The association between emotion malleability beliefs and severe psychological distress stratified by sex, age, and presence of any psychiatric disorders

Yohei Sasaki; Ryo Okubo; Kazuyoshi Takeda; Satoru Ikezawa; Takahiro Tabuchi; Kentaro Shirotsuki

doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1251945

The association between emotion malleability beliefs and severe psychological distress stratified by sex, age, and presence of any psychiatric disorders

Front Psychol. 2023 Oct 10:14:1251945. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1251945. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Yohei Sasaki¹, Ryo Okubo², Kazuyoshi Takeda³, Satoru Ikezawa⁴, Takahiro Tabuchi⁵, Kentaro Shirotsuki¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Human Sciences, Faculty of Human Sciences, Musashino University, Koto-ku, Japan.
² Department of Psychiatry and Neurology, National Hospital Organization Obihiro Hospital, Hokkaido, Japan.
³ Department of Clinical Data Science, Clinical Research and Education Promotion Division, National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry, Tokyo, Japan.
⁴ Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan.
⁵ Cancer Control Center, Osaka International Cancer Institute, Osaka, Japan.

Abstract

Background: Recent studies have shown an association between psychological distress and emotion malleability beliefs, meaning mindsets about whether one's emotions are fixed or changeable. However, most studies have not examined the association between these beliefs and sociodemographic factors.

Methods: A nationwide cross-sectional Internet survey of residents of Japan aged 15-79 years was conducted using sampling weights for national estimates to investigate the association between emotion malleability beliefs and sociodemographic factors and between fixed beliefs and severe psychological distress (SPD). SPD was defined as a Kessler 6 Scale score of ≥13. Adjusted odds ratios for SPD were calculated considering potential confounders. Further analyses were stratified by sex, age and presence of any psychiatric disorder.

Results: The analysis included 23,142 participants (female, 48.64%). Fixed beliefs were associated with female sex, age < 45 years, and presence of psychiatric disorders. These beliefs were associated with SPD, and additional analysis showed stronger associations with SPD among female respondents, respondents aged 45-59 years, and those aged ≥60 years.

Conclusion: Results indicate that female sex, age < 45 years, and current mental disorders were associated with fixed emotion malleability beliefs. Associations between fixed emotion malleability beliefs and SPD were particularly strong among female respondents and people aged ≥45 years compared with the general population. Our study extends the association between emotion malleability beliefs and psychological health to the general population. Future studies should explore mechanisms underlying individual differences in emotion beliefs.

Keywords: emotion belief; emotion malleability beliefs; emotion regulation; mindset; psychological distress.

Grants and funding

This secondary analysis was funded by the Japan Health Research Promotion Bureau Research Fund [grant number (2020-B-09)]. This fund had no role in the study design, in the collection, analysis, or interpretation of data, in the writing of the report, or in the decision to submit the article for publication. JACSIS study was funded by the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) KAKENHI Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (Grant Nos. 18H03107, 18H03062, 20H00040, and 17H00947); Grant-in-Aid for Challenging Research (Grant No. 19K22788) and the JSPS Grant-in-Aid for Early-Career Scientists (Grant Nos. 19K2017 and 22K17844).