In the pa st two decades, a n ew resea rch do m a in has em erged tha t is

con cern ed with just th is qu est ion . T h e core const ruct in t h is do m a in Ð

em o tion regu la tio nÐ®r st cam e in to use in th e develo pm en ta l litera tu re

in t he ea r ly 1980 s (C am p os, Ba rret t , L am b, G o ldsm ith , & Stenberg,

1983; G aensba uer, 1982) . Sin ce th is t ime, em ot io n regu la to ry p rocesses

h ave en joyed increa sing a t ten t ion in bo th develo pm en ta l (C am pos,

C a m p os, & Bar ret t , 1989) and adu lt (G ross, 1998b) litera tu res, a s

resea rchers fro m a va riety o f t r ad it ion s have exam ined h ow ind ividua ls

in¯uence which em ot io ns they h ave, when th ey have th em , and how th ey

exper ience and exp ress these em o tio ns. In t h is a r t icle, I ®rst descr ib e two

m a jor p recu rso rs t o th e stu dy o f em otion regu la tio n : T he p sychoan a lyt ic

t r ad it io n a nd the stress an d co p in g t rad it io n . I th en use a p rocess m o del

o f em o tion genera t ion to p rovid e a fram ewo rk fo r stu dyin g em o tion

regu la t io n , and con sider severa l bou nd a ry issues. To illu st ra te con tem -

p ora ry resea rch in th is a rea , I review prom ising work o n ba sic p rocesses

an d ind ividua l d ifferen ces in a du lt em otion regu lat ion . I conclu de by

con sider ing severa l th eo ret ica l ch a llenges a nd d irectio ns fo r fu t u re

resea rch .

HISTORICAL ANTECEDENTS

R esearch sp eci®ca lly con cern ed with em o tion regu lat ion is a rela t ively

recen t in nova t io n , bu t an in terest in h ow em o tion s can and shou ld b e

regu la ted is anyt h ing bu t n ew (Averill, 1982 ). P h ilo sop hers from So cra tes

o n h ave grapp led with t he ro le em ot io n shou ld p lay in everyd ay a ffa irs, and

to th is d ay o ne o f the co re t hem es in Western p h ilo sophy is th e con test

b etween reason an d th e p assions (So lom on , 1976). In th e p ast cen tu ry, th is

lon g-stand ing in terest in em o tion regu la t io n h as b een p layed ou t in two

p rincip a l a ren as. Togeth er, th ese h ave set t he stage fo r con tem p ora ry

resea rch on em otio n regu lat ion .

The Psychoanalytic Tradition

O ne im po rt an t p recu r so r to the con t em po ra ry study of em o tion regu la t ion

is t he psychoa na lyt ic t ra d it ion . T h is t rad it ion em p hasises th e con ¯ict

b etween b io logica lly based imp u lses and in terna l and ext erna l rest ra in ing

fa cto rs. H owever, th e a ssocia t io n b etween p sych oan a lyt ic app roa ches and

em o tion regu la t ion is m ore in t im a te th an a sha red concern with im p u lse

regu la t io n . I ndeed , by the end of F reud’s ca reer, p sychoa na lyt ic th eo rising

relied heavily o n the no t io n of an xiety regu la t ion (F reud , 1926 /1959 ).

552 GROSS

F reud u sed anxiety a s a ca tch -a ll t erm fo r n ega t ive em o tion s (E rdelyi,

1993 ), an d a d iscu ssio n of h is views o n anxiety regu lat ion idea lly wo u ld

be couched in a genera l psych oan a lyt ic t heo ry o f a ffect. U nfo rtu na tely, a s

on e com m ent ato r pu t it , any at t em pt a t form ula tin g such a com prehensive

psycho ana lyt ic theo ry is ``ill-advised , if n o t imp ossib le’’ due to t he com plex

and con¯ict ing d iscu ssions o f a ffect in F reud’s wr it in gs (R apaport , 1953, p.

193) . O f cour se, th is has n o t p reven ted a num b er o f at t em pts a t devising

su ch a psych oan a lyt ic theo ry o f a ffect (e.g. Ba sch , 1976; Brenn er, 1982 ;

K rysta l, 1977; Schwar tz, 1987; Sp ezzano, 1993 ). G iven th e cu r ren t lack of

agreem en t , I fo cu s on anxiety.

In it ia lly, F reud believed tha t anxiety resu lt ed when lib id ina l imp u lses

were den ied expression (F reud , 1900/1950; 1915/1976). H e saw anxiety a s

ep ip heno m ena l, like steam escap in g from a stuck tu rb ine. W ith t he d evel-

op m en t o f the str uctu r a l m odel o f person a lity, F reud developed a very

d ifferen t concep t ion of anxiety (F reud , 1926/1959). F reud (1933/196 4)

a rgued th at t he ego a lone can produ ce and exp erience an xiety, an d th at

rea list ic, n eu ro t ic, and m ora l a nxiety derived from th e ego ’s relat ion s with

rea lity, the id , an d th e sup erego, respect ively. R ea lity-based an xiety was

tho ugh t to resu lt when the ego was overwhelmed by situa t io na l dem and s.

In t h is ca se, an xiety regu la t ion to ok th e form of avo id ing su ch situa tio ns in

the fu tu re, even if th is m ean t severe cu rt a ilmen t o f behavio u r, a s in

ago raphob ia . By con tr a st , F reud h eld th a t id - and sup erego -based anxiety

resu lted when im pu lses p ressed fo r a ction and the ego a n t icipated how it

wou ld feel if such im pu lses were exp ressed . If the ego ’s im agin a l ru n -

th rough led to h igh levels o f an xiety, su f®cien t u np lea su re wa s generated

to sup press the impu lse (F reud , 1926/1959 ). I n th is ca se, anxiety regu la t io n

too k the form of cu rta iling im pu lses th at were ju dged likely to crea te fu tu re

anxiety.

A s th is sum m ary suggests, an xiety regula t ion p lays a cen t ra l ro le in

psycho ana lyt ic theo r isin g. T h is is p a r t icu la r ly tr ue in the st ru ctu ra l

m odel, where ego d efen ces m ay be seen as p rocesses t ha t regu la te anxiety

(F reud , 1926/19 59). T h ese p ro cesses typ ica lly a re no t con sciou sÐbu t they

m ay beÐ and they invo lve d iffer ing levels o f rea lity d isto r t ion , behavio u ra l

im p a irm en t , energy con sum p tion , an d u nnecessary no ngra t i®ca t ion o f

im p u lses (F en ichel, 1945; A . F reud , 1946; H a an , 1977, Va illan t , 1977) .

