Investigation of Anhedonia, Emotional Expression, and Emotion Regulation Difficulties in Individuals Diagnosed with Fibromyalgia.

Abstract

Objective: This study aimed to examine the relationships between anhedonia, emotional expression ability and emotion regulation difficulties in individuals diagnosed with fibromyalgia (FM).

Methods: 82 patients with FM and 80 age, gender, and educationmatched healthy controls were included in this cross-sectional, descriptive study. Participants completed the Sociodemographic Data Form, Expressing Emotions Scale (EES), Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale–Short Form (DERS-16), Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), and the Clinician-Administered Turkish version of the Snaith-Hamilton Pleasure Scale (SHAPS-C-TR).

Results: Higher SHAPS-C-TR scores (OR=1.836, 95% CI: 1.501– 2.245; p<0.001) and BAI scores (OR=1.120, 95% CI: 1.020–1.230; p=0.017) were significantly associated with FM diagnosis. Conversely, higher EES scores were negatively associated with FM diagnosis (OR=0.941, 95% CI: 0.896–0.988; p=0.015). Even after controlling for depression, individuals with FM exhibited significantly higher anhedonia scores (F (1.159)=295.10, p<0.001, η²=0.623).

Conclusion: Elevated levels of anhedonia and anxiety were significantly associated with FM, whereas greater emotional expressiveness appeared to be a protective factor. These findings underscore the importance of psychological assessment and interventions in FM management.