Publisher： Guilford Publications Inc
E-ISSN： 1943-2771|35|6|471-493
ISSN： 0736-7236
Source： Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, Vol.35, Iss.6, 2016-06, pp. : 471-493
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Abstract
Previous studies have found that communicating acceptance and understanding (validation) enhances the recipient's psychological and physiological wellbeing compared with receiving nonunderstanding feedback (invalidation). Yet, such studies have not established whether it is validation or absence of invalidation that is beneficial. This study examined the social, physiological, and emotional effects of validating and invalidating feedback in more detail, by employing a control group. Ninety healthy volunteers were randomly allocated to receive validating, invalidating, or no feedback during a series of stressor tasks. Self-report ratings, psychophysiological measurements and social engagement behaviors were recorded. While there were no significant differences between validated and control participants, invalidated participants showed increased physiological and psychological arousal on several measures and reduced social engagement behaviors compared with the other two groups. The relevance of these findings for understanding adverse effects of invalidation during clinical interactions is discussed.
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