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, & 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.