M a la dap t ive defen ces a re t hou gh t to d evelop a s ch ild ren associate situ a-

t ion s o r im pu lses with h igh levels o f anxiety, an d lea rn to regu la te t h is

anxiety th rough id iosyncra t ic and pro b lem at ic form s o f a nxiety regu la t io n

(Schwar tz, 1987). Fo r exam ple, in the face o f wild ly inconsisten t p a ren t ing,

ch ild ren learn to sh ield th em selves from in to lerab le anxiety a nd pro t ect

their vita l link s with ca regiver s (H o fer, 1994 ). In so do in g, t hey m ay

develo p avo ida n t st ra tegies tha t h ave lifelo ng ram i®cat ion s fo r socia l

ad justm en t . Trea tm en t consists o f lea rn ing new ways to regu late anxiety,

EMOTION REGULATION 553

in pa rt th rou gh a ``co rrect ive em o tiona l experience’’ (A lexand er, 1950) in

which dreaded consequ ences o f im pu lse expressio n fa il to m ater ia lise

(Basch , 1976 ).

Continuities and Discontinuities. C on tem po ra ry em o tion regu la t ion

resea rch rem a ins concerned with reducin g n egat ive em o tion exp er ience

th rou gh behavio u ra l o r m en ta l con tro l. T h e ®eld o f study has b roa dened ,

h owever, to in clude the ways in wh ich ind ividu a ls increa se and decrea se

th e experience a nd exp ression o f a r ange of n ega t ive and po sitive em o-

t io ns (Pa rro t t , 1993 ). T h ere a lso is a growin g awareness o f the d ifferen ces

b etween con scious an d non conscious em ot io n regu la to ry p rocesses

(M ayer & Sa lovey, 1995) . E m otion regu lato ry styles still a re seen as

cen tr a l to psycho pa tho logy (C icchet t i, A ckerm an , & Iza rd , 1995; G ro ss

& M u no z, 1995), bu t t here now is grea ter in terest in d irectly a ssessing the

fu ll r ange of no rm a l fu nct ion ing as well (e.g. C a tanza ro, 1996). Perhaps

th e m ost str ik ing d iscon t inu ity, however, is con tem pora ry researchers’

relian ce on correlat ion a l and exper im en ta l m ethod s r ath er tha n clin ica l

repo r ts.

The Stress and Coping Tradition

T h e second im p ort an t p recu rso r to con tem pora ry em o tion regu la t ion

resea rch is th e stress a nd cop ing tra d it ion . T h is t ra d it ion o r igina ted in

th e wo rk of C an non (1914), a ltho ugh it was Selye wh o p opu la r ised the

n o t ion tha t o rgan ism s p ro du ce sim ila r ``st ress’’ respo nses t o d iver se cha l-

lenges (Selye, 1956, 1974). T h is view draws up on an an a logy to p hysica l

load s t hat exer t a force on n a tu ra l o r m an -m ade st ructu res, resu lt ing in a

stra in , o r d efo rm a t ion o f the st ructu re d ue to th e stress (H ink le, 1974 ).

Im p or t ing these no t io ns to the b io logica l rea lm , Selye a rgu ed tha t st resso rs

im p in ge up on th e o rgan ism , which respond s by pro du cing a stereo typ ed

stress response, who se p ro®le va ries acco rd in g to wh eth er th e st resso r is o f

sho rt du r a tio n (a la rm ), m o dera te du ra t io n (resistance), o r lon g d ura t ion

(exhau st io n ).

In terest in st ress research grew d uring Wor ld War II , a s resea rchers

exp lored the consequences o f war on ®gh t ing m en (e.g. G r in ker &

Spiegel, 1945) , an d con t inu ed to ga in m om en tum aft er the war a s a t ten -

t io n sh ifted to th e stresses o f peacetim e. A ltho ugh ear ly stress resea rch

fo cu sed o n respon ses t o physical cha llenges su ch as crowding and co ld ,

resea rchers soo n began to exp lo re respon ses to psychological stresso r s a s

well. T h e stu dy o f p sych o logica l st ress led to an em pha sis on the cogn it ive

p rocesses requ ired to tr ansform an extern a l even t in to som eth ing with

ad ap t ive sign i®cance for th e ind ivid ua l (Laza rus, 1966 ). T h is led to d is-

t in ction s am on g: (a ) h ow the situa t ion was eva lua ted (p r im ary appra isa l);

554 GROSS

(b ) how the organ ism viewed it s own capacit ies t o respo nd (seco nda ry

appra isa l); and (c) how th e o rgan ism a t tem p ted to m an age th e trou bled

organ ism -enviro nm ent rela t ion tha t occasioned the st ress (cop in g). St ress

was de®n ed as `̀ a rela t ionsh ip between th e per son a nd th e environm en t

tha t is app ra ised by th e person as relevan t t o h is o r h er well-bein g a nd in

which the p erson ’s resou rces a re ta xed or exceeded ’’, an d cop ing wa s

de®n ed as ``cogn it ive and behavio r a l effor ts t o m a nage (m aster, reduce,

o r to lera te) a t roub led p erson -environ m en t relat ion sh ip’’ (Fo lkm an &

L aza ru s, 1985, p. 152) .

In it ia lly, com m o na lt ies were em p hasised across situ at ion s r anging fro m

the o rd ina ry, such as tak in g an exam (M echan ic, 1962) to t he extr ao r-

d ina ry, su ch as being trapp ed in a coa l m in e (Lu ca s, 1969) . W ith t im e,

resea rch ers began to d ist in gu ish am o ng st resso rs. L a zarus (1966) d e®ned

harm a s a fo rm of stress a ssocia ted with d am age th at h as b een done,

threat as a fo rm of st ress a ssocia ted with fu tu re h a rm , and challenge as a

form of stress a sso cia ted with p ositive respon d in g. L ikewise, Selye (1974)

d ist in gu ished b etween eustressÐ a form of st ress a ssocia t ion with goo d

feelings, an d distressÐ a fo rm o f stress a ssocia ted with bad feelings.

D ist inct io ns a lso were m ad e a m on g cop in g respo nses, such as L aza ru s

and co lleagues’ d ist in ctio n between problem-focused coping , wh ich wa s

a imed at ®xing th e p rob lem , an d emotion-focused coping, which wa s

a imed a t lessen ing n ega t ive em otion experience. I t wa s th is la st con -

st ruct , in p a rt icu la r, tha t la id t he grou ndwork for the study of em o tio n

regu la tion .

