How the comforting process works: Alleviating emotional distress through conversationally induced reappraisals

Publisher Summary For everyday hurts and hassles, the informal communicative assistance one receives from the network of personal relationships can be effective at helping one overcome various forms of distress. This chapter discusses the features of more and less effective comforting messages; reviews the appraisal theories of emotion focusing particularly on how affective distress is conceptualized by appraisal theories; and then presents a reformulation of the comforting process from the perspective of appraisal theory, specifying how supportive conversations can assist distressed persons in coping with their emotions. Analyses of emotional distress, the comforting process, and, especially, psychological effects of comforting efforts can be developed most productively in the context of appraisal theories of emotion. Associated with each particular emotion is a core relational theme, a specific appraisal pattern, and a distinct action tendency. The chapter also describes how a variety of conversational behaviors and message strategies can help accomplish critical functions in constituting and conducting effective supportive interactions.

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