Suppressing thoughts of evaluation while being evaluated Michael L. Slepian 1 , Masanori Oikawa 2 , Joshua M. Smyth 3 1 Tufts University 2 Doshisha University 3 The Pennsylvania State University Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Michael Slepian, Tufts University, 490 Boston Ave., Medford, MA 02155, USA. E-mail: michael.slepian@tufts.edu doi: 10.1111/jasp.12197 Abstract Thought suppression can cause ironic increases in the occurrence of intrusive thoughts. Intrusive thoughts of evaluation could be especially disruptive while undergoing evaluation. Such a context, however, could help suppression efforts as the context provides an external source for which to attribute suppression failures. When suppressing thoughts of evaluation in a non-evaluative context (a context- content mismatch), typical ironic effects of thought suppression occurred. There was no increased accessibility of evaluation, however, when suppressing evaluation in an evaluative context (a context-content match), which allowed for attributing intrusive thoughts to the context, rather than the self, making suppression easier. Suppressing thoughts of evaluation may be beneficial in an evaluative context, sug- gesting that the consequences of willful suppression are moderated by context. Being evaluated by others is a ubiquitous occurrence in every- day life. Concern with the evaluation of one’s performance is a key component in performance anxiety, anxiety experi- enced prior to or during performance in a number of domains, including public speaking, sexual performance, sports, the performance arts, and test taking (Baumeister, 1984; Beilock & Carr, 2001; Hardy, Mullen, & Jones, 1996; Kenny, 2005). One potential way of coping with this concern about evaluation is to simply suppress thoughts of evalu- ation. Trying to suppress thoughts of evaluation, however, might lead to more thoughts of evaluation and preoccupation with performance. Indeed, thought suppression, the willful attempt to control one’s thoughts, has been shown to have ironic effects, namely a paradoxical increase in the occurrence of the target thought (Wegner, Schneider, Carter, & White, 1987). The seminal study on thought suppression instructed par- ticipants to not think about a white bear (Wegner et al., 1987). Participants suppressing thoughts about white bears indeed thought less about white bears, relative to participants who were explicitly asked to think about white bears. Yet, in a free-thought exercise following suppression, participants who had previously suppressed thoughts about white bears paradoxically thought more about white bears than even par- ticipants who had been explicitly instructed to think about them. This increase of target thoughts (i.e., thoughts about white bears) following suppression attempts is termed post- suppressional rebound (Wegner et al., 1987). Of particular importance for the current work is that during suppression attempts, thoughts about white bears were still present (even if less than during explicit instruction to think about white bears). Thinking about evaluation, while undergoing evaluation, leads to a preoccupation with evaluation, which typically harms performance (Baumeister, 1984; Beilock & Carr, 2001; Hardy et al., 1996; Kenny, 2005). The current research tests whether attempting to suppress thoughts of evaluation, while undergoing evaluation, will backfire by increasing thoughts of evaluation, and ultimately harm performance. Extensive research has demonstrated ironic and negative effects of thought suppression in numerous domains, including negative self-referent thoughts, disordered eating, trauma, illness, addiction, and secrecy (e.g., Hoyt, Nemeroff, & Huebner, 2006; Lepore & Helgeson, 1998; Najmi, Wegner, & Nock, 2007; Purdon, 1999; Slepian, Masicampo, Toosi, & Ambady, 2012). Specifically, when indi- viduals willfully attempt to suppress distressing thoughts to cope, these attempts can backfire by increasing the distress- ing thoughts that they are trying to suppress (Wegner, 1994). A meta-analysis on thought suppression has demonstrated Journal of Applied Social Psychology 2014, 44, pp. 31–39 © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Journal of Applied Social Psychology 2014, 44, pp. 31–39