Emotion regulation and its association with subjective memory performance among undergraduate students at port said university

Background Emotion regulation (ER), particularly through cognitive reappraisal (CR) and expressive suppression (ES), plays an important role in psychological well-being and higher-order cognitive functioning. Both ER and subjective memory performance (SMP), as measured by the Prospective and Retrospective Memory Questionnaire (PRMQ), have been proposed to draw on shared executive control resources. Although memory complaints have been reported among Egyptian university students, the association between ER strategies and SMP remains largely unexplored. This study aimed to assess ER strategies and SMP among undergraduate students at Port Said University and examine the association between these constructs. Methods A descriptive cross-sectional study with an analytical component was conducted among 1,287 undergraduate students from seven randomly selected faculties at Port Said University. Data were collected using a self-administered questionnaire comprising the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (ERQ) to assess CR and ES and the PRMQ to measure SMP. Data were analyzed using Jamovi version 2.3.28 employing descriptive statistics, nonparametric tests, Spearman’s rank correlation, and multiple linear regression. Results Participants had a median total ERQ score of 44 and a median total PRMQ score of 50. Males reported significantly higher ES and total ER scores than females ( p < 0.001 and p = 0.005, respectively), whereas females reported significantly higher PRMQ scores ( p < 0.001). Faculty affiliation was significantly associated with both total ERQ and total PRMQ scores, whereas academic grade was associated only with total ERQ scores and family income only with total PRMQ scores. All ERQ subscales were significantly and negatively correlated with PRMQ scores (all p < 0.001). The largest correlation coefficient was observed between total ERQ and total PRMQ scores (ρ = −0.226), indicating a weak inverse association. In multiple linear regression adjusting for sex, faculty, and family income, both CR (B = − 0.272, 95% CI: −0.360 to − 0.184) and ES (B = − 0.270, 95% CI: −0.391 to − 0.150) were independently and inversely associated with PRMQ scores (both p < 0.001). Conclusion The findings suggest that greater reported use of ER strategies is associated with fewer self-reported memory complaints among undergraduate students. Although the association was statistically significant, its magnitude was weak, indicating that ER represents only one of several factors associated with SMP. This suggests that effective emotional processing may support the cognitive resources required for daily memory tasks.