Language of Perseverative Thoughts Predicts Momentary Selection of Emotion Regulation Strategies

Perseverative thought (PT), a multi-dimensional thought process, robustly predicts internalizing psychopathology. PT also predicts general emotion regulation (ER) deficits, which may be due to problematic selection of ER strategies, including engagement (i.e., reappraisal, acceptance, and problem-solving) and disengagement strategies (i.e., experiential avoidance, distraction, expressive suppression). This study investigates how different PT dimensions, captured through written language, predict subsequent ER strategy selection. Participants included 413 college students who completed an experimental paradigm once a day for ten days. Each night, they underwent a PT induction writing task, were instructed to regulate their emotions, and reported on their ER strategy use. We used multilevel logistic regression to examine the associations between seven PT dimensions (i.e., valence, self-focus, interpersonal, discrepancy, situational certainty, temporal orientation, and repetitiveness) and six ER strategies. At the within-individual level, five PT dimensions predicted an increased likelihood of disengagement strategies and a decreased likelihood of selecting engagement strategies, whereas one dimension predicted the opposite pattern. Individuals may respond to PT episodes by selecting ER strategies to avoid negative thoughts or experiences rather than processing them. Most PT dimensions predicted momentary ER selections in a pattern that, if becoming habitual and indiscriminate, relates to higher psychopathology. Overall, this study supported PT dimensions as important contextual features for understanding ER processes. Additionally, language-based measures of PT yielded meaningful associations with emotional processes in daily life, highlighting the benefits of computational linguistics and a dimensional approach to risk factors for psychopathology.