Positive emotion regulation and well-being: Comparing the impact of eight savoring and dampening strategies

• Published in: Personality and individual differences Vol. 49; no. 5; pp. 368 - 373
• Main Authors: Quoidbach, Jordi, Berry, Elizabeth V., Hansenne, Michel, Mikolajczak, Moïra
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Kidlington Elsevier Ltd 01.10.2010; Elsevier
• Subjects: Affectivity. Emotion; Biological and medical sciences; Dampening; Emotion regulation; Emotional regulation; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Happiness; Life satisfaction; Personality. Affectivity; Positive affect; Positive emotion; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychology. Psychophysiology; Rumination; Savoring; Well-being; Wellbeing; Dampening; Happiness; Well-being; Savoring; Emotion regulation; Positive emotion; Human; Affect affectivity; Self regulation; Strategy; Emotion emotionality; Psychological well-being
• ISSN: 0191-8869; 1873-3549
• DOI: 10.1016/j.paid.2010.03.048

Although previous research has uncovered various ways people can savor or dampen their positive emotional experiences, the unique impact of each of these strategies on well-being remains unknown. The present study examines the relative impact of the main positive emotion regulation strategies on two components of well-being: positive affect (PA) and life satisfaction (LS). A total of 282 participants completed measures of PA, LS, overall happiness, and the savoring and dampening strategies they typically used. Results show that when experiencing positive events, focusing attention on the present moment and engaging in positive rumination promoted PA, whereas telling others promoted LS. In contrast, being distracted diminished PA, while focusing on negative details and engaging in negative rumination reduced LS. As the strategies targeted different components of well-being, our results further show that regulatory diversity (i.e., typically using various strategies rather than a few specific ones), was beneficial to overall happiness. Our findings suggest that there are several independent ways to make the best (or the worst) out of our positive emotions, and that the cultivation of multiple savoring strategies might be required to achieve lasting happiness.