6 - (IOP 11) Interpersonal Emotion Regulation in Psychological Well-being: A Latent Profile Analysis of U.S. and South Korean Adults

Emotion regulation (ER) encompasses not only individuals' efforts to regulate their own emotions (intraindividual ER) but also the support they receive from others in regulating emotions, known as interpersonal ER (IER; Zaki & Williams, 2013). Prior research has shown that individuals with more diverse intraindividual ER repertoires tend to experience better emotional health (e.g., Grommisch et al., 2020; Wen et al., 2021), whereas those who predominantly rely on suppressing their internal states are linked to greater distress (e.g., de Carvalho Braule Pinto et al., 2021; Grommisch et al., 2020). However, less is known about whether these patterns extend to IER. This study examines whether individuals who receive more diverse forms of ER support from others exhibit better well-being, while those whose close others primarily encourage suppression of emotional expression experience worsened well-being.

Using a person-centered approach, we conducted a latent profile analysis with a cross-cultural sample of 1,575 U.S. (n =675) and South Korean adults (n = 900). We assessed nine interpersonal ER strategies—reappraisal, acceptance, problem-solving, calming, distraction, rumination, expressive suppression, situation selection, and savoring—and the diversity of the IER strategy repertoire, measured by intraindividual standard deviation (iSD), with higher iSD indicating greater diversity in received ER support based on Fresco et al. (2006).

Results identified five distinct clusters. The moderate ER-receiving group (n = 482), which had the largest number of participants, received a moderate level of interpersonal ER support with relatively low diversity. The minimally ER-supported group (n = 377) reported receiving the least frequent help from others across strategies. The constructive ER-supported group (n = 365) received high levels of reappraisal, acceptance, and problem-solving support while receiving the least encouragement for expressive suppression. The targeted emotion-suppressing/comforting group (n = 177) received support primarily focused on calming and encouraging suppression of emotional expressions. Finally, the broadly ER-supported group (n = 174) consisted of individuals whose close others provided the most diverse range of ER strategies.

Mirroring prior findings on intraindividual ER patterns, the targeted emotion-suppressing/comforting group, with the lowest interpersonal ER diversity and highest focus on suppression, reported greatest psychological distress despite receiving the highest levels of calming support from close others (which can be an adaptive form of IER), when controlling for age, gender, and culture. Furthermore, the constructive ER-supported group reported the lowest distress and the highest levels of perceived social support among all groups. These patterns were consistent across both cultures. These results suggest that the type of support received from close others in ER plays a critical role in one's psychological well-being. Such support can be less helpful when it is restricted and focused on quickly improving emotional experiences or expressions. However, it can be beneficial when close others support individuals in processing and accepting their emotions.