Continuities and Discontinuities. R esea rch ers lon g have bem o aned th e

concep tu a l con fusion associa ted with th e term stress (e.g. H a an , 1993 ;

H obfo ll, 1989). T he prob lem is tha t ``st ress’’ cover s such an extr ao rd in -

a ry r ange of p henom ena th at m any have concluded tha t ``th e term is

m ean in gless’’ (L evine & U rsin , 1991, p. 3). L ikewise, cop in g now seem s

to inclu de the fu ll r ange of behavio u r em itted by a n in d ivid ua l in t axing

circum sta nces (C osta , So m er®eld , & M cC rae, 1996). E m otio n regu la t ion

resea rch ers have sough t ®n er-gra ined d ist inct ion s am ong enviro nm en t-

o rgan ism in t eract io ns than a re p ossible und er the b road ru b ric o f st ress,

u sin g either d im en sion a l (D avidson , 1992; L a ng, 1995) o r d iscrete

(Ek m an , 1992) approa ches. O n the cop ing side, too, em otion regu la t ion

resea rch ers a re focu sing increa singly on sp eci®c em o tio n regu la to ry

p ro cesses such as rum ina t io n (N o len -H o eksem a , 1993), sup pressio n

(G ross, 1998a ), an d d own ward so cia l com par ison (A sp inwa ll & Taylo r,

1993 ). O f th e two term sÐcop in g and em otio n regu la t ion Ð cop ing is th e

b ro ader catego ry, a s it inclu des no nem otion a l act io ns t aken to ach ieve

no nem o tiona l goa ls (Scheier, Weinb tr aub , & C arver, 1986 ), such as

bu ying a m ap in o rder to navigate a new city. C o p ing a lso d iffers


from em o tion regu la tion in tha t t he un it o f an a lysis is typ ica lly lo ngerÐ

extended per io ds o f ho urs, days, o r m o n th s r ath er tha n secon ds o r

m inu tes. T hus, fo r exam ple, o ne m igh t speak o f cop ing with ad justm en t

to freshm an yea r o f college, o r cop ing with th e loss o f o ne’s spo use.

H owever, cop ing do es n o t en t irely sub sum e em otion regu la t ion : E m otion

regu la t io n in clud es p ro cesses n o t typ ica lly con sidered in t he cop ing

litera tu re, such as regu la t ing exp ressive o r physio logica l a sp ects o f em o-

t io n , o r in¯u encin g posit ively va lenced em otion s.

CONTEMPORARY CONCERNS

W ith p sych oan a lyt ic and stress and cop ing tr ad it ion s a s a b ackdro p,

em o tion regu la t io n research ha s em erged as a rela t ively d ist inct do m a in

over th e past two decades (G ro ss, 1998b ). Pa r am ou n t concerns in clude

d e®n ing em otion and em ot io n regu la t io n , and delinea t in g ind ividu a ls’

em o tion regu la to ry go a ls and str a tegies.

De®ning Emotion

F ro m an evolu t io na ry p ersp ect ive, em otion sÐ like m any of o ur p hysica l

a t t r ibu tes and psych o logica l p ro cessesÐ rep resent t im e-tested so lu t io ns to

ad ap t ive p ro b lem s (Too by & C o sm ides, 1990) . In pa rt icu la r, em otio ns a re

th ou gh t to h ave a risen because they ef®cien t ly co -ord in ate d iver se respon se

system s, thereby h elp in g u s respond to im por tan t cha llenges o r opp or tu -

n it ies (Levenson , 1994) . Take fear, fo r exa m p le. W hen we a re a fra id , o u r

sen ses a re sha rpened , ou r m uscles a re p rim ed to m ove us qu ick ly ou t o f

h a rm ’s way, an d ou r card iova scu la r syst em is tun ed to p rovide in crea sed

oxygen an d energy to la rge m uscle gro up s tha t will be ca lled u pon when we

¯ee. T hese em ot io na l react ion s typ ica lly a re sho rt -lived , and involve

cha nges in sub jective experience, exp ressive b ehaviou r, a nd cen t ra l, au to -

n om ic a nd endocr in e respo nse system s (L an g, 1995). D ifferen t em ot io ns

a re tho ugh t to add ress d ifferen t a dap t ive p rob lem s (e.g. E km an , 1992;

I zard , 1977; P lu tch ik , 1980), a lt hou gh th ere is cu rren t ly lively d eba te

abou t the ext en t t o wh ich each em otio n ca lls for th d ist in gu ishab le, cross-

sit uat io na lly con sisten t p hysio logica l (Ca ciop po, K lein, Bern t son , & H at-

®eld , 1993 ; L evenson , 1992; Z a jonc & M cIn to sh , 1992) an d b ehaviou ra l

(E km an , 1994; F rijd a , 1986; R ussell, 1994) responses. If ``a ffect’’ is u sed to

refer t o va lenced (``goo d-ba d ’’) react io ns to st imu li o r situa t ions t ha t a re

m ean ingfu l t o the in d ivid ua l (Scherer, 1984) , em o tio ns a re pa r t o f t he

la rger a ffect ive fam ily th a t a lso in clud es: (a ) stress responses to taxing

circu m stances; (b ) emotion episodes su ch as a ba r-room b rawl an d deliver-

ing bad n ews to a close fr iend; a nd (c) moods su ch as d ep ression and

eup hor ia .

556 GROSS

De®ning Emotion Regulation

T he ph ra se ``em ot io n regu lat ion ’’ is am b iguou s, a s it m igh t refer equa lly

well to how em ot io ns regu la te som eth ing elseÐ su ch as th ough ts o r b eha-

viou rÐor to h ow em ot ions a re t hem selves regu la ted (D od ge & G arber,

1991 ). H owever, if a p rima ry fu nct io n of em otio n is to co -o rd ina te d iverse

respo nse system s (C am pos et a l., 1983), th e ®rst sense o f em otion regu la-

t ion is la rgely redun dan t with em o tion . Fo r th is rea son , I believe tha t th e

second usage is p referab le, in wh ich em ot io n regu la t ion refers to the

heterogeneous set o f p rocesses by wh ich em otion s a re th em selves regu -

la ted . Becau se vir tu a lly a ll goa l-d irected b ehaviou r can b e constru ed as

m axim ising p leasu re o r m in im isin g pa inÐ and thus a ffect regu lato ry in

som e bro ad senseÐ it is im p ort an t to p reven t over-inclusivity by na rrow-

in g the focus to p rocesses who se p roxim a l fun ctio n is to regu la te em o tion .

A secon d im po rta n t d istin ct ion is suggested by resea rchers’ use o f

em ot io n regu la t ion to refer bo th to how ind ividu a ls in¯uence their own

em ot io ns and to how th ey in¯u ence o ther p eop le’s em otio ns. T h is p ract ice

lead s to d iscussion s in which st i¯in g o ne’s own tea rs a nd telling som eon e

else to sto p act ing like a cryb aby a re bo th con sidered in stan ces o f em o tion

regu la tion . T h is usage is p a rt icu la r ly com m on in the d evelop m en t a l liter a-

tu re (e.g. M a sters, 1991; T ho m p son , 1994 ), bu t it is a lso eviden t in th e

adu lt lit era tu re (G ro ss & L evenson , 1993; Sa lovey, H see, & M ayer, 1993 ). I

now b elieve th is dou b le u sage is un fort una te, a s it m ixes two p o ten t ia lly

qu it e d ifferen t set s o f m ot ives, goa ls, an d stra tegies. Bo th k inds o f em o tion

regu la tion m ust be exam ined , bu t in do in g so , the two sho u ld b e clea r ly

d ist in gu ished . In th e fo llowing, I fo cu s on em ot io n regu la t io n in th e self, by

which I m ean th e ways in d ividu a ls in¯uence which em ot io ns they h ave,

when th ey have them , a nd how they experience and exp ress these em otion s.

