Interpersonal emotion regulation: An intervention case study with a professional ice hockey team

The paper is a case study report of an intervention focused on developing interpersonal emotion regulation among members of a British elite ice hockey team. The intervention was informed by a social-functional approach to emotions (Keltner, Haidt and Shiota, 2006), and utilized the Emotions as Social Information (EASI) model (Van Kleef, 2009). Intervention techniques reported include brief contact interventions, dressing room debriefs, and the practitioner's self-management of himself as an intervention tool. Results of the intervention are presented in the form of practitioner reflections, and emotional intelligence data gathered pre- and post-intervention. Results suggest that practitioners need to be mindful of the many potential situation- and person-specific moderating factors that might influence interpersonal emotion regulation. These factors are especially important for practitioners who use themselves as an intervention tool in applied sports psychology.