Date of Award
Spring 6-14-2025
Document Type
Undergraduate Honors Thesis
Degree Name
B.S. in Psychology
Organizational Unit
College of Arts Humanities and Social Sciences, Psychology
First Advisor
Kateri McRae
Copyright Statement / License for Reuse
All Rights Reserved.
Keywords
Narrative, Reappraisal, Emotion, Storytelling
Abstract
Emotion regulation strategies, including cognitive reappraisal, are essential for maintaining psychological well-being. While prior work has demonstrated the effectiveness of reappraisal and begun to dig into different specific aspects such as the goals and structure of reappraisals, little is known about how the narrative quality of generated reappraisals impacts their success. The present, preregistered study investigated whether the quality of reappraisal narratives is associated with decreases in negative emotion following reappraisal. Participants across two studies (N = 342) wrote about a recent stressor and then reappraised the event by writing a redemption narrative. Narratives were rated for qualities such as cohesion, fluency, and story arc. Results from one sample (Study 2) indicated that higher-quality narratives were significantly associated with greater decreases in negative emotion. Trait-level storytelling ability was also associated with reappraisal effectiveness. However, these findings were not replicated in a separate sample (Study 1), suggesting potential sample-specific effects. Exploratory analyses identified cohesion and story arc as particularly relevant features in effective reappraisal narratives. These findings suggest that narrative structure may enhance the emotional benefits of cognitive reappraisal and highlight the potential of narrative-based emotion regulation interventions.
Copyright Date
6-4-2025
Publication Statement
Copyright is held by the author. User is responsible for all copyright compliance.
Rights Holder
Makabe Aberle
Provenance
Received from Author
File Format
application/pdf
Language
English (eng)
Extent
31 pgs
File Size
259 KB
Recommended Citation
Aberle, Makabe, "Storytelling in Reappraisal: How Narratives Can Change Emotion" (2025). Undergraduate Theses, Capstones, and Recitals. 61.
https://digitalcommons.du.edu/undergraduate_theses/61