Suppression, expression, rumination and affective priming effect

Abstract

The role of emotional suppression and expression in the affective priming effect was addressed by examining the consequences of expressing one's emotions toward the primes within the framework of the affect misattribution procedure (AMP: Payne, Cheng, Govorun, & Stewart, 2005). Consistent with previous findings, pleasant or unpleasant picture primes influenced subsequent evaluations of unrelated neutral targets, despite blatant warning to ignore the primes. Interestingly, however, the affective priming effect disappeared when participants expressed their affective responses toward the primes. Moreover, the effect of negative emotional expression was moderated by individual differences in self-rumination. These findings suggest that an affective priming effect ensues when affect is kept unexpressed.