Interpersonal emotion regulation as a mechanism of social support in depression

Abstract

Although social support is widely considered to be protective against depression, the mechanisms through which it acts on depressive psychopathology are not well known. This integrative review argues that emotion regulation serves as such a mechanism. First, the literature on the effects of social support on depression is reviewed, with an emphasis on open empirical questions regarding mechanisms linking support and depression. Then, the literature on emotion regulation is reviewed, highlighting its importance as a mechanism in the psychopathology of depression. Finally, potential interpersonal influences on depressive emotion regulation and dysregulation are suggested, drawing from theory and research on psychotherapy and on close relationships. The review suggests that emotion regulation is responsive to interpersonal influences, and that this responsiveness may account for the effects of social support on depression. Implications of an interpersonal perspective for basic and clinical research on depression, close relationships, and emotion regulation are discussed.