Abstract
Richards and Gross show expressive suppression during upsetting film clips impaired memory for the content — keeping cool on the outside taxed cognition on the inside.
Richards, J. M., & Gross, J. J. (2000). Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 79(3), 410–424. DOI
Key findings
- Suppression cost — Suppressing visible emotion while watching clips hurt recall versus neutral controls.
- Reappraisal lighter — Reappraising meaning showed less memory cost — changing interpretation beat masking expression.
- Masking price — Maintaining composure can split attention — performance and encoding compete.
- Regulation choice — How you regulate — suppress versus reframe — changes what you remember later.
Limits
Lab film paradigm — vivid mechanism; not every real-world stressor identical.
Application
When you white-knuckle composure and later blank on details — suppression may have bought calm at a memory cost. See Self-censorship.