About

James J. Gross is a professor in the Department of Psychology at Stanford University. His research focuses on understanding the processes of emotion regulation and how individuals manage their emotional responses. Gross's work has contributed significantly to the field of psychology by elucidating mechanisms underlying emotional control and developing models that describe how people regulate their feelings in various contexts. His expertise and research have advanced knowledge in emotional processes and regulation strategies, making him a key figure in the study of human emotional functioning.

Research topics

• Psychology
• Computer Science
• Social psychology
• Medicine
• Political Science
• Cognitive psychology
• Developmental psychology
• Clinical psychology
• Sociology
• Mathematics
• Psychiatry
• Artificial Intelligence
• Neuroscience
• Economics
• Biomedical engineering
• Epistemology
• Communication
• Audiology
• Data science
• Demography
• Nursing
• Art
• Aesthetics
• Applied psychology

Selected publications

• The Perth Alexithymia Questionnaire-Short Form (PAQ-S): Psychometric properties in a clinical sample

  Personality and Individual Differences · 2026-01-13

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  Alexithymia is a trait that involves deficits in emotion processing and has important implications for mental health. The assessment of alexithymia is therefore clinically consequential, but until recently, alexithymia questionnaires were all quite lengthy, limiting their utility in time-pressured research and clinical settings. Recently, the Perth Alexithymia Questionnaire-Short Form (PAQ-S) was introduced to address this gap, providing a brief 6-item self-report measure of alexithymia. In this study, we evaluate the psychometric performance of the PAQ-S in a clinical sample. Five hundred thirty-one individuals with various mental health diagnoses completed the PAQ-S and other psychometric measures of clinically-relevant constructs. Confirmatory factor analysis revealed that the PAQ-S had a theoretically congruent factor structure, with items loading significantly on a general alexithymia factor. The PAQ-S displayed high internal consistency, and an expected pattern of associations with other constructs (i.e., psychopathology symptoms, somatic symptoms, personality dysfunction, attention difficulties, memory complaints, emotion regulation, life satisfaction, self-esteem, and social desirability). Overall, our data suggest the scores on the PAQ-S exhibit strong validity and reliability in clinical populations. Its brevity makes the PAQ-S a practical tool for alexithymia assessments in time-limited settings, enabling new opportunities to explore the clinical relevance of alexithymia. • The PAQ-S shows a congruent single-factor structure in a clinical sample. • PAQ-S scores demonstrate high internal consistency (omega = 0.84). • Higher alexithymia links to more psychopathology, somatic symptoms, and poor memory. • Higher alexithymia links to lower self-esteem and life satisfaction. • PAQ-S scores are unaffected by social desirability bias.

  PublisherDOI

• The emergence of neuropsychiatric symptoms in preclinical Alzheimer’s disease: An emotion regulation perspective

  Neuron · 2026-03-10

  articleOpen access
  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Using Artificial Intelligence to Generate Affective Images: Methodology and Initial Library

  Advances in Methods and Practices in Psychological Science · 2026-01-01

  articleOpen access

  We introduce a human-in-the-loop pipeline for creating context-aware (e.g., culture, sex, and age) affect-induction images and the initial Library of AI-Generated Affective Images. Current limitations in image-based research include weak to moderate emotional-elicitation effects, limited image diversity, and minimal cultural tailoring of images. Using generative artificial intelligence (AI) guided by existing data sets and emotion taxonomies, we generated 847 images and their corresponding descriptions across 12 discrete emotions and then iteratively refined them with local cultural experts. We validated the library through six studies ( N = 2,470; 58 countries). Participants rated five types of images: (a) images from existing affective databases, (b) AI-generated images without cultural adjustments, (c) AI-generated images adjusted to specific cultural contexts, (d) AI-generated images adjusted by sex (male, female), and (e) AI-generated images adjusted by age group (childhood, adulthood, older age). The AI-generated images were as effective in eliciting affective responses as the images from existing affective databases. Culturally adjusted images were slightly more effective than unadjusted counterparts in targeting intended emotions. Sex- and age-adjusted variants produced comparable responses with their base images, demonstrating controllability without loss of affective impact. Furthermore, we calculated the smallest subjectively experienced difference for affect-induction research ( d s = 0.05–0.29). This work demonstrates that researchers can now generate high-quality affect-induction stimuli cost-effectively and at scale and tailor them to diverse contexts—overcoming long-standing barriers and laying the groundwork for future AI-driven methodologies in affective science.

  PublisherDOI

• Psychological well-being among West Point cadets: the role of emotion beliefs and emotional integration

  The Journal of Positive Psychology · 2026-01-29

  article
  PublisherDOI

• Personalizing reappraisal: Leveraging prior beliefs to enhance emotion regulation outcomes.

