Investigation of the relationships between self-critical rumination, experiential avoidance, emotion regulation difficulties and psychological symptoms

The aim of the study was to examine the relationship between self-critical rumination, experiential avoidance, emotion regulation difficulties, and psychological symptoms. Data for the study were collected using the Demographic Information Form, Self- Critical Rumination, Emotion Regulation Difficulty, Multidimensional Experiential Avoidance, and Short Symptom Inventory. A total of 510 voluntary participants, including 285 females and 225 males, with ages ranging from 18 to 25, took part in the research. Significant differences were found among participants in terms of self-critical rumination, emotion regulation difficulties, and psychological symptoms concerning gender, age group, field of study, and economic level.Regarding participants' levels of experiential avoidance, significant differences were found between gender, field of study, and economic level, but no significant difference was found between experiential avoidance and age group. Additionally, when examining the relationship between self- critical rumination and depression, anxiety, and negative self-concept, experiential avoidance was found to play a partial mediating role. In the relationship between self- critical rumination and somatization and hostility, experiential avoidance was found to play a full mediating role. Finally, in the relationship between self-critical rumination and depression, anxiety, negative self-concept, somatization, and hostility among participants, emotion regulation difficulties were found to play a partial mediating role.