Graduation Year
2025
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree
Ph.D.
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
Degree Granting Department
Psychology
Major Professor
Jonathan Rottenberg, Ph.D.
Co-Major Professor
Vicky Phares, Ph.D.
Committee Member
Marc Karver, Ph.D.
Committee Member
Joseph Vandello, Ph.D.
Committee Member
Fallon Goodman, Ph.D.
Committee Member
Brent Small, Ph.D.
Keywords
cognitive reappraisal, emotion malleability beliefs, psychache, social ostracism, suicide risk
Abstract
Social ostracism is linked to adverse psychological outcomes, including increased suicide risk among college students. This study examined a manipulation targeting emotion malleability beliefs and its effect on psychological outcomes after a lab-induced social ostracism task (Cyberball). Psychache, a well-established predictor for suicide risk, was examined as a potential moderator variable. College students (N = 243) were randomly assigned to either an experimental condition, which presented information stating that emotions are malleable, or a neutral control condition. Participants in the experimental condition reported a greater increase in beliefs about emotional malleability, greater use of cognitive reappraisal, and less perceived burdensomeness in response to social ostracism than those in the control condition; however, the effect sizes were small. In addition, the level of psychache moderated the impact of the manipulation on post-ostracism psychological adjustment. More specifically, among individuals with low psychache levels, positive affect was marginally higher in the experimental condition than in the control condition, whereas among individuals with high levels of psychache, no difference in positive affect was observed. While these data suggest that this manipulation has the potential to enhance psychological functioning, the observed impact was limited, and there was no evidence of a differential benefit for individuals with elevated suicide risk. Future research is needed on tailored approaches to improve the effectiveness of emotion malleability interventions.
Scholar Commons Citation
Tong, Bingjie, "Do Emotion Malleability Beliefs Buffer Social Ostracism? An Experimental Investigation" (2025). USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations.
https://digitalcommons.usf.edu/etd/10906
