Short-Form Content Escapism and Distress Intolerance as Predictors of Emotion Regulation Difficulties

Abstract

The present study examined short-form content escapism and distress intolerance as predictors of emotion regulation difficulties among young adults in urban India. A total of 130 young adults aged 19 to 32 completed three validated self-report measures, the Escapism Scale (Stenseng et al., 2012), the Distress Tolerance Scale (Simons & Gaher, 2005), and the DERS-16 (Bjureberg et al., 2016), the data were analysed using correlation, multiple regression, and mediation analysis. Both factors were significantly associated with emotion regulation difficulties, escapism showed a moderate relationship (r = .36) and distress intolerance a strong one (r = .75). Together, the two predictors explained 56% of the variance in emotional regulation difficulties, which is a substantial effect for a two-variable model. When examined side by side, distress intolerance was by far the more powerful predictor. Escapism, while meaningfully related on its own, did not add significant predictive power once distress intolerance was accounted for. The two factors also did not operate in a simple chain; escapism did not serve as the pathway through which distress intolerance worsened emotional regulation; both appeared to contribute independently. These findings highlight distress intolerance as a key psychological vulnerability in young adults, and suggest that the motivation behind digital media use, specifically whether people use it to escape discomfort rather than simply relax, carries real psychological significance that warrants clinical attention.