Culture and Emotion Regulation

Emotion regulation involves attempts to influence emotional expressions or experiences. The nature of emotion regulation depends on people's values and theories of emotion, which vary by culture. We argue that there exist distinct cultural differences in the regulation of emotional expressions and of emotional experiences. People in more interdependent cultures (e.g., East Asian cultures) may be more motivated to regulate emotional expressions than people in more independent cultures (e.g., US culture), but the opposite may be true for regulating emotional experiences. Because interdependent cultures prioritize what happens between people, regulating emotional expressions, which happen between people, is prioritized. The “right” expressions in such cultures are typically of low intensity. In contrast, because independent cultures prioritize what happens within people, regulating emotional experiences, which happen within people, may be prioritized. The “right” experiences in such cultures are typically high in pleasure and low in displeasure. These priorities elicit different motivations, strategies, and implications of emotion regulation across cultures.