Study of Emotion Regulation Based on Yogic Personality Using Implicit, Explicit, and Eye Tracking Techniques.

Area of Science:

• Psychology and Neuroscience
• Eastern Philosophy and Well-being

Background:

• Emotion regulation (ER) is crucial for overall well-being.
• Yogic personality traits, or gunas (sattva, rajas, tamas), are known to influence the expression of ER.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate how guna-related personality traits affect ER.
• To utilize explicit, implicit, and objective eye-tracking methods to examine ER expression.

Main Methods:

• Cross-sectional study with quota sampling across sattva, rajas, and tamas groups (n=99).
• Administered psychological scales (Mindfulness, Anxiety, Attachment, etc.) and the Emotional Regulation-Implicit Association Test (ER-IAT).
• Employed eye-tracking technology to objectively measure attention and physiological responses during emotional stimuli.

Main Results:

• The sattva group demonstrated superior ER strategies, positive ER-IAT scores, higher mindfulness, and lower anxiety.
• Eye-tracking revealed greater dwell time in emotional areas of interest for the sattva group and the lowest pupil dilation across conditions.
• Implicit measures (ER-IAT) showed positive associations for sattva and negative for rajas and tamas.

Conclusions:

• The sattva guna is strongly associated with healthy emotion regulation and positive psychological attributes.
• Cultivating sattva consciously is recommended for fostering a healthy emotional life.
• Findings highlight the interplay between personality, emotion regulation, and well-being.