Differential Psychology, Personality Psychology and Diagnostics, Department I - Psychology, University of Trier, Trier 54286, Germany.
J Affect Disord. 2022 Mar 15;301:30-35. doi: 10.1016/j.jad.2022.01.014. Epub 2022 Jan 4.
A self-critical personality style has been associated with psychological symptoms such as depression and anxiety. Self-critical people also tend to strive more anxiously for basic motives such as affiliation, achievement, power, and autonomy. This anxious motive enactment mediates the relationship between self-critical style and psychological symptoms that may, in turn, reinforce self-criticism. The present study examines whether action orientation (i.e., a high self-regulatory ability) offers a way out of this anxious cycle and buffers the detrimental effects of self-criticism.
A coaching- and therapy-based sample (N = 479, age: 14-71 years) was collected by a private German institute as part of the assessment, research, and training program. Data were collected online in form of questionnaires. We performed moderated mediation analysis to test our hypothesis.
The relationship between self-critical style and psychological symptoms was mediated by anxious motive enactment. Action orientation moderated the link between self-critical style and anxious motive enactment and buffered the effects of a self-critical style on both anxious motive enactment and psychological symptoms.
The study used cross-sectional data and should be followed-up longitudinally. Our data come only from self-report and could be extended to non-reactive measures.
The detrimental effects of a self-critical personality style in terms of anxious motive enactment and psychological symptoms are more severe when self-regulation (action orientation) is low. The findings have practical implications for clinical work because action orientation is malleable. The ability to self-regulate affect is comparatively easier to train than to ease self-critical people's inherent affect sensitivity.
自我批评的人格风格与抑郁和焦虑等心理症状有关。自我批评的人也往往更焦虑地追求基本动机，如归属、成就、权力和自主。这种焦虑动机的实施中介了自我批评风格和心理症状之间的关系，而这些症状反过来又可能强化自我批评。本研究探讨了行动导向（即高自我调节能力）是否能走出这种焦虑循环，并缓冲自我批评的不利影响。
一个由德国私人机构作为评估、研究和培训计划的一部分收集的基于辅导和治疗的样本（N=479，年龄：14-71 岁），通过在线问卷的形式收集数据。我们进行了调节中介分析来检验我们的假设。
自我批评风格与心理症状之间的关系是通过焦虑动机的实施来中介的。行动导向调节了自我批评风格与焦虑动机实施之间的联系，并缓冲了自我批评风格对焦虑动机实施和心理症状的影响。
该研究使用了横断面数据，应该进行纵向随访。我们的数据仅来自自我报告，可以扩展到非反应性测量。
当自我调节（行动导向）较低时，自我批评人格风格在焦虑动机实施和心理症状方面的不利影响更为严重。这些发现对临床工作具有实际意义，因为行动导向是可塑的。与缓解自我批评者固有的情感敏感性相比，调节情感的能力相对更容易训练。
