Pick Your Poison: Choice of Activity Determines Mood Management Following a Stressful Task

ABSTRACTPeople routinely seek out activities they believe will relieve stress. There has always been debate regarding the extent to which different activities, particularly those with aggressive content, successfully manage mood or worsen it. It is routinely believed that engaging in highly aggressive activities after becoming stressed worsens mood. However, unlike experiments, in real life people generally select activities that match their interests. In the present study, 105 university students were exposed to an acute stressor then randomized to either (a) a time filler control task; (b) to hit a bobo doll; or (c) given a choice of five different activities, some aggressive, some not. Results indicated that those who were given a choice of activities experienced the greatest reductions in stress and hostility. Furthermore, evidence did not suggest that more aggressive activities made participants more hostile, stressed, or aggressive.