Psychometric Properties of the Korean version of the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (K-ERQ) in a Clinical Sample

Abstract

ObjectiveThe Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (ERQ) is one of the widely used instruments to assess emotion regulation skills in many countries, including Korea. However, its psychometric properties have not been validated within this population. Also, the ERQ has increasingly been used in studies with psychiatric patients despite a general lack of validation in clinical settings. Therefore, the present study aimed to investigate the psychometric properties of the Korean version of the ERQ (K-ERQ) using a clinical sample in Korea. Methods One hundred and ninety-three psychiatric patients completed a packet of self-report measures, including K-ERQ, K-BDI-II, K-ASI-3, PCL-5-K, AUDIT-K. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was administered to investigate the factor structure of the K-ERQ, and internal reliability and validity were examined. Results Results of the CFA supported the two-factor structure, but only after the removal of one item. The K-ERQ showed good internal consistency reliability, and its concurrent validity was also confirmed. Cognitive reappraisal was negatively correlated with depression and alcohol use disorder-related symptoms, and expressive suppression was positively correlated with depression, anxiety sensitivity, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)-related symptoms and alcohol use disorder-related symptoms. Significant group differences were found in the use of emotion regulation strategies; patients with PTSD reported the higher level of cognitive reappraisal than patients with depressive disorders, bipolar disorders, and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder. Conclusion The 9-itemed K-ERQ is a reliable and valid tool to assess the emotion regulation strategies in a Korean clinical sample. Our study also adds preliminary evidence on the usefulness of the ERQ in clinical settings.

Emotion dysregulation in bipolar disorder compared to other mental illnesses: a systematic review and meta-analysis

“…One study (Rowland et al, 2013a ) compared BD with schizophrenia using the CERQ. Three studies (Kim, Kim, & Kim, 2022 ; Masi et al, 2021 ; Sesso et al, 2021 ) compared BD with ADHD using the ERQ (Kim et al, 2022 ), the Reactivity, Intensity, Polarity and Stability questionnaire (RIPoSt-40) (Masi et al, 2021 ), or the RIPoSt youth version (Sesso et al, 2021 ). Two studies (Becerra et al, 2013 ; Kim, Yu, Lee, & Kim, 2012 ) compared BD with anxiety disorders adopting the DERS (Becerra et al, 2013 ) or the RRS (Kim et al, 2012 ).…”

“…Two studies (Becerra et al, 2013;Kim, Yu, Lee, & Kim, 2012) compared BD with anxiety disorders adopting the DERS (Becerra et al, 2013) or the RRS (Kim et al, 2012). Finally, one study (Kim et al, 2012) compared BD with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) using the ERQ (Kim et al, 2022). Detailed characteristics of these studies are provided in Table 1 and in online Supplementary Materials S1.…”