The effectiveness of cognitive emotion regulation strategies training on cognitive processing and distress tolerance of female students with generalized anxiety

The study aimed to explore teaching cognitive emotion regulation strategies' effectiveness on cognitive processing and distress tolerance in female students with general anxiety. The research method used was a pre-test-post-test experiment with a control group. The research sample comprised all second-year secondary school students with general anxiety in Ardabil city during the academic year of ۲۰۲۳-۲۰۲۴. Employing purposive sampling, thirty students with general anxiety were randomly split into the experimental (۱۵ individuals) and control (۱۵ individuals) groups. The experimental group received eight ۹۰-minute sessions of the cognitive emotion regulation strategies training program (Gross and Thompson, ۲۰۰۷), and the control group, which was on the waiting list, did not receive any training. In the data collection, Cruz's (۱۹۹۹) cognitive processing questionnaire and Simmons and Gaher's (۲۰۰۵) emotional distress tolerance scale were used. Data were analyzed using multivariate analysis of covariance. The results showed that after controlling the pre-test effects, there was a significant difference between the post-test average of the two groups in cognitive processing and distress tolerance. Training in cognitive emotion regulation strategies proves effective in enhancing cognitive processing and distress tolerance among students with general anxiety. Based on the research findings, utilizing cognitive emotion regulation training can help alleviate issues in individuals with generalized anxiety.

Keywords:

Teaching strategies for cognitive emotion regulation , cognitive processing , distress tolerance and general anxiety , آموزش راهبردهای تنظیم شناختی هیجان , پردازش شناختی , تحمل پریشانی و اضطراب فراگیر