Discussing Problems With a Close Friend, 2019

The sample consisted of 88 close friend dyads (N=176). Most participants were undergraduate students recruited from the Ohio University, OH, USA, white (92%), and female (69%).
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Upon entering the laboratory, research assistants escorted participants to private testing rooms. After confirming eligibility for the study and completing the informed consent process, participants completed the problem-generation questionnaire. Participants then received instructions for the problem-focused conversation wherein one member of the dyad (the discloser) was randomly assigned to discuss one of the extradyadic problems they disclosed in the problem-generation questionnaire. The other member of the dyad (the responder) was assigned to respond to their friend. Severity items were summed for each problem and the discloser’s most severe problem was assigned by the experimenter for discussion.
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After both participants finished the initial questionnaires, a curtain separating the two participants was removed, and dyads engaged in an 8-minute, video-recorded conversation. After the conversation, the curtain was closed and participants answered a series of questionnaires regarding emotion, emotion regulation, responsiveness, closeness, support, etc. After this questionnaire, friends then privately watched a video of the conversation they just had. Every 30 seconds, participants rated their own and their partner's engagement in co-rumination, positive and negative affect, suppression, and responsiveness. At the end of the study, participants completed a demographic questionnaire and had a 5-minute "free-talk" period that was video-recorded.
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IRB 19-X-152