  Emotion · 2026-01-08

  articleSenior author

  = 444; between 2023 and 2024), we address this issue by examining the role of prior beliefs in reappraisal, an emotion regulation strategy common to many types of psychological interventions. In Studies 1 and 2, we instructed participants to reappraise negative stimuli in a way that was consistent with different beliefs. We found that more belief-congruent (vs. less belief-congruent) reappraisals were more believable and more effective for regulating emotions. In Study 3, we asked participants to rank sets of standardized reappraisals. We found substantial heterogeneity in which reappraisals were preferred and this heterogeneity was partially explained by people's prior beliefs. This work suggests that, in the context of U.S.-based participants, beliefs may be leveraged to systematically personalize reappraisal interventions. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).

  PublisherDOI

• Accelerated recovery using magnesium ibogaine: characterizing the subjective experience of its rapid healing from neuropsychiatric disorders

  npj Mental Health Research · 2026-01-31 · 1 citations

  articleOpen access

  Magnesium-ibogaine, a formulation combining ibogaine with pre- and post-treatment magnesium, was recently found to yield rapid clinical improvements in U.S. Special Operations veterans with TBI and PTSD. Yet, its therapeutic phenomenology during such healing is unknown. We analyzed post-session narratives from 30 male veterans who, after a single open-label magnesium-ibogaine treatment, answered three open-ended questions. A constructivist grounded-theory approach identified four recurrent experiential domains: dialogic trauma re-appraisal marked by guided replay of autobiographical memories; altered-self and mystical connectedness; emotional resolution with surges of forgiveness, love, and renewed purpose; and embodied healing, a vivid sense of neural repair accompanied by cognitive clarity and somatic relief. Together, these themes portray an accelerated, self-directed psychotherapeutic process that dovetails with previously reported improvements in this same cohort, suggesting mind-body mechanisms involving rapid neuroplastic change and highlighting its potential to inform novel approaches to trauma and TBI.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Self-Objectification, Body Surveillance, and Body Shame Across Countries: A Comparison Between US, UK, Belgian, Israeli, and Thai Women

  Psychologica Belgica · 2026-01-01

  articleOpen access

  Cross-national research on self-objectification remains notably limited. The present study investigated the associations between self-objectification, body surveillance, and body shame among women in Belgium (N = 239), the United Kingdom (N = 213), and the United States of America (N = 159) in Study 1, and in Belgium (N = 209), Israel (N = 299), and Thailand (N = 230) in Study 2. In Study 1, employing the Likert version of the Self-Objectification Questionnaire (LSOQ), we demonstrated that self-objectification indirectly predicts body shame through body surveillance in the case of Belgian, UK, and US women. In Study 2, we successfully replicated these indirect effects among Belgian, Israeli, and Thai women. This research stands as one of the first empirical, cross-national investigations of the improved self-objectification scale, evidencing the robust association between self-objectification, body surveillance, and body shame across countries.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Using nature to regulate emotions: Introducing the nature selection emotion regulation questionnaire (NS-ERQ)

  Journal of Environmental Psychology · 2026-02-20

  articleOpen access

  Emotion regulation (ER) takes many forms. One of the most intriguing is situation selection, which refers to selecting the situations we’re exposed to with a view to influencing our emotions. Despite its importance, surprisingly little is known about situation selection. In the present work, we examine an important form of situation selection, namely location selection – emphasizing the deliberate choice of environmental settings, with a particular focus in selecting nature experiences, to influence emotional states. To measure and explore this process, we validated a new self-report scale – the Nature Selection Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (NS-ERQ) – across three studies. In the first study (N S1 = 292), we developed the English version of the scale starting with an initial set of 20 items. The items were generated based on Russell’s Circumplex Model of Affect (1980), reflecting the four primary dimensions of affect defined by valence and arousal. Exploratory factor analysis led to a refined 12-item scale, organized into a two-factor structure: restoration and revitalization. The second study (N S2 – T1 = 302) tested the 12-item scale’s reliability, convergent, and discriminant validity, as well as test-retest reliability and predictive validity through a follow-up survey (N S2 – T2 = 125). The third study (N S3 = 308) adapted the scale for Italian speakers, confirming the two-factor structure as well as its reliability and validity. Furthermore, the scale demonstrated measurement invariance across English and Italian versions, confirming its cross-linguistic equivalence. Overall, these findings establish the NS-ERQ as a robust instrument for assessing how individuals choose to visit natural environments for emotion regulation, providing a new framework for understanding the role of selecting environmental context in emotion regulation. • Choosing to go to an environment is a form of emotional regulation. • Nature selection is proposed as a new strategy within Situation Selection family. • A scale to investigate this process was validated in English (S 1 , S 2 ) and Italian (S 3 ). • The 12-item scale’s two factors showed strong reliability and validity. • Findings enhance insight into how location selection plays a role in ER.

