GoKawiilLarge multi-lab study finds no consistent brain signature for emotion regulation ability
A consortium of 32 research teams pooled 40 fMRI datasets from over 2,000 participants who performed cognitive reappraisal tasks, comparing brain activity during active down-regulation of negative emotions versus passive viewing. Combining data across studies that measured trait reappraisal tendency, the researchers found no single neural pattern reliably linked to a person's capacity to regulate emotion.
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The finding challenges the assumption, common in neuroscience and clinical research, that emotion regulation relies on a consistent, identifiable brain circuit that could serve as a biomarker. This could complicate efforts to use fMRI-based measures of reappraisal ability to diagnose or treat mood and anxiety disorders, since the underlying neural basis may be more variable across individuals and studies than previously assumed.
- Consortium combined 40 datasets from 32 teams, covering up to 2,175 healthy participants performing cognitive reappraisal tasks
- Most studies used the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire to measure trait reappraisal ability alongside fMRI task data
- No shared neural signature for emotion regulation capacity emerged across the pooled studies, raising questions about biomarker approaches
Source: nature.com — Sicorello, 2026-10-28
Published there as: “Emotion regulation capacity lacks a shared neural signature”
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