Background and objectives

Research demonstrates that autogenous (AO) and reactive obsessions (RO) differ in obsessional content; however, no experimental research has examined differences in emotion generation and regulation. Characterizing this taxonomy with respect to emotion generation and regulation could refine conceptualizations of obsessionality and optimize clinical interventions.

Methods

Seventy undergraduates were randomly assigned to imagine a personally-relevant AO or RO. Subsequently, emotional reactivity was assessed. Participants then rated their emotion regulation efforts and the degree to which the intrusion violated their values.

Results

Broadly aligning with expectations, bootstrapped linear regression models indicated that AOs led to a significant increase in self-conscious emotions (guilt, shame, and embarrassment), and these effects were stronger for those whose values were more severely threatened by the intrusion. A conditional process analysis revealed that the relationship between the AO condition and emotion regulation difficulties was explained by an increase in negative emotional reactivity, and the strength of this effect depended upon the degree of conflict with participants’ values.

Limitations

The use of an analogue sample, and minimal emotional reactivity in the RO condition, threaten the ecological and external validity of the study.

Conclusions

The current study employed a novel experimental design demonstrating a meaningful relationship between AOs and both emotional activation and regulation. Results highlight the relevance of self-conscious emotions to the conceptualization of AOs and the utility of addressing them in the context of exposure therapy.

中文翻译：

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入侵诱导后的情绪产生和调节：对禁忌或自生痴迷的影响。

背景和目标

研究表明，自生 (AO) 和反应性强迫症 (RO) 在强迫症的内容上有所不同；然而，没有实验研究检查过情绪产生和调节的差异。在情绪产生和调节方面对这种分类法进行表征可以完善强迫症的概念并优化临床干预。

方法

70 名本科生被随机分配想象一个与个人相关的 AO 或 RO。随后，评估情绪反应。然后，参与者对他们的情绪调节努力以及入侵违反他们价值观的程度进行了评分。

结果

自举线性回归模型与预期大致一致，表明 AO 导致自我意识情绪（内疚、羞耻和尴尬）的显着增加，并且这些影响对于那些价值观受到入侵威胁更严重的人来说更强烈。条件过程分析表明，AO 条件与情绪调节困难之间的关系可以通过负面情绪反应的增加来解释，这种影响的强度取决于与参与者价值观的冲突程度。

限制

在 RO 条件下使用模拟样本和最小的情绪反应会威胁研究的生态和外部有效性。

结论

当前的研究采用了一种新颖的实验设计，证明了 AO 与情绪激活和调节之间存在有意义的关系。结果强调了自我意识情绪与 AO 概念化的相关性，以及在暴露疗法的背景下解决这些问题的效用。