Expressive suppression is best described as what?

Expressive suppression is best described as what?

• A. Reinterpreting a situation to alter its emotional impact.
• B. Inhibiting outward signs of emotion.
• C. Rumination on distress and its causes.
• D. Mindfulness-based attention to reduce reactivity to emotional stimuli.

Answer: (B)

Expressive suppression is a way people regulate emotion by holding back outward signs of how they feel. It focuses on hiding facial expressions, voice, and other visible signals, rather than changing the actual experience inside. So the inner emotion may still be present, but the external display is dampened. This can be useful in social settings where showing strong emotion could be costly, yet it often comes with cognitive effort and can lessen the clarity of social communication. The other strategies involve altering the emotion itself (reinterpreting the situation), dwelling on distress (rumination), or observing experiences with mindful attention to reduce reactivity—none of which are about suppressing outward expressions.

Expressive suppression is a way people regulate emotion by holding back outward signs of how they feel. It focuses on hiding facial expressions, voice, and other visible signals, rather than changing the actual experience inside. So the inner emotion may still be present, but the external display is dampened. This can be useful in social settings where showing strong emotion could be costly, yet it often comes with cognitive effort and can lessen the clarity of social communication. The other strategies involve altering the emotion itself (reinterpreting the situation), dwelling on distress (rumination), or observing experiences with mindful attention to reduce reactivity—none of which are about suppressing outward expressions.