In co lloqu ia l usage, em otion is o ft en used in terchan geab ly with th e sub-

ject ive exp er ience o f em ot io n , an d em o tion regu lat ion th us m igh t b e

tho ugh t t o necessa r ily invo lve chan ges in sub jective exper ience. H owever,

there is gen era l con sensu s am ong em o tion resea rch ers t ha t em o tion s a re

m ult icom p onen t ia lÐ span n ing exp er ien t ia l, behavio u ra l, and p hysio logica l

do m a in s. E m ot io n regu la t io n thus invo lves chan ges in o ne or m ore o f these

respo nses system s and need n o t (bu t cer ta in ly can ) invo lve a t tem p ts to

change th e sub jective exp er ience o f em o tion .

A th ird d ist in ct ion concerns wh ether em otion regu la t io n is con scious o r

no nconsciou s (M aster s, 1991; M ayer & Sa lovey, 1995 ). P ro to typ ic exam p les

o f em otio n regu lat ion a re con scious, su ch as d ecid ing to ch ange an up set-

t ing to p ic, o r squelch ing lau gh ter a t a ch ild’s in app rop riate a n t ics. O n e

m igh t im agine, h owever, em o tion regu lato ry act ivit y occu rr ing witho u t

conscious awa reness, such as when well-p r act ised rou t ines b ecom e au to -

m at ised . E xam p les in clude h id ing one’s d isappo in tm en t a t an u na t t ra ct ive


p resen t (C o le, 1986), ligh t ing a ciga rett e when anxio us (Bra ndo n , 1994 ), o r

even crack ing a jo ke to relieve tension (F red r ickson & L evenson , 1998 ).

P reviou s d iscu ssio ns have favou red a ca tego rica l d istinct ion between con-

sciou s a nd un consciou s p rocesses, bu t it p ro bably is m ore u sefu l to th ink of

a con t inuu m o f p ro cesses th a t va ry in t he degree to which they a re

con tro lled , effor t fu l, an d conscious ver sus a u to m a tic, effor t less, and

u nconsciou s. C la r ity ab ou t the na tu re o f p rocesses und er invest iga t ion is

essen t ia l becau se there m ay be im po rta n t d ifferen ces in the an t eceden ts and

con sequences o f em otion regu lato ry p rocesses cha r acter ised by d iffer ing

levels o f consciou sn ess (Wegner & Ba rgh , 1998).

Emotion Regulatory Goals

A n evo lu t iona ry p ersp ect ive h o lds tha t em ot io ns encod e situa t io n -respon se

d epend encies th a t have proven va lu ab le over the sweep of m illenn ia (Too by

& C o sm id es, 1990). T h is in n o way imples, h owever, t ha t em ot io n respon se

tend encies a re a lwaysÐor even u su a llyÐ approp r iate t o the situa t ions we

n ow fa ce. P hysica l and socia l environ m en ts have cha nged ou t o f a ll recog-

n it io n from th ose tha t sh aped ou r em o tions, an d t echno logica l advan ces

h ave d ram a tica lly m agn i®ed the consequences th at o u r em otion a l

responses m ay have for o u r selves an d o thers. A n irr itab le swip e tha t once

scarcely ra ised a welt , is now tr anslated with th e grea test ea se in to a fa ta l

ca r a cciden t o r gun-rela ted ho m icide.

H owever rea l th e m any b ene®ts o f em ot io n , th en , it is im po rta n t n o t to

overst a te the advan tages o f a ct in g in acco rd with u n t ram m eled em otion a l

im pu lses (Pa rro t t , 1995). In deed , wh en on e su rveys th e cau ses o f hum an

dysfunct ion a nd su ffer in g, one is str uck by the degree to which em ot io ns

lead u s t o d o th ings th at cau se su ffer in g to ou rselves an d those a rou nd us,

whether t h ro ugh im p u lsive aggressive act ion , h asty business decisio ns, o r

d eceitfu l sexu a l lia ison s. Pa r t icula r ly when em o tions a re viewed as a r ising

a t m o m en t s o f ch a llenge or o ppo rt un ity, the im po rt ance o f p ro per regu la -

t io n is unm istakable.

We kn ow relat ively lit t le abo u t ind ividua ls’ em o tion regu la to ry goa ls,

bu t it seem s increa singly clear th a t em ot io n regu la t ion invo lves b o th

d ecrea sing an d in crea sin g n egat ive and p osit ive em ot io ns (L angsto n ,

1994; M a sters, 1991; Pa rro t t , 1993). E m ot io n regu la t io n th a t invo lves

decreasing em ot io ns m ay occu r wh en : (a ) em o tion s p rom p t b ehaviou ra l

responses th at a re no lo nger usefu l, such as p hysica lly a tt a ck ing a n irr it at -

ing sub ord in ate; (b ) em otion s a r ise from an overly simp le appra isa l o f t he

sit uat io n , su ch as m ista k in g a st ick for a sna ke; o r (c) em o tion respon se

tend encies con ¯ict with o ther im po rtan t go a ls, such as savin g on e’s sk in by

¯eeing a ®gh t ver su s saving fa ce by stand ing on e’s groun d . E m o tion

regu la t io n th at invo lves initiating or increasing em otion s m ay occur

558 GROSS

when : (a ) em ot io n respo nse tendencies a re lack ing because on e’s m ind is

elsewhere, bu t o ne wishes t o m uster a n appro p ria tely en thu siast ic respo nse

to an o th er ’s goo d news; o r (b) one d esires t o rep la ce one em otion with

ano ther, such as when on e is feeling down , and on e wa n ts to sum m o n a

m ore posit ive em o tion a l st a te before ca lling o n friends. O ne resea rch

pr io r ity is to d evelop a b et ter und erst and in g of what ind ividua ls a re t r ying

to accom plish when th ey regu la te their em otion s, keep in g in m in d th at

em ot io n regu lato ry go a ls m ay be no nconscio us, an d tha t t hey a re likely to

be h igh ly con text -sen sitiveÐsuch as m a tch ing the em otio na l sta te o f an

an t icipa ted in teract ion p a rt ner (E rber, Wegn er, & T herr iau lt , 1996).

Emotion Regulatory Processes

W hat ind ivid ua ls wa n t to ach ieve a s t hey in¯uence their em o tionsÐ th eir

em ot io n regu la to ry goa lsÐm ust b e d ist in gu ished fro m the pro cesses they

invoke in o rd er to ach ieve these goa ls. O n e way to o rga n ise these em o tio n

regu la to ry p rocesses is by drawing o n a consen sua l p rocess m odel o f

em ot io n genera t io n . T h is m od el is a d ist illa t ion o f m a jo r p oin ts o f con-

vergence a m o ng em ot io n resea rchers wh o em pha sise b io logica l ba ses o f

em ot io n (m a jo r con tr ibu to r s to th is t r ad it ion inclu de: A rno ld , 1960; Buck ,

1985 ; E k m an , 1972 ; F r ijda , 1986; Iza rd , 1977; L aza ru s, 1991; P lu t ch ik ,

1980 ; Scherer, 1984; Tom k ins, 1962 ). A ccord in g to th is m odel, em o tio n

begin s with an eva lua t io n o f ext erna l o r in terna l em ot io n cues. C er ta in

eva lua t io ns t r igger a co -ord in ated set o f behaviou ra l, experien t ia l, an d

physiologica l em o tion response tend encies. T hese respon se tend encies

m ay be m od u la ted , and it is th is m od u la tio n tha t gives ®n a l sh ap e to

m an ifest em o tion a l respon ses.

