Emotion regulation in depression: An overview of results using various methods

The number of studies examining the association between emotion regulation (ER) and depressive disorders is increasing. In this review, studies investigating the association between ER and depression that used questionnaires or ecological momentary assessment (EMA) are summarized and further examined using a meta-analytical approach. This examination reveals an ER profile marked by the frequent use of rumination, suppression, and avoidance, while at the same time reappraisal and problem-solving were less frequent. With moderate to large effect sizes, the relationship between depression and maladaptive strategies is well documented, whereas the effects found for adaptive forms were relatively small. EMA assessments confirm this profile. As EMA studies allow the measurement of ER parameters such as effectiveness and flexibility in addition to the frequency of strategy use, in future ER research such designs should be used more often.