Cognitive Emotion Regulation, Rumination and State Anxiety: A Study Among Young Adults

Abstract

Cognitive emotion regulation (CER) is a critical aspect of how people regulate their emotions and state anxiety. This research considers the interplay among CER, rumination, and state anxiety, with four main goals: to investigate gender differences in using CER; to evaluate the association between rumination and state anxiety; to establish the predictive ability of rumination on state anxiety; and to consider the role of adaptive and maladaptive CER strategies on state anxiety levels. A cross-sectional design with 260 participants between the ages of 18 and 25 completed the Cognitive Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (CERQ), Perseverative Thinking Questionnaire (PTQ), and State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI). The results indicated that females scored higher in rumination (t(258) = -3.005, p =.003) and refocus on planning (t(258) = -2.207, p =.028) compared to males. Rumination was positively correlated with state anxiety (r =.576, p <.001) and predicted it significantly, accounting for 33.1% of the variance (R² =.331, F(1, 258) = 127.88, p <.001). Of CER strategies, self-blame and catastrophizing were predictive of greater anxiety (β = 4.273, β = 3.812; p <.001), whereas positive reappraisal was predictive of less anxiety (β = -7.368, p <.001). Positive refocusing and planning, although negatively related, were not significant predictors. The results highlight the significance of CER in regulation of anxiety and inform culturally sensitive mental health interventions.