The Influence of Emotion Regulation on Estimation Strategy Execution in Individuals with Trait Anxiety

Area of Science:

• Cognitive Psychology
• Anxiety Research
• Emotional Regulation

Background:

• Negative emotions can impair cognitive task performance.
• Limited research exists on how negative emotions affect estimation strategy execution in individuals with trait anxiety.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the impact of negative emotions on estimation strategy execution in individuals with varying levels of trait anxiety.
• To examine the effectiveness of different emotion regulation strategies (expression inhibition, cognitive reappraisal) on this execution speed.

Main Methods:

• 803 college students completed the Trait Anxiety Scale.
• Participants with high and low trait anxiety performed a double-digit multiplication estimation task.
• Emotion regulation strategies were applied to assess their influence on performance.

Main Results:

• Individuals with high trait anxiety exhibited slower estimation strategy execution under negative emotions compared to those with low trait anxiety.
• Both expression inhibition and cognitive reappraisal improved execution speed in low trait anxiety individuals.
• Cognitive reappraisal, but not expression inhibition, significantly enhanced execution speed in high trait anxiety individuals.

Conclusions:

• Emotion regulation strategies differentially moderate arithmetic strategy execution in individuals with trait anxiety.
• Cognitive reappraisal demonstrates a beneficial effect on estimation strategy execution, particularly for individuals with high trait anxiety.