  PublisherDOI

• Characterizing the Nature of Alexithymia in Autistic Adults: Validation of the Perth Alexithymia Questionnaire

  Autism in Adulthood · 2025-10-24

  article

  Background: Alexithymia—a trait characterized by difficulties in emotion processing—is of high interest in the autism field. However, the lack of validated alexithymia measures for autistic individuals limits progress. This study aimed to address this gap by examining the psychometric properties of the Perth Alexithymia Questionnaire (PAQ) across autistic and non-autistic samples. Using the PAQ, we investigated how alexithymia manifests in autistic individuals and its links with poor mental health outcomes (anxiety). Methods: Autistic individuals (who reported having a diagnosis from a health professional; n = 244) and non-autistic individuals ( n = 383; age range: 16–62 years) completed the PAQ and a trait anxiety questionnaire online. We conducted confirmatory factor analysis, item response theory (IRT), and moderated nonlinear factor analyses to investigate the psychometric properties of the PAQ and alexithymia differences between autistic and non-autistic individuals. Regression analyses investigated the relationships between alexithymia and anxiety and whether these relationships differ for autistic or non-autistic populations. Results: As operationalized by the PAQ, alexithymia manifested similarly in autistic and non-autistic individuals, comprising a general alexithymia factor and five subfactors: positively and negatively valenced difficulties identifying feelings, positively and negatively valenced difficulties describing feelings, and externally oriented thinking. All factors exhibited good to excellent classical test theory and IRT-derived reliability. The PAQ did not meaningfully bias scores for autistic individuals, who reported greater alexithymia across all its components. Alexithymia predicted greater anxiety, with nuances regarding externally oriented thinking particularly for autistic individuals. Conclusions: For the first time, our study illustrates that all facets of alexithymia can be validly and comprehensively assessed in autistic populations. As measured via the PAQ, alexithymia manifests similarly across autistic and non-autistic individuals, and on average, autistic individuals have greater challenges across all aspects of alexithymia. The PAQ, therefore, represents a critical assessment advancement for the field, providing a foundation for future work on alexithymia and autism.

  PublisherDOI

• Regulating Mixed Emotions: The Role of Emotion Goals on Experiential, Expressive, and Physiological Responses

  Psychophysiology · 2025-10-01 · 1 citations

  articleSenior author

  While mixed emotions are prevalent, the impact of intentional regulation on these states remains unclear. To investigate how individuals modulate these complex emotional states across experience, expression, and physiology, we propose a three-dimensional extension of the Evaluative Space Model (3D-ESM). We used this model to examine whether negative and positive emotion goals during cognitive reappraisal of emotionally ambivalent stimuli (disgusting-amusing) differentially influence negative affect (NA) and positive affect (PA) system reactivity. A repeated-measures design exposed 48 women to 20-30 s film clips under three conditions: natural response (no goal), emphasizing the film clip's negative aspects (negative emotion goal), or emphasizing its positive aspects (positive emotion goal). We assessed self-reported feelings (negative, positive), facial muscle reactivity (corrugator supercilii, zygomaticus major electromyography), and autonomic responses (pre-ejection period [PEP], respiratory sinus arrhythmia [RSA]). Compared to baseline, unregulated mixed emotions evoked NA-PA system coactivation: increased negative and positive feelings, increased corrugator and zygomaticus reactivity, and increased RSA. The negative emotion goal, relative to no goal, caused reciprocal NA-PA system activation: increased negative and decreased positive feelings, increased corrugator and decreased zygomaticus reactivity, and shortened PEP. Conversely, the positive emotion goal elicited reciprocal PA-NA system activation: decreased negative and increased positive feelings, decreased corrugator and increased zygomaticus reactivity, and no difference in PEP or RSA. These findings suggest that reappraisal emphasizing either negative or positive aspects of mixed-emotion contexts can shift experience and expression in the desired direction. We demonstrate that the 3D-ESM effectively predicts regulation effects across response domains.

  PublisherDOI

Recent grants

• NIH Grant R21MH094545

  NIH · $421k · 2015

• NIH Grant R01MH058147

  NIH · $2.4M · 2009

• Reducing Intergroup Conflict Using a Belief Manipulation

  NSF · $426k · 2013–2017

• NIH Grant F31MH010034

  NIH · $12k

• NIH Grant R03MH053859

  NIH · $37k · 1995

Frequent coauthors

• Philippe R. Goldin

  Rutgers Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights

  124 shared

• Amit Goldenberg

  Harvard University Press

  110 shared

• Amit Etkin

  101 shared

• Booil Jo

  Stanford University

  83 shared

• Gregory A. Fonzo

  Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies

  82 shared

• Yevgeniya V. Zaiko

  VA Palo Alto Health Care System

  81 shared

• Steven E. Lindley

  Stanford University

  81 shared

• Allison L. Thompson

  Stanford University

  81 shared

Education

• Ph.D., Human Biology

  Stanford University

  1990

• M.S., Human Biology

  University of California, Berkeley

  1985

• B.A., Human Biology

  University of California, Berkeley

  1983