Effects of emotion regulation strategies on anxiety during job interviews in Chinese college students
Background and objectives: Few studies related to the impact of different emotion regulation strategies on anxiety have used externally and ecologically valid emotion eliciting stimuli or Eastern populations. The present study compares the effects of reappraisal, suppression, and acceptance on anxiety induced by a simulated job interview in a Chinese sample. Methods: Eighty two subjects were randomly assigned to one of four instructions: reappraisal, suppression, acceptance, or no regulation strategies during a simulated job interview. Anxiety was assessed with an observer based behavior rating scale during the interview and the State Anxiety Inventory before, during, and after the interview. Results: A repeated measures MANOVA indicated a significantly greater reduction in anxiety in the reappraisal and acceptance groups compared to the control group during the interview (reappraisal: d 1.42; acceptance: d 1.30; each p .001) but not during the recovery stage. The suppression and control group did not differ in any stage. Suppression led to a higher (pmax .04) anxiety than reappraisal/acceptance in the anticipation (d 0.65/0.68) interview (d 0.87/0.79) and recovery stages (d 0.94/1.03) No significant differences were found between reappraisal and acceptance. Conclusions: In Chinese students reappraisal and acceptance seem to be more effective anxiety regulation strategies than suppression.
Anxiety, stress, and coping