Being with others and feeling happy: Emotional expressivity in everyday life

Abstract

An experience sampling study assessed the relation between psychological functioning in daily life and emotional expressivity as measured by the emotional expressivity scale (EES). Four hundred and twenty-nine participants carried personal digital assistants that signaled them 8 times daily to complete questionnaires assessing affect, activities, and social contact. As predicted, participants high in emotional expressivity were more likely to have elevated state positive affect, but not negative affect. These participants were also less likely to be alone and more likely to demonstrate better social functioning when with others. Cross-level interactions indicated that emotional expressivity moderated the association of social context and functioning in the moment. The findings support the validity of the EES as a measure of emotional expressivity and demonstrate the utility of experience sampling for describing personality traits in daily life.

Creative Lockdown? A Daily Diary Study of Creative Activity During Pandemics

“…It is also worth remembering that the variable "Information about COVID-19" we used was created from two items: one is how intensively participants searched for information, while the other how much time they spend talking about coronavirus. Maybe during the time of lockdown, when indirect contacts are restricted, exchanging information with others, even about the pandemic, give participants a sense of being supported, socially connected with others, and elevate their mood (see Burgin et al, 2012).…”

Reliability and validity of a self‐report emotional expressivity measure: The Japanese version of the Berkeley Expressivity Questionnaire

“…However, interventions using emotional expression are beneficial only when they match the individual's naturally elected coping style (Niles, Haltom, Mulvenna, Lieberman, & Stanton, 2014) and may be unsuitable for less emotionally expressive individuals. Emotional expressivity moderates the relationship between social context and social functioning in healthy student samples (Burgin et al, 2012). Emotional expressivity also moderates the relationship between intrusive thoughts and psychological distress in patients with cancer (Quartana, Laubmeier, & Zakowski, 2006).…”

6. Nonverbal skills in emotional communication

“…Being emotionally expressive is also associated with giving sympathetic responses (Eisenberg et al 1989). The link between emotional expressivity and social support may be partially explained by other research showing that individuals who are high in emotional expressivity tend to have more positive affect for others, which helps them function better in social settings (Burgin et al 2012).…”