2000/07/01 by Randy J. Larsen · 8 citations
Psychology · #Child and Adolescent Psychosocial and Emotional Development #Mental Health Research Topics #Psychological Well-being and Life Satisfaction
paper · doi:10.1207/s15327965pli1103_01
openalex publication_date 2000/07/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/31
Mood is distinguished from emotion, and mood regulation is distinguished from coping. A model of mood regulation is presented which draws on principles of control theory, which distinguishes between maximizing pleasure and minimizing psychic pain, and which emphasizes individual differences in several component subprocesses. A preliminary taxonomy of strategies and behaviors for remediating unpleasant affect is presented. Important topics for future research are discussed, including the assessment of successfulness of mood-regulation strategies, affective specificity in strategies (e.g., what works for anger might not work so well for sadness), and person specificity in strategies (e.g., socializing or helping others may be more effective strategies for extraverts than introverts). The relationship of mood regulation to overall life satisfaction and global happiness is discussed.