title: The paradoxical effects of suppressing anxious thoughts during imminent threat.
abstract: In line with the ironic processing theory of Wegner (Psychol. Rev. 101 (1994) 34), it is often argued that the suppression of anxiety-related thoughts results in a paradoxical increase of anxiety and thought intrusions, both after and during the thought suppression. In a sample of undergraduate students (14 men, 18 women), we investigated the effects of suppressing anxious thoughts about an imminent painful electrocutaneous stimulus. During thought suppression, self-reported anxiety and frequency of anxious thoughts did not increase, and duration of anxious thoughts decreased. After thought suppression, participants experienced an increase in self-reported anxiety and the frequency of anxious thoughts. There was no effect upon thought duration. The results support the idea that suppression of anxiety-related thoughts may result in a paradoxical increase in anxiety, and may cause and/or maintain anxiety problems.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Ghent University, Belgium. ernst.koster@UGent.be
authors.forename: Ernst H W
authors.initials: EH
authors.lastname: Koster
authors.forename: Eric
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Rassin
authors.forename: Geert
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Crombez
authors.forename: Gérard W B
authors.initials: GW
authors.lastname: Näring
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001007:Anxiety / Q000523:psychology*; D003674:Defense Mechanisms; D005239:Fear / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007389:Internal-External Control; D008297:Male; D012094:Repression, Psychology; D013850:Thinking