U sing th is sch em e, em otion regu la to ry p rocesses m ay be seen a s ta rget-

in g o ne or m ore o f ®ve p o in ts in th e em otion -gener at ive p ro cess (G ross,

1998b). F irst , regu la to ry str ategies m ay act o n the situa t ion it self. T h e m ost

forward -loo k ing appro ach m igh t be ca lled situation selection . T h is refer s to

approa ch in g o r avo id ing certa in peop le o r situa t ions on the basis o f th eir

likely em o tiona l im pact ; Sca r r an d M cC art ney (1983) h ave ca lled th is n iche

p ick ing. O nce o ne is in an em otio n -elicit in g situa t io n , situation modifica-

tion is st ill po ssib le. T h is refers to m od ifying th e loca l environm en t so as to

a lter it s em o tiona l imp act . Situ at ion select io n and situa t ion m od i®ca t io n

help sh ape th e ind ividu a l’s situa t ion . H owever, it a lso is po ssible to regu la te

em ot io ns witho u t actua lly ch angin g th e enviro nm en t . Situa t ion s h ave

m any aspect s, and attentional deploym ent refer s to h ow ind ividu a ls d irect

their a t ten t ion with in a given situa t ion in o rd er to in¯u ence their em otion s.

T h is includes a tt en t ion a l st ra tegies ra nging fro m d ist ra ctio n , wh ich fo cu ses

on non em o tion -relevan t a spects o f th e situ at ion , o r sh ift s a t ten t io n away

fro m the im m ed ia te situ at ion a ltogeth er (D er ryb erry & Ro thb a rt , 1988) to


r um in a tio n , wh ich fo cu ses a tt en t io n on the situa t io n and its em otion a l

im p lica t io ns (N o len-H o ek sem a , 1993) . E ven a fter a sit ua t io n h as been

selected , m od i®ed , an d select ively a t tend ed to, it st ill is p ossible to a lt er

its em o tion a l im p act . Cogn itive change refers t o eva lu at ing th e situa t ion

o ne is in so as t o a lt er its em otion a l signi®cance, eit her by changin g h ow

o ne th ink s abo u t t he situa t ion o r abou t o ne’s capacity to m a nage th e

d em and s it po ses. Response modulation refers to in¯u encing em o tion

response t endencies o nce th ey a rise. E veryd ay exp er ience is rep lete with

effor ts to m an ipu la te em otion -exp ressive b ehaviou r, su ch a s h id ing an ger a t

an o ffensive rem ark , a s well a s p hysio logica l respo nd ing, such as slowing

o ne’s b rea th ing ra te. I t is less cer ta in wh eth er em o tion exp erience can be

m od i®ed d irect ly, a lth ou gh cogn it ive, beh aviou ra l, a nd p ha rm aco logic

m eans a ll m ay b e used to m od ify em ot io n exp er ience ind irect ly.

CONTEMPORARY RESEARCH

A growin g sense o f sh a red purpo se in th e do m a in o f em ot io n regu la t ion

h as led to grea ter con t act between previou sly d ispa ra te resea rch p rogram s.

In t he fo llowing sect io ns, I illust ra te cu r ren t em otion regu la t ion resea rch

by d escr ib in g prom ising resea rch on b asic p ro cesses a nd in d ivid ua l d iffer-

ences in adu lt em otion regu la t ion (fo r a review of t he litera tu re on em otion

regu la t io n in ch ild ren , see T hom pson , 1990) . R e¯ect ing the b ias in con-

tem po ra ry resea rch , m y focus is o n th e regu la t io n o f n egat ive em ot io ns.

Basic Processes

A va riety o f em ot io n regu la to ry p rocesses have a t t r acted a tt en t ion , includ -

ing: R eca lling m o od-in congr uen t m em or ies (Pa rro t t & Sab in i, 1990; Sm ith

& Pet ty, 1995), h elping o th ers (Scha ller & C ia ld in i, 1990 ), exercising

(T hayer, N ewm an & M cC la in , 1994), seek in g so cia l sup po rt (R ippere,

1977), u sing drugs (M o rris & R eilley, 1987), a nd m a k ing socia l com par-

isons (Taylo r & L o bel, 1989 ). In t he fo llowing, I focus on two b asic

p rocessesÐ reappra isa l a nd sup pressionÐ th at rep resen t two m a jo r po in ts

in t he em otion genera t ive p rocess a t wh ich em o tion s can b e regu la ted

(G ro ss, 1998b ).

Reappraisal. I t is widely agreed tha t a sit ua t io n typ ica lly d oes no t in

an d o f itself genera te em otion . R a ther, it is th e ind ividu a l’s eva luat ion o f

th a t situ a tion tha t is em ot io n -gen era t ive. O n e power fu l m eans o f em otion

regu la t io n , th erefore, is to m o d ify t he way a situa t io n is eva lu ated . Su ch

reappra isa ls m ay d ecrea se em o tiona l respond ing, a s when o ne im agin es

th a t gr aph ic n ews foo tage has been faked , o r increa se em o tiona l respo nd-

ing, a s wh en one rein terp ret s a joke a s a t h in ly veiled insu lt . R eappra isa l

560 GROSS

p lays a key ro le in t heo r ies o f em o tio n (e.g. L aza rus, 1991 ) an d st ress

reduct ion (e.g. K a tz & E pstein , 1991 ; M eichenbau m , 1985 ). U nfo rt u -

na tely, d esp ite its wide cur rency, even th e hyp o thesis tha t cogn it ive str a te-

gies m ay b e used to decrea se nega t ive em ot io nÐwh ich is wh at we know

m ost abou tÐha s a surp r isin gly m o dest em p ir ica l foun da t io n . L ead in g

sub jects to reappra ise nega t ive em ot io n -elicit in g ®lms h as been shown to

decrease n egat ive em o tion experience (C an to r & W ilson , 1984; D andoy &

G oldstein , 1990 ; G ross, 1998a ; L aza rus & A lfer t , 1964). H owever, con -

com ita n t decrea ses in physio logica l respond ing a re o ft en n o t ob served (e.g.

