Variability Is Not Flexibility: Emotion Regulation Variability Inversely Predicts Momentary Distress Only in More Variable Situations

This 21-day EMA study found that higher emotion regulation variability reduces distress only in situations with high context variability; the relationship is reversed with low context variability. These findings challenge the common use of ER variability as a flexibility indicator, providing more nuanced insights into the studies of ER flexibility.