Sharing is believing: Saying or writing reframes of emotional experiences boosts cognitive emotion regulation

Changing how we think about negative events can change how we feel – an emotion regulation strategy called cognitive reappraisal. This paradigmatic strategy is robustly connected to wellbeing, making it a key intervention target. However, generating new perspectives does not always mean we believe these reframes enough to change our feelings. Converging theories suggest that sharing reappraisals through language may help make them more convincing, and thus more effective. Three studies support this hypothesis (N1 = 202; N2 = 200; N3 = 200): Sharing reappraisals by saying them out loud (Studies 1-3) or writing them down (Study 2) produced lower negative affect than thinking reappraisals to oneself. Using qualitative and quantitative methods, we show that higher belief in reappraisals helped explain this benefit. Additionally, individuals high in interpersonal regulation experienced sustained benefits of sharing 1-3 days later. Results reveal a simple technique for improving emotion regulation: share your reappraisals.