G ross, 1998a ; Step to e & Vogele, 1986) . W hy m igh t t h is be? O ne po ssib ility

is th at cogn it ive app ra isa ls p lay a lim ited ro le in th e generat ion o f physio -

logica l response tend encies in t he con text o f graph ic su rgery ®lm s

(LeD oux, 1989). If so, reappra isa l m igh t be expected to b e m ore effect ive

in com plex so cia l sit ua t io ns. In deed , Stem m ler (1997) ha s shown th at

reapp ra isa l inst r uct io ns led to decrea sed p hysio logica l respon d ing fo r

sub jects wh o an exp er im en ter verba lly ha r a ssed . O n e imp ort an t d irect io n

for fu tu re resea rch is t o u se reapp ra isa l a s a p ro be to clar ify th e n atu re o f

cogn it ive p rocessing in em o tio n genera t ion an d regu la tio n .

Suppression. C on t em po ra ry in t erest in the effects o f inh ib it in g em o-

t ion -exp ressive b ehaviou r can be tr aced to W illiam Jam es. O n Jam es’

(1884) view, em otion -exp ressive beh aviou r was so im por tan t to em o tio n

tha t go in g th rough the ou tward m otio ns o f an em otiona l sta te cou ld give

rise t o tha t feeling, an d lim it in g exp ressive beh aviou r cou ld decrease th e

associated feelings. O n e va rian t o f th is hyp o th esis cam e to be kn own a s th e

``facia l feedb ack hyp o th esis’’ (Bu ck , 1980). M o st stud ies design ed to test

th is hypo thesis con cen t ra ted on the em otio n genera tio n aspect o f the

hyp o th esis, a nd ind eed , in it ia t ing em o tio n -exp ressive behaviou r seem s to

in crea se th e feeling o f th at em o tio n sligh t ly (M a tsum o to, 1987) . F ewer

stud ies have test ed p red ict io ns rega rd ing the suppressio n o f ongo ing em o-

t ion a l behavio u r, a s it was a ssum ed th a t inh ib it in g ongo ing em ot io n

exp ressive behaviou r wou ld sim p ly h ave the o ppo site effects from vo lun ta -

r ily p ro ducing em ot io n -exp ressive behaviou r (G ross & L evenson , 1993) .

H owever, resu lts to da te d o no t suppo rt t he view tha t sup pressio n is th e

sim p le op posit e o f exaggera t ion . W hat is known suggest s tha t in h ib it ing

exp ressive behavio u r decreases self-repo r ted exp er ience o f som e em otion s

(e.g. p a in , p r ide, and am usem en t), bu t no t o thers (e.g. d isgu st , sa dness)

(for a review, see G ross & L evenson , 1997 ). Physio logica lly, in h ib it ing

exp ressive behavio u r wh ile wa it ing fo r a pa in fu l shock leads to d ecrea sed

sk in condu ctance react ivity (Co lby, L an zet ta , & K leck , 1977 ; L a nzet ta ,

C a r twr igh t-Sm ith , & K leck , 1976), bu t the effect s o f in h ib it ing em o tiona l

respo nses to o ther negat ive st imu li have inclu ded signs o f increa sed

sym p ath etic act ivat io n (G ross, 1998a ; G ro ss & L evenson , 1993, 1997) .


F u tu re resea rch sho u ld exp lo re th e ext en t t o wh ich the inh ib it io n o f

expressive b ehaviou r h as con sisten t effects across em otion s, and test

whether th ese effects a re sim ila r t o tho se o f a t tem pt in g to inh ib it o th er

a spect s o f the em otio na l respon se, su ch a s em o tiona l exp er ience.

Individual Differences

E m ot ion regu la t ion a lways takes p lace in the con t ext o f a pa r ticula r

ind ivid ua l. Because ind ivid ua ls d iffer bo th in th e em otions they experi-

ence and in the way they regu late these emo tion s, any sepa r at ion between

the study of basic em otion regu lato ry p rocesses and ind ividua l d ifferences

in such processes m ust be rega rded as a tem pora ry conven ience rat her

tha n a long-term stra tegy (see G ross, in p ress). H owever, one m a jor

imped im ent to tak ing a process-or ient ed approach to persona lity is tha t

ind ivid ua l d ifferences in em otion regu lat io n have b een stud ied under a

d iscon cert in gly la rge num ber o f rub rics. C onstructs m ost clo sely related to

em otion regu lat ion include: Em otio na l con tro l (Roger & N aja r ian , 1989),

nega t ive m oo d regu lat ion (Ca tanza ro, 1996), repression (Weinberger,

1990), and ru m inat ion /d ist raction (N o len-H oeksem a , 1993). R elated con-

str uct s include: m on ito r ing/b lun t ing (M iller, 1987), sensat ion seek ing

(Zuckerm an , 1979), constructive th ink ing (Epstein & M eier, 1989) , impu l-

sivity (Eysenck & Eysenck, 1969), behaviou ra l inh ib it ion (K agan, R ezn ick ,

& G ibbons, 1989), con stra in t (Tellegen , 1985), am biva lence over em o-

t iona l exp ressivity (K ing & E m m ons, 1990), delay o f gr at i®cat ion (M is-

chel, 1974), a lexithym ia (Taylo r, Bagby, & P arker, 1997), cop ing style

(Ca rver, Scheier, & Weintraub, 1989), ego con tro l (Blo ck & Block ,

1980), and em otiona l in telligence (Sa lovey & M ayer, 1990). R ather than

at tem pt ing a com prehensive review, I illustrat e recent research on ind ivi-

du a l d ifferences in em otion regu lat ion by focusing on two well-stud ied

ind ivid ua l d ifferen cesÐ rum ina tion and repressionÐ that were selected to

rep resent con scious and nonconscious em otion regu lato ry p rocesses tha t

va ry d iam etr ica lly in their use o f at ten t io n.

Rumination . T h is refer s t o ``behavio u rs an d tho ugh ts t ha t fo cus on e’s

a t ten t io n o n one’s d ep ressive sym pto m s’’ (N o len -H oeksem a , 1991, p. 569).

E xam p les include dwelling on p rob lem s o ne is havin g at wo rk , fo cusing on

feelings o f t iredness o r b od ily pa in s, and worrying abou t havin g yet

an o th er sleep less n igh t . W hen assessed by N olen -H o eksem a’s R espon se

Styles Q u estion na ire (N o len -H oeksem a & M o rrow, 1991) , d ispo sition a l

rum in a tio n has m o dera te st ab ility over per iods a s lon g as o ne yea r (Ju st

& A lloy, 1997 ). Ru m in at ion is effor t fu l, con t ro lled , a nd consciou s, a nd

seem s to be a imed a t reducing depressive feelings, a lt hou gh its actu a l

effect is usua lly the opp osite. H igher levels o f d ispo sition a l ru m ina t ion

562 GROSS

a re a ssocia ted with greater likelihoo d of develo p ing d ep ressive sym p tom s

(Ju st & A lloy, 1997; N o len-H o ek sem a , P a rker, & L ar son , 1994) , m o re

severe dep ressive sym pto m s (Just & A lloy, 1997; N o len -H oeksem a &

M o rrow, 1991; N o len -H o ek sem a , M o rrow, & F redr ick son , 1993), an d

lo nger dep ressive ep isod es (N o len -H oeksem a , 1993; N o len -H o ek sem a ,

M cBr id e, & L a rson , 1997) . I n t he con text o f an an a lysis o f sex d ifferences

in dep ression , N o len -H oeksem a (1993, p. 308) h as a rgu ed tha t ``it is m o re

ef®cien t and p o ten t ia lly u sefu l t o fo cu s o n p eop le’s styles o f respon d ing to

the sp eci®c m o od sta tes t han to u t ilize m ore globa l constructs’’. H owever,

fro m a bro ader em ot io n regu la to ry p ersp ect ive, o ne m igh t exp ect th at

ru m ina t ion in the con text o f o ther em o tiona l st ates such as an ger, gu ilt ,

o r anxiety wo u ld h ave com pa rable consequences in term s of p rod ucing

m ore in ten se an d longer-la st ing ep isodes o f each o f these em o tion s.

