Negative affect as mediator between emotion regulation and medically unexplained symptoms

Area of Science:

• Psychiatry and Psychology
• Medical Sociology

Background:

• Emotion regulation (ER) research in medically unexplained physical symptoms (MUS) is limited.
• Understanding ER deficits is crucial for addressing the complex interplay of physical and mental health in MUS.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare ER skills across four groups: MUS patients without depression, MUS patients with major depressive disorder (MDD), MDD patients, and healthy controls.
• To investigate the mediating roles of depression and anxiety in the relationship between ER and somatization within MUS patient groups.

Main Methods:

• Utilized the Emotion-Regulation Skills Questionnaire (ERSQ) and other self-report measures.
• Collected data from 138 MUS patients, 114 MUS+MDD patients, 106 MDD patients, and 100 healthy controls.
• Employed multiple mediation analyses to examine depression and anxiety as mediators.

Main Results:

• MUS patients exhibited lower ER skills than healthy controls but higher skills than MDD and MUS+MDD patients.
• No significant difference in ER skills was found between MDD and MUS+MDD groups.
• Depression and anxiety significantly mediated the relationship between ER and somatization in MUS patients, with the direct effect of ER becoming non-significant.

Conclusions:

• Patients with MUS and comorbid MDD show greater ER deficits compared to MUS patients without MDD.
• Depression and anxiety significantly influence ER deficits in MUS patients.
• Emotion regulation training may benefit MUS patients with comorbid mental health conditions.