Abstract
Although it has been shown that mindfulness and emotion regulation are related, the nature of the relationship and the underlying processes are still not fully understood. The present study explored the relationship between mindfulness and emotion regulation at the facet level using both bivariate correlation analysis and canonical correlation analysis. A total of 211 adults (mean age = 56.4 years, SD = 15.3; 72.0% females) completed the short forms of the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire and the Heidelberg Questionnaire for the Assessment of Emotion Regulation Strategies. Three relationship clusters emerged between mindfulness facets and emotion regulation strategies: (1) a mindful emotion regulation cluster in which describing and nonreactivity were positively related with reappraisal and acceptance; (2) a suppression and nonreactivity cluster in which describing and nonreactivity were negatively and positively associated with both suppression of emotional expression and suppression of emotional experience, respectively; and (3) a negative self-monitoring cluster in which observing and nonjudging were positively and negatively related to rumination, respectively. These results suggest potential pathways through which mindfulness-based interventions might improve emotion regulation.
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Acknowledgements
The authors thank Claudia Pucci, Lucrezia Bottiglieri, and Federica Maria Gioia who collected and entered the data. We are grateful to Erika Graci, Sara Pompili, Federico Brugnoni, and Maria Chiara Sabatino for their collaboration in data collection. We also thank Dr. Francesco Florenzano and Upter’s staff to allow the data collection, Antonio Krase for English reviewing, and Professor Roger Baker for reading the final version of the manuscript.
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LI designed and executed the study, analyzed the data, wrote the paper, and collaborated in the editing of the final manuscript. ML designed and executed the study, assisted with the data analyses, and collaborated in the editing of the final manuscript. VC executed the study and collaborated with the writing of the study. AC collaborated in the editing of the final manuscript.
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All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were approved by the ethical review board for psychological research of the European University of Rome and were in accordance with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.
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Iani, L., Lauriola, M., Chiesa, A. et al. Associations Between Mindfulness and Emotion Regulation: the Key Role of Describing and Nonreactivity. Mindfulness 10, 366–375 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12671-018-0981-5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12671-018-0981-5