Cognitive Reappraisal of Negative Emotions Can Help Manage Stress

Researchers at the HSE International Laboratory of Social Neurobiology assessed the effectiveness of two strategies for regulating emotions: reappraisal and suppression. Having analysed data on the electrical activity of 60 individuals’ brains, the scientists discovered that both approaches put additional strain on the nervous system. It was also found that individuals who are prone to emotional contagion tend to be more effective in using reappraisal and managing negative emotions. The paper has been published in Experimental Brain Research.

The study was conducted with support from the Russian Science Foundation (RSF), Project Number 22-48-08002.

In psychology, various emotion regulation strategies are known, such as distraction, stimulus modification, avoidance, and more. However, the strategies of emotion suppression and reappraisal are more extensively studied and tend to be applied more often compared to others. It is assumed that when suppressing emotions, individuals pretend not to feel sadness or joy, whereas in reappraisal, they try to view the situation in a more positive light.

A team of researchers at the HSE International Laboratory of Social Neurobiology have investigated how suppression and reappraisal strategies aid in coping with negative emotions. The scientists analysed neurophysiological indicators, including inter-subject correlation and arousal indices measured by EEG, while the study participants engaged in suppression, reappraisal, or natural viewing of neutral and negative videos.

The study involved 60 subjects. They viewed a selection of 36 videos, each lasting 60 seconds, which alternated between views of buildings and plants and scenes depicting surgical operations, fights, and similar content. Before each video, the subjects received one of three instructions. The first was simply to watch the video. The second was to suppress their emotions, meaning to inhibit the outward expression of any feelings so as not to reveal their emotional state to others. The third instruction was to reappraise, which involved reflecting on why the content might not evoke negative emotions.

EEG recordings of brain activity were conducted during the viewing sessions. After each video, the subjects were instructed to assess their emotional state in writing on a scale from 1 to 9, with 1 representing a neutral state and 9 indicating strong negative emotions. Additionally, the participants completed a questionnaire to assess the presence of emotional contagion. Based on the EEG data, the researchers calculated the inter-subject correlation, reflecting the similarity of brain activity among the subjects while viewing the videos.

A high inter-subject correlation demonstrates the degree to which individuals collectively focus on a shared stimulus—in this study indicating their level of engagement while viewing the videos. If the screen is turned off and the subjects receive no further instructions, the synchronisation among them will diminish, as each individual will begin to focus on their own thoughts. Our calculations reveal a higher inter-subject correlation during suppression and reappraisal, indicating that the subjects were indeed actively attempting to regulate their emotions.

Vladimir Kosonogov
Co-author of the paper, Leading Research Fellow at the International Laboratory of Social Neurobiology

It was found that reappraisal helped reduce negative emotions, whereas suppression did not. Moreover, participants who were predisposed to emotional contagion demonstrated greater success in reappraisal compared to others. Emotional contagion refers to how easily an individual adopts the emotions of others, sometimes without even being aware of them. The researchers attribute this phenomenon to the subjects being more deeply immersed in the videos, envisioning themselves as the participants, and contemplating how they could help. The subjects' arousal index, which indicates the level of brain activity, was higher during emotion regulation compared to normal viewing.

The paradox lies in the fact that in order to learn how to regulate negative emotions and experience them less frequently, one must exert even greater effort to allow the emotion to dissipate. First, specific areas of the nervous system activate emotions, leading to initial strain, followed by the activation of additional areas to suppress those initial emotions. This causes the brain to become extremely fatigued.

Vladimir Kosonogov
Co-author of the paper, Leading Research Fellow at the International Laboratory of Social Neurobiology

In the future, the researchers intend to employ magnetoencephalography, a neurophysiological method that uses magnetic sensors to measure the brain's electromagnetic activity. This method allows for a more precise observation of which areas of the brain are engaged in response to an external stimulus.

Next, we plan to conduct a comprehensive study on the psychophysiology of anger and explore strategies for its regulation. Anger is the least socially acceptable emotion, often regarded as something to simply suppress, which is not really healthy.

Ioannis Ntoumanis
Co-author of the paper, Junior Research Fellow at the International Laboratory of Social Neurobiology, HSE University

IQ

March 15