E xp lo ring ind ividua l d ifferences in ru m ina t ion with o ther em o tio na l sta tes

is a clea r resea rch pr io r ity in th is a rea .

Repression . Since th e 1950s, hu ndreds o f stu d ies have exa m ined th e

rep ressive cop ing style, and th ere recen t ly h as been a rena issan ce o f

in terest in t h is con struct (Eglo ff & K rohn e, 1996) . I n con t ra st t o th e

con tro lled a tt en t ion to dep ressive feelings tha t cha racter ises ru m ina t ion ,

rep ression app ea rs t o be an au tom a tic a t ten t iona l d efen ce aga inst

un p leasan t st im uli (Bona nno & Singer, 1990) and accom p anying a ffec-

t ive a rou sa l (K ro hne, 1996), po ssib ly invo lvin g increased a t ten t ion to

p lea san t tho ugh ts (Bod en & Baum eister, 1997 , bu t see M cFa rlan d &

Bueh ler, 1997). R epressive tendencies a re typ ica lly o pera t io na lised as

low scores on a tra it an xiety m ea sure in com bina t io n with h igh sco res

on a socia l desirab ility m ea su res th at tap s d efen siveness (Weinb erger,

Schwar tz, & D avidson , 1979 ). C lin ician jud gem en t s o f defensiven ess

a lso h ave been u sed (Shed ler, M aym an , & M an is, 1993). R epresso r s

repo r t feeling low levels o f anxiety (by de®n it io n ), and these report s

m ay re¯ect less freq uen t nega tive em ot io n exper ience. In t erest in gly,

rep resso rs’ capac ity fo r n ega t ive em otion experience appea rs und im in-

ished , a lt hou gh they d o lack the secon da ry em otion s tha t u su a lly a ccom -

pany an em otion exp er ience (D avis, 1987; E glo ff & K rohn e, 1996 ;

H ansen & H a nsen , 1988). Behaviou ra lly, rep resso rs show d ecrea sed

exp ressive behaviou r (Levenson , M ad es, & M eek , 1980), a lth ou gh th is

in h ib it ion o f exp ressive b ehaviou r m ay n o t be eviden t when sub ject s do

no t kn ow they a re being ob served (e.g. A send orp f & Scherer, 1983) .

Physio logica lly, rep resso rs tend to b e m ore a rou sed p hysio logica lly

tha n o ther sub jects who repo rt low a nxiety, a s shown by grea ter fron ta -

lis region electro m yogr aph ic (EM G ) a ct ivity (Weinb erger et a l., 1979) ,

in crea sed co r t iso l levels (Brown et a l., 1996), a nd increased sym pa thet ic

act iva tio n (e.g. K oh lm ann , Weidner, & M essin a , 1996; L even son et a l.,


1980; N ewto n & C ont rad a , 1992 ; Weinberger, 1990 ). F u tu re resea rch will

b e needed to cla r ify rep resso rs’ typ ica l p at terns o f em otio na l exp er ience

an d exp ression , and to assess m ore p recisely where in th e em o tion -

gen era t ive p rocess rep resso rs regu la te em o tion .

THEORETICAL CHALLENGES ANDFUTURE DIRECTIONS

T h is selective review o f recent resea rch d em o nst ra tes th e in tegra t ive

p ower o f the const ru ct o f em otion regu la t ion . A ppa ren t ly d ispa ra te

con cern s a re b rough t und er on e roo f, help ing to sha rpen quest io ns

abou t p o in ts o f convergen ce an d d ivergence a m o ng p rocesses. H owever,

th e no t io n of em ot io n regu la t io n a lso po ses a num ber o f ser iou s th eo re-

t ica l cha llen ges. I n the fo llowin g sect ion s, I d iscu ss ®ve o f t he m o st

p ressing o f these ch a llen ges, a nd suggest a num ber o f d irect ions for

fu tu re resea rch .

What Is Regulated in Emotion Regulation?

T h om pson (1994) ra ises t he imp ort an t q uestion a s to wh at is regu la ted in

em o tion regu la tio n . I have suggested th at em otion regu la t io n invo lves

cha nges in b ehaviou ra l, exper ien t ia l, and /or p hysio logica l respo nses.

Because em o tio ns unfo ld over t im e, th ese chan ges invo lve a ltera t ions in

``em ot io n dyna m ics’’ (Tho m p son , 1990), o r th e la tency, r ise t ime, m agn i-

tu de, du r a t io n , and offset o f respon ses in o ne or m ore dom a ins. E m otion

regu la t io n a lso m ay invo lve cha nges in h ow respo nse com po nen ts a re

in t er rela ted as th e em otion unfo lds over t im e, such a s when la rge

increa ses in physio logica l respo nd ing occu r in the ab sence o f overt

b eh aviou r. H owever, em o tion respon se com po nen ts a re no to r io usly

loo sely in terkn it (L an g, R ice, & Stern bach , 1972), an d inferences ab ou t

em o tion regu la t ion based on d iscrep ancies acro ss respo nse chan nels m ust

b e m ad e with cau t io n . Specifying precisely wha t is regu la ted Ð and

whether em ot io n regu lat ion h as ta ken pla ce at a llÐ is o ne o f the m o st

ser io us ch a llenges th is a rea faces. To m eet th is ch a llenge, we need a m ore

com plete u nd erstan d ing of th e relat ion s am o ng em o tion respon se com -

p onen t s bo th when in d ividua ls regu la te a nd when they do n o t regu la te

th eir em ot io ns.

How Can One Tell When Emotion Is Regulated?

