(PS1-41) Emotion Regulation Difficulties Associated with Trait and State Depersonalization Among Individuals High in Social Anxiety

Depersonalization, a mild form of dissociation marked by the subjective experience of unreality with respect to one’s sense of self, is understudied yet common among individuals high in social anxiety. Depersonalization is thought to protect against high levels of anxiety by blunting the intensity of the emotional experience, suggesting that anxious individuals who experience depersonalization may try to down-regulate their emotions differently from others. However, little research has investigated the links between depersonalization and emotion regulation (ER), including their relationship in everyday life. 82 undergraduate students (age: M = 19.80 years, SD = 1.31 years; 72% women; 46% White) high in trait social anxiety (based on Social Interaction Anxiety Scale score ≥ 34) completed the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale, Depression Anxiety Stress Scale-21, and Cambridge Depersonalization Scale-2 at baseline. Then, for 10 days, participants reported state anxiety and depersonalization intensity (1-10 slider scale) up to seven times per day via smartphone ecological momentary assessment. Participants’ mean state symptom severities across all 10 days were computed. Multiple linear regression models were constructed in a stepwise manner to test the effects of depersonalization on ER difficulty with and without controlling for other psychopathology symptoms (i.e., trait depression, anxiety, and stress; state anxiety), with separate models for each of the six ER difficulty domains assessed, and for trait vs. state predictors. Higher trait and state depersonalization severity were associated with significantly greater nonacceptance of emotional responses; trait: 95% CI for b [0.38, 2.65], state: 95% CI [0.56, 2.80]; and with more limited access to ER strategies; trait: 95% CI [0.55, 2.58], state: 95% CI [0.35, 2.42]. Higher trait (but not state) depersonalization severity was associated with greater impulse control difficulties, 95% CI [0.25, 1.82], and higher state (but not trait) depersonalization was associated with greater difficulty engaging in goal-directed behavior, 95% CI [0.00, 1.49]. Effects were nonsignificant after controlling for severity of psychopathology symptoms. Results suggest that socially anxious individuals who experience greater depersonalization may have specific ER deficits compared to peers less prone to depersonalization. This effect may be driven by individuals with higher depersonalization being more likely to have higher levels of depression, anxiety, and stress, which are themselves predictive of ER difficulties. Results from multilevel models examining the between- and within-person effects of state anxiety/depersonalization on current interest in regulating emotions and perceived utility of various ER strategies will also be presented.