Emotion Regulation Flexibility in Generalized Anxiety Disorder

People differ in their affective styles, which refers to habitual use of emotion regulation (ER) strategies. Previous research has shown that mental health is associated with an individual’s adaptive flexibility of emotion regulation strategies rather than any one particular ER strategy. Methods: The present study employed a person-centered approach using latent profile analyses to distinguish patients with generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) based on their responses on an affective styles measure. Results: Results of the latent profile analysis supported a three-class solution. Class 1 (26% of participants) identified individuals with the lowest scores of each affective style; class 2 (10%) included individuals with the highest scores of each style; and class 3 (64%) consisted of individuals who scored in the mid-range of each affective style. Greater ER flexibility was associated with better emotional functioning and quality of life. Conclusions: Patients with GAD differ in ER flexibility. The vast majority of patients appear to have only moderate or low ER flexibility. Those individuals with high ER flexibility show a greater quality of life and less emotional distress.