Emotional Clarity of Others but Not Self Relates to Extrinsic Interpersonal Emotion Regulation

In close relationships, individuals manage each other’s emotions (interpersonal emotion regulation [IER]). Emotional clarity of oneself (EC-self) is a key individual difference in the management of emotions and maintenance of well-being. Recent work has examined the relational benefits of emotional clarity of others (EC-others). However, less is known as to whether EC-self or EC-others have unique associations with relational behaviors, as well as intrapersonal ER (i.e., regulation of one’s own emotions) and extrinsic IER (i.e., regulation of other’s emotions). We leveraged two studies of friendship in emerging adults (Study 1 [S1] N = 674; Study 2 [S2] N = 374). In S1, EC-others was related to more positive and less negative friendship behaviors. Further, EC-others but not EC-self was associated with more emotionally supportive and less dismissive IER strategies (e.g., receptive listening, valuing, distraction, suppression). In S2, EC-self was associated with intrapersonal ER (less difficulty and greater perceived success in regulating one’s own emotions), while EC-others was associated with both intrapersonal ER (greater frequency, effort, and difficulty in regulating one’s own emotions) and IER (less perceived difficulty in helping a friend feel better). Findings suggest EC-self’s relevance for intrapersonal processes and EC-others’ importance for both intrapersonal and interpersonal processes.