The Effectiveness of Emotion Regulation-Based Therapy on Emotion Regulation, Cognitive Flexibility, and Symptom Severity in Patients with Irritable Bowel Syndrome - 21/10/26

Doi : 10.1016/j.clinre.2026.102945

Hosein Haji Ali Akbari ^a , Abbas Mokhtari ^b,^⁎

^a Department of Clinical Psychology, Na.C., Islamic Azad University, Najafabad, Iran

^b Department of Health Psychology, Na.C., Islamic Azad University, Najafabad, Iran

^⁎ Corresponding Author: Abbas Mokhtari, Islamic Azad University Najafabad

Sous presse. Manuscrit accepté. Disponible en ligne depuis le Wednesday 21 October 2026

Highlights

•	Key Practitioner Message.
•	Emotion regulation difficulties may contribute to psychological distress and symptom burden in patients with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).
•	Emotion Regulation Therapy may improve emotional regulation processes and psychological adjustment among individuals with IBS.
•	Incorporating emotion-focused interventions into multidisciplinary IBS care may support better symptom management and patient well-being.
•	Clinicians should consider assessing emotion regulation difficulties when developing psychological interventions for patients with IBS.

Le texte complet de cet article est disponible en PDF.

Abstract

Objective

This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of emotion regulation-based therapy on emotion regulation, cognitive flexibility, and symptom severity in patients with irritable bowel syndrome.

Method

In this randomized controlled trial, 40 patients with irritable bowel syndrome (diagnosed according to Rome IV criteria) referred to Hospital (2025) were randomly assigned to experimental and control groups (20 per group); 36 participants completed the study (18 per group). The experimental group received ten 90-minute group Emotion Regulation-Based Therapy (ERT) sessions based on the Mennin and Fresco (2014) protocol, with treatment fidelity monitored through supervision after each session. The control group received usual medical care. Data were collected using the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (ERQ), Cognitive Flexibility Inventory (CFI), and Functional Bowel Disorder Symptom Severity Scale (FS-BSS) at pretest, posttest, and three-month follow-up, and analyzed using repeated-measures ANOVA in SPSS 26.

Results

The intervention significantly increased cognitive reappraisal and cognitive flexibility and decreased expressive suppression and symptom severity at posttest and follow-up compared with the control group (p < .05).

Conclusions

Emotion regulation-based therapy appears to be an effective adjunctive intervention for improving emotional and cognitive processes and reducing symptom severity in patients with irritable bowel syndrome.

Le texte complet de cet article est disponible en PDF.

Keywords : irritable bowel syndrome, symptom severity, emotion regulation-based therapy, emotion regulation, cognitive flexibility