Macready, Rachel (2014) Effects of Experiential Avoidance on Positive and Negative Emotional Well-Being. Coursework Masters thesis, University of Southern Queensland. (Unpublished)
Abstract
Two newly developed scales were used to explore the relationship between the broad constructs of experiential avoidance (EA) and well-being. Subjective well-being (SWB) is an area of growing interest among both clinicians and researchers (Diener, 2000). The affective components that make up SWB are referred to as emotional well-being (EWB) consisting of positive and negative affect (Diener, 1984). The presence of positive emotions is crucial within the subject of well-being (Diener, Lucas, & Oishi, 2002). The study utilises newly developed scale of EWB developed by Simsek (2011) the Emotional Well-Being Scale (EWBS). This measurement, while capturing the affective evaluations of individuals with intentionality in mind. Previous measures have inadequately measured the specific context of affective evaluations. Additionally, the EWBS makes advances in the field by explicitly comprising of both positive and negative affect subscales. Likewise, the pervasive presence of EA has been well documented as a psychological process that is known for its influence on affective states. Ultimately, EA has the potential to disrupt the quality of one’s life through the encouraged avoidance of negative internal experiences (Hayes, Wilson, Gifford, Follette, & Strosahl, 1996). The disordered process of EA has been found by recent research to be associated with higher negative affect and lower positive affect. The study similarly utilises a new measure of EA known as the Multidimensional Experiential Avoidance Questionnaire (MEAQ; Gamez, Chmielewski, Kotov, Ruggero, & Watson, 2011), which boasts that several discrete dimensions of EA are capable of being measured separately. The MEAQ and EWBS were administered to an invited sample of full-time university students (N = 106) and a community convenience sample (N = 114), in order to explore the relationship between the individual dimensions of EA and EWB. Partially supported of the research hypothesis were achieved by two separate hierarchical regression analyses. Specifically, the Distress Aversion and Repression/Denial subscales of the MEAQ were significantly negatively related to the Positive Emotional Well-Being subscale (PEWB) of the EWBS. Distress Aversion and Repression/Denial subscales were significantly positively related to the Negative Emotional Well-Being subscale (NEWB) of the EWBS. The Distress Endurance subscale of the MEAQ was shown to be significantly positively related to PEWB, whereas the NEWB was significantly negatively related to Distress Endurance, and Distraction/Suppression, which was an unexpected finding. The results added partial construct validity to the use of both scales in future research and in clinical settings. Further, the presence of EA, represented by the subscales of Distress Aversion and Repression/Denial, was associated with higher levels of NEWB and lower levels of PEWB. Whilst the absence of EA, represented by the Distress Endurance subscale (i.e., defined as the willingness to behave effectively in the face of distress) was associated with lower levels of NEWB and higher levels of PEWB. The results added to the body of knowledge, which supports therapeutic practices that focus on enhancing positive affect as a treatment for EA, such as Acceptance and Commitment Therapy. Additionally, future research using a larger more representative sample of clinical and community samples was also considered.
![]() |
Statistics for this ePrint Item |
Item Type: | Thesis (Non-Research) (Coursework Masters) |
---|---|
Item Status: | Live Archive |
Additional Information: | Current UniSQ staff and students can request access to this thesis. Please email research.repository@unisq.edu.au with a subject line of SEAR thesis request and provide: Name of the thesis requested and Your name and UniSQ email address |
Faculty/School / Institute/Centre: | Historic - Faculty of Health, Engineering and Sciences - School of Psychology, Counselling and Community (1 Jul 2013 - 31 Dec 2014) |
Supervisors: | Murray Thompson |
Qualification: | Master of Psychology (Clinical) |
Date Deposited: | 14 Oct 2025 05:31 |
Last Modified: | 14 Oct 2025 05:31 |
Uncontrolled Keywords: | Emotional Well-Being; Experiential Avoidance; Emotional Well-Being; Scale; Multidimensional Experiential Avoidance Questionnaire; Positive Emotional Well-Being; Negative Emotional Well-Bing; |
Fields of Research (2008): | 17 Psychology and Cognitive Sciences > 1799 Other Psychology and Cognitive Sciences > 179999 Psychology and Cognitive Sciences not elsewhere classified |
Fields of Research (2020): | 52 PSYCHOLOGY > 5299 Other psychology > 529999 Other psychology not elsewhere classified |
URI: | https://sear.unisq.edu.au/id/eprint/52525 |
Actions (login required)
![]() |
Archive Repository Staff Only |