An Experimental Investigation of Co-rumination, Problem Solving, and Distraction
Section snippets
measurement of co-rumination
To date, research on co-rumination has primarily focused on the self-reported tendency to co-ruminate either at the trait or daily level. Individual self-report on co-rumination may not reflect actual behavior, and verifying the results with other methods is important. Recently, some investigators have examined the more immediate effects of daily co-ruminative behavior rather than examining self-reported trait co-rumination. Utilizing a daily diary paradigm, White and Shih (2012) found that
participants
Participants were 143 undergraduates between ages 18 and 55 recruited from a large midwestern university. The participants were 56% female and were 80% Caucasian, 6% African American, 6% Asian American, 1% Native American, 1% Hispanic/Latino, 4% Biracial, and 2% Other.
procedure
Participants came to the laboratory to complete the experiment in exchange for psychology course credit. Individuals were informed that the experiment examined how they have been coping with stressors in their life, with a
Participant Disclosure
The degree to which the participants disclosed information and fully participated in the interview were examined and there were no significant differences across conditions (see Table 1, top).
Characteristics of Stressor
In order to ensure that the three conditions were initially equal in regards to the discussion of the stressor, several variables regarding the stressor were examined: the threat of the stressor, the degree that the stressor was achievement oriented, and the degree that the stressor was an interpersonally
Discussion
The present study investigated the effects of co-rumination on affectivity among adults. Although co-rumination has been studied in relation to both adaptive and maladaptive effects, most of the research has relied on self-report of co-rumination. Although prior research has observed dyads co-ruminating in the laboratory, the current study was the first study to experimentally manipulate co-rumination in the laboratory. Participants were randomly assigned to one of three interviewing style
Conflict of Interest Statement
The authors declare that there are no conflicts of interest.
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Cited by (10)
Intrapersonal, interpersonal, and social outcomes of the social sharing of emotion
2020, Current Opinion in PsychologyCitation Excerpt :Co-rumination has been repeatedly associated with positive friendship quality [e.g. Refs. 28,29] and high reported social support [30], thus fitting the interpersonal consequences of the sharing of emotions. In contrast, co-rumination has also been found associated with depressive symptoms [e.g. Refs. 28,30–32]. As partners are particularly supportive and engaged within these interactions [e.g. Ref. 29], it can be assumed that co-rumination involves the benefits (e.g. social integration) [33•] and the inconveniences (e.g. no recovery effects) [27] of socio-affective support.
You Do Not Have to Get through This Alone: Interpersonal Emotion Regulation and Psychosocial Resources during the COVID-19 Pandemic across Four Countries
2022, International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
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Laura C. Hruska is currently affiliated with the Syracuse VA Medical Center, Syracuse, NY.