D e®ning em ot io n regu la t io n in term s of chan ges in em otion respo nses begs

th e qu est ion : C han ges co m pa red with wha t? Presum ab ly, em otion regu la -

t io n m ay be infer red when an em o tiona l respon se wou ld have pro ceeded in

564 GROSS

on e fash ion , bu t instead proceeds in an o ther. In feren ces such as th ese a re

fraugh t with dan ger. A n expression less face in som eone who typ ica lly

gesticu lates wild ly a t the sligh test excuse m ay be r ich with m ean in g, bu t

tha t sa m e lack of exp ressio n in som eon e who ra rely shows any sign of

em ot io n is m uch less strongly suggest ive o f em otion regu la tio n . A lso, a s

a tt em pt s at eliciting em o tion in t he lab o rato ry have am ply d em on str a ted ,

em ot io na l respo nses va ry a s a fu nct io n o f sub t le environm en ta l cues (G ross

& L evenson , 1995). T h is m ean s th a t em otion regu la t ion can no t be in ferred

un less the situa t io n as p erceived by th e in d ivid ua l shou ld have elicited a

d ifferen t em ot ion respon se p ro®le tha n th e o ne tha t was shown . E m o tio n

regu la tion th us requ ires a fo rm idab le level o f cer t a in ty abo u t em ot ion in it s

un regu lated state. W ithou t th is, d iscu ssions o f em otion regu la t ion becom e

po std ict ion s th a t can exp la in any pa t tern o f ®n d ings (K appa s, 1996). T h is

is p a r t icu la r ly t rue when em o tion regu lat ion is invoked to exp la in a lack of

em ot io n wh ere em o tion m igh t b e exp ected , in wh ich case two h idd en

pro cessesÐem ot io n an d em o tion regu la t io nÐ a re invoked to exp la in t o a

no nrespo nse (F r ijd a , 1986 ). L it t le is kn own ab ou t th e com p lexit ies o f

no rm a t ive em otion a l respon d ing, let a lone th e effects o f d isposit iona l

va r iab les, su ch as n eu ro t icism (G ross, Su t to n , & K etelaa r, 1998) , an d

gro up d ifferen ces, su ch as sex (K r in g & G ord on , 1998 ). T h is m ean s th at

a t best , p robab ilist ic sta tem en t s can b e m ade abou t em ot io n regu lat ion in

any given ca se. To sp ecify whenÐ an d whetherÐ em o tion regu lat ion h as

occur red , m uch m ore will n eed to be lea rned ab ou t b asic em o tiona l

respo nses.

Is Emotion Ever Not Regulated?

Pro cesses sub serving em ot io n regu la t io n a re t igh t ly in ter twin ed with th ose

invo lved in em ot io n gen era t ion . I nd eed , som e th eo rists have respo nd ed to

th is in t erd igita t ion o f em otion -regu la to ry and em otion -genera t ive p ro -

cesses by a rgu ing tha t em o tion regu la t ion is pa rt an d pa rcel o f em o tio n

(F rijda , 1986). A ft er a ll, adu lt em ot io n is a lm ost a lways regu la ted in on e

way or ano ther (Tom k ins, 1984), an d it now appea r s th a t classically

cond it io ned responses a re no t era sed when they a re ext ingu ished , bu t

ra ther sup pressed (M organ , Ro m ask i, & L eD ou x, 1993 ). If em ot io n cen -

t res in t he limb ic syst em are t on ica lly rest ra in ed by o ther b ra in region s

su ch as t he perfron t a l co rt ex (Stuss & Ben son , 1986 ), do esn’t t he term

em ot io n regu la t io n lo se it s va lue? I wou ld a rgue tha t the qu est ion `̀ I s

em ot io n ever not regula ted?’’ is m islead in g, in t ha t it suggests a n a ll-o r-

no ne a ffa ir. A concep t ion of rela t ive regu la tion seem s m ore app rop r iate.

G iven the wid e ra nge of neu ra l p ro cesses im p licated in em o tio n , however, it

will be a cha llenge to d raw a clea r line between em o tion an d em ot io n

regu la tion .


What Level of Analysis Should Be Used?

Som e resea rchers h ave assessed the consequ ences o f one or two sp eci®c

fo rm s o f em otion regu la t io n , in o ne em o tiona l con text , u sing a focused set

o f respo nse m easu res (e.g. N o len -H oeksem a , 1993) . O th ers h ave exam in ed

em o tion regu la tio n in fa r m o re genera l term s u sing a b ro ad a rr ay o f

response m easu res (E isen berg et a l., 1995). I n m y own m ult im eth od work

o n em otion suppressio n (G ross, 1998a ; G ross & L evenson , 1993, 1997), I

h ave been m o re imp ressed with sim ila r it ies th an d ifferen ces in t he effects o f

em o tion sup pression across em ot io ns, bu t o ne im po rta n t d ifferen ce has

em erged , in th a t suppressing p osit ive em ot ion -exp ressive behavio u r su ch as

am usem en t , decreases am usem en t exp er ience, wherea s sup pressin g nega -

t ive em ot io n -exp ressive behaviou r d oes no t have com parab le effects. O ne

im por tan t d irect ion for fu tu re resea rch is t o cha r t th e imm ed iate a nd

lon ger-term consequences o f d ifferen t form s of em o tion regu la t io n in t he

con text o f d ifferen t em otion a l sta tes.

How Does Emotion Regulation Relate to OtherForms of Impulse Regulation?

E m otiona l imp u lses are by no m eans the on ly impu lses with wh ich we must

cont end . O ne pressing question is how emo tion regulat ion relates to o ther

form s of regu la tion , such as m ood regu la t ion (Ca rver & Scheier, 1990; T hayer,

1996), though t con tro l (Wegner, 1994), and still o ther form s of imp ulse

regu lat ion (Baum eister & H eatherton , 1996; Block & Block , 1980). In it ia l

evidence suggests m odest co rrelat io ns am on g m easures o f impu lse regu lat ion

in ch ild ren (Kopp, 1982; R eed, P ien, & Rothba rt , 1984) and adu lts (K ing,

E m m o ns, & Wood ley, 1992). G iven the em ergin g consensus that d iscrete and

d imensiona l levels o f ana lysis are com pat ib le rather th an in com petit ion with

one ano ther, m odels o f emotion regu la t ion and m ood regu la tion even tu ally

m ay take their p lace in supero rd inate m odels o f a ffect regulat ion . I t seem s

reasonable, however, to m a in ta in d istinctions between processes that regu la te

em otion , on the one hand , and those that regu la te though ts (e.g. Wegner &

Bargh , 1998) o r well-learn t operan t responses (e.g. Logan , Schacha r, &

Tannock, 1997) on the o ther. I t is less obvious whether p rocesses that reg-

u late em otiona l impu lses shou ld be d istingu ished from those th at regu la te

im pu lses a ssociated with hunger, th irst , aggr ession , an d sexua l a rousa l (Bu ck,

1985). Th ese issues seem certa in to at tr act con t inued in terest, a s researchers

from a va riety o f hom e dom a ins (e.g. weigh t loss, substan ce abuse, aggression ,

em otion regu lat io n : see Baum eister & H eatherton , 1996 ) begin to fash ion

stronger em pirica l links across d iverse form s of self-regu lat io n .

M anuscr ip t received 2 M arch 1999

566 GROSS

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Emotional Regulation: Past, Present, and Future

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