Positive Emotion Dysregulation in Posttraumatic Stress Disorder

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Psychiatry
• Trauma Studies

Background:

• Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is linked to emotion regulation (ER) difficulties, including challenges with positive emotions.
• Research on positive ER in PTSD remains limited, despite its potential impact on the disorder.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate dysfunctional positive emotion responses in PTSD patients.
• To determine the association between positive ER and PTSD symptom severity.

Main Methods:

• Compared PTSD patients (N=59) with healthy controls (HC, N=58) on self-reported emotion regulation.
• Utilized the Responses to Positive Affect Questionnaire for positive ER assessment.
• Employed the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale and Response Styles Questionnaire for negative ER assessment.

Main Results:

• PTSD patients exhibited deficient positive and negative ER compared to HC.
• Both dampening of positive emotions and positive rumination correlated with PTSD symptom severity.
• Dampening predicted PTSD symptom severity independently of depressive symptoms and negative rumination.

Conclusions:

• Findings support and extend previous evidence of dysfunctional positive ER in PTSD.
• Deficits in positive ER may play a role in PTSD onset and maintenance.
• Therapeutic interventions should consider addressing positive emotion regulation skills in PTSD treatment.