Purposely stoic, accidentally alone? Self-monitoring moderates the relationship between emotion suppression and loneliness

Publication date: 15 October 2019Source: Personality and Individual Differences, Volume 149Author(s): C. Veronica Smith, Elicia C. Lair, Sean M. O'BrienAbstractResearchers have claimed that loneliness is a public health crisis, resulting in higher rates of morbidity and mortality. Previous research has found that self-monitoring (one's tendency to be aware of and fit one's behavior to norms of social appropriateness) and emotion suppression (the act of inhibiting behavioral and non-verbal expressions of emotion) are predictors of increased loneliness. The current study examined these connections further, proposing that the link between suppression and loneliness is moderated by self-monitoring. Undergraduate students (N = 142) completed measures of loneliness, self-monitoring, and emotion suppression. The hypothesized interaction was significant. Supplementary analyses indicated that at average and high levels of self-monitoring, higher suppression is significantly associated with higher loneliness, but this association was not found at low levels of self-monitoring. This is some of the first evidence to demonstrate a link between emotion suppression, self-monitoring, and loneliness. Replications in other age groups are recommended along with future research designed to examine mechanism of effect between these variables.

Source: Personality and Individual Differences - June 19, 2019 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Source Type: research