Dyadic Emotion Regulation

Abstract

A robust approach to understanding dyadic emotion regulation needs to incorporate insights from affective science and relationship science. To date, research emerging from these two traditions has largely unfolded separately with limited cross-disciplinary collaboration. Here we review research from these two disciplinary perspectives, focusing on social support and dyadic coping in the close relationship literature and on extrinsic interpersonal emotion regulation in the affective science literature. We also present a framework of dyadic emotion regulation. This framework includes both affect-improving and affect-worsening processes that can be motivated by hedonic or instrumental goals and that can have effects not only on the emotions targeted for regulation but also on the relationship dynamics of the dyadic partners. We identify key gaps in the literature and directions for future research, and we conclude that recognition of the complex interplay between emotion regulation and relationship processes allows for deeper and more nuanced models of dyadic emotion regulation.