Stress

Eliciting and maintaining ruminative thought: The role of social-evaluative threat

by Peggy Zoccola

This study tested whether a performance stressor characterized by social-evaluative threat (SET) elicits more... more This study tested whether a performance stressor characterized by social-evaluative threat (SET) elicits more rumination than a stressor without this explicit evaluative component and whether this difference persists minutes, hours, and days later. The mediating role of shame-related cognition and emotion (SRCE) was also examined. During a laboratory visit, 144 undergraduates (50% female) were randomly assigned to complete a speech stressor in a social-evaluative threat condition (SET; n = 86), in which an audience was present, or a nonexplicit social-evaluative threat condition (ne-SET; n = 58), in which they were alone in a room. Participants completed measures of stressor-related rumination 10 and 40 min posttask, later that night, and upon returning to the laboratory 3–5 days later. SRCE and other emotions experienced during the stressor (fear, anger, and sadness) were assessed immediately posttask. As hypothesized, the SET speech stressor elicited more rumination than the ne-SET speech stressor, and these differences persisted for 3–5 days. SRCE—but not other specific negative emotions or general emotional arousal—mediated the effect of stressor context on rumination. Stressors characterized by SET may be likely candidates for eliciting and maintaining ruminative thought immediately and also days later, potentially by eliciting shame-related emotions and cognitions.

Assessing the relationship between rumination and cortisol: A review

by Peggy Zoccola

Objective and methods: For individuals who ruminate, or mentally rehearse past stressful events, the physiological... more Objective and methods: For individuals who ruminate, or mentally rehearse past stressful events, the physiological effects of a stressor may be longer lasting. This is well-supported within the cardiovascular domain. In the context of the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) axis and cortisol, the results are inconsistent. This review summarizes key theoretical and methodological issues that contribute to these mixed findings among the 15 studies to date that have examined the association between rumination and cortisol.
Results: State measures of rumination were consistently linked to increased cortisol concentrations. Stress-related rumination questionnaires were often positively associated with cortisol, whereas depression-related rumination scales predicted lower cortisol concentrations or were unrelated to cortisol. Rumination manipulations in the laboratory (e.g., ruminative self-focused writing tasks compared to distraction writing tasks) influenced cortisol concentrations, but often did not increase cortisol relative to baseline values. Studies that utilized social-evaluative stressor tasks to examine the relationship between rumination and cortisol levels generally showed that rumination predicted greater cortisol reactivity or delayed recovery. Results from studies examining rumination and basal cortisol or the cortisol awakening response were inconsistent.
Conclusion: The ways in which researchers conceptualize and assess rumination and the associated cortisol response influences the association between rumination and cortisol. Suggestions for future studies in this area of research are provided.

Stages of estrous mediate the stress-induced impairment of associative learning in the female rat

by Martin Paczynski

Shors, T.J., Lewczyk, C., Paczynski, M., Mathew, P.R. and Pickett, J.(1998) NeuroReport 9, 419–423

Exposure to a stressful event facilitates classical eyeblink conditioning in male rats and impairs conditioning in... more Exposure to a stressful event facilitates classical eyeblink conditioning in male rats and impairs conditioning in females. The contribution of stages of estrous to the stress-induced impairment of eyeblink conditioning was evaluated. Females in proestrus, estrus and diestrus were either exposed to an acute stressor of intermittent tailshocks or swim stress and compared to unstressed females in the three stages. Females in proestrus, when estrogen levels are high, acquired the conditioned response at a facilitated rate relative to females in other stages. However, exposure to a stressor of either intermittent tailshocks or inescapable swim stress severely impaired acquisition in females during proestrus. These results suggest that the enhancing effect of estrogen on procedural memory formation is disrupted by previous exposure to a stressful event.

Acute Stress Persistently Enhances Estrogen Levels in the Female Rat

by Martin Paczynski

Shors, T.J., Pickett, J., Wood, G. and Paczynski, M. (1999) Stress. 3(2), 163-171

Here we tested whether exposure to either tailshock or swim stress alters ovarian hormone levels, estrogen and... more Here we tested whether exposure to either tailshock or swim stress alters ovarian hormone levels, estrogen and progesterone, in females and whether the effects are persistent. Adrenal hormone levels were also measured in males and females. Estradiol levels were elevated in unstressed females during proestrus relative to females in other stages of estrous, and exposure to the stressors enhanced estradiol beyond basal levels. For females stressed during diestrus 2, estradiol levels were elevated immediately after stressor cessation and up to 24 hrs. Exposure to tailshock, but not swim-stress, transiently enhanced progesterone in females stressed during the stage of proestrus and estrus. Glucocorticoid levels were elevated in response to both stressors and were supraelevated in females under both basal and stress conditions relative to males, particularly in blood from females exposed to acute swim stress. These results indicate that exposure to a relatively acute stressful event immediately and persistently enhances serum estradiol and are discussed in the context of reports that exposure to the same stressors immediately and persistently impairs associative learning in the female rat.

Encouraging Meditative Experiences through Respiratory-Musical Interaction

by Jay Vidyarthi

Pressor Reactions to Psychological Stress and Prediction of Future Blood Pressure: Data From the Whitehall II Study

by David Sheffield

Mental stress-induced ischemia and all-cause mortality in patients with coronary …

by David Sheffield

Cardiovascular Reactivity and Development of Preclinical and Clinical Disease States

by David Sheffield

CO-AUTHORED WITH FRANK A. TREIBER, PHD, THOMAS KAMARCK, PHD, NEIL SCHNEIDERMAN, PHD, GASTON KAPUKU, MD, PHD, AND TELETIA TAYLOR, PHD. Published in Psychosomatic Medicine

Objective: The objective of this review is to evaluate the evidence for the hypothesis that cardiovascular reactivity... more Objective: The objective of this review is to evaluate the evidence for the hypothesis that cardiovascular reactivity can predict the development of preclinical (elevated blood pressure, ventricular remodeling, carotid atherosclerosis) and/or clinical cardiovascular disease states. Methods: A review of the literature was conducted examining prospective studies. Results: Three large epidemiological studies with long-term follow-up periods (20 years or more) have found blood pressure responses to the cold pressor task to be predictive of subsequent essential hypertension in initially normoten- sive samples. Studies showing less consistent results have tended to use shorter-term follow-up periods. A larger body of literature demonstrates consistent associations between stress-related cardiovascular reactivity and blood pressure elevations in youth over the course of 1 to 6 years; such relationships have not been consistently shown among adult samples. Moderately consistent evidence points to a positive relationship between reactivity and other measures of subclinical disease (increased left ventricular mass and carotid atherosclerosis) among the few prospective studies that have examined these issues to date. A number of additional factors, however, such as baseline levels of disease risk and exposure to psychosocial stress, seem to moderate these relationships. Health status at baseline also seems to moderate the association between reactivity and clinical coronary heart disease in recent reports: two of three existing studies in initially healthy samples show no evidence of a relationship between reactivity and clinical outcomes, whereas three of four studies in samples with preexisting coronary heart disease or essential hypertension show a positive relationship between reactivity and subsequent disease states. Conclusions: There is reasonable evidence to suggest that cardiovas- cular reactivity can predict the development of some preclinical states (eg, increased left ventricular mass and blood pressure) states and perhaps even new clinical events in some patients with essential hypertension or coronary heart disease. However, much more information is needed concerning moderating and potentially confounding variables before the robustness of the positive relationships can become clinically useful.

To Protect and Serve: The Effects of Occupational Stress Hazards on Law Enforcement Officers

by Alan Steinberg

Co-authored with Newton Howard (MIT). Published in Law Enforcement Executive Forum, March 2007

Law enforcement officials are well aware of the effects of stress; both on themselves and others that they deal with... more Law enforcement officials are well aware of the effects of stress; both on themselves and others that they deal with during the course of their working day. However, few individuals are trained to recognize the warning signs and the impact that personal stress has on their day to day activities. Untreated simple stressors can build up to form post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). While there are programs designed to help the law enforcement community, they are few and far between. More attention needs to be paid to this problem in order to ensure a healthy protective layer for our community.

Early life stressors and genetic influences on the development of bipolar disorder: The roles of childhood abuse and brain-derived neurotrophic factor

by Richard Liu

Factores psicosociales y problemas de salud reportados por adolescentes Psychosocial factors and health problems reported by adolescents

by Juan San Martin

A case study revealing lessened masculinity for “left-behind” husbands of overseas Filipina workers

by Phillip Gresham

Draft only.

A distillation of my thesis focusing on the experiences of a single respondent. Please also see my thesis (more A distillation of my thesis focusing on the experiences of a single respondent. Please also see my thesis (http://phillipgresham.com/docs/heroes-at-home.pdf) and my co-authored report to Oxfam Novib (http://phillipgresham.com/docs/oxfam-novib-report-gresham-smit.pdf). Please do not cite.

Number of childhood abuse perpetrators and the occurrence of depressive episodes in adulthood

by Richard Liu

Simon M, Tackenberg P, Nienhaus A, Estryn-Behar M, Conway PM, Hasselhorn HM. Back