Hiding emotions makes it difficult to build friendships

An Indian-origin researcher in the US says that people who keep too much of their emotions to themselves may find it difficult to build friendships. Sanjay Srivastava, a professor of psychology at the University of Oregon, says that even though suppressing emotions in new or difficult situations is understandable and perhaps appropriate, carrying the practice too far creates a vicious cycle where trusting others.Writing about the research work in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Srivastava revealed that the study looked at the social costs of emotional suppression among 278 college
freshman during their first term at a major West Coast university. The students — 58 percent female, 31 percent Asian, 60 percent white, 15 percent Hispanic, 7 percent black and 4 percent Native American — were contacted before they left home for college. Both before and after the transition, participants completed intensive assessments about their social and emotional experiences. They also nominated acquaintances who knew them well — virtually all new friends at college — to be surveyed about how the participants had adjusted. The study was carried out as part of a larger research project looking at how and why emotions matter for social adjustment, particularly in critical situations like the transition to college. The researchers behind it looked at expressive suppression, a strategy some people use to regulate emotions where they "basically just try to not show any emotion on the outside," Srivastava said. They took the aid of weekly diaries to obtained data on each participant's support from parents and friends, closeness with others, social satisfaction and academic satisfaction. At the end of the term, the participants again addressed their levels of support from friends, closeness, and social and academic satisfaction. The researchers also gathered corroborating information from friends who could give first-hand accounts of how the participants were faring at college. "Hiding your emotions is something that is very common but it's something that often is not the right thing to do. We're not saying never ever do this, but doing it may have negative effects in certain contexts, such as in transitioning into college. It may be hurting the formation of relationships," Srivastava said. According to him, data gathered from the participants and friends provided similar results. "People who were hiding or masking their emotions were having more difficult times forming close, meaningful, supportive and satisfying relationships," he said. He points out that studies conducted in the past have shown that people keep emotions hidden during times when they feel alienated or disconnected, or when a situation leaves them feeling out of control. For some individuals, those feelings may be more pronounced during major transitions, putting college freshmen at particular risk