Emotion dysregulation and re-regulation: predictors of relationship intimacy and distress

Over the past 20 years, our understanding of emotional processes has grown\nrapidly. Within the study of emotion, a key area of interest has been how individuals\nsucceed or fail in regulating emotional responses. Although still in its early\ndevelopment, researchers in this field have made progress in identifying the\nneurological, psychological, and social processes that underlie emotion regulation and\ndysregulation. Despite these advances, relatively few of these insights have been\nconsidered in light of the highly emotional terrain of couple distress. In the present\nstudy, one hundred and eight cohabiting couples rated themselves and their partner on\nkey emotion regulation variables (e.g., the tendency to lose control of one??s emotions\nand the ability to restore emotional control and equilibrium). Analyses using the Actor-\nPartner Interdependence Model (APIM) showed strong links between these variables\nand individuals?? experience of intimacy and distress in their relationship. Results\nsuggest that there are multiple avenues through which emotion regulation impacts a\ngiven individual??s relationship functioning; these include: (1) the individual??s self\nperceived capacity for emotion regulation, (2) their partner??s self-perceived capacity for\nemotion regulation, (3) the individual??s perception of their partner??s capacity for\nemotion regulation, and (4) the partner??s perception of the individual??s emotion\nregulation abilities.