Relationship between Beliefs about Crying and Intentional Crying

Abstract

Crying is considered a form of emotion regulation, with beliefs about its effects categorized as helpful, unhelpful-individual, and unhelpful-social. Although helpful beliefs have been linked to improved mood after crying, it remains unclear whether these beliefs are associated with the frequency of intentional crying or with mental health. This study examined 334 participants to explore these associations. Stronger helpful beliefs were associated with more frequent intentional crying, whereas unhelpful-individual and unhelpful-social beliefs were significantly associated with poorer mental health. These findings suggest that beliefs about crying relate to how crying is used as a regulatory strategy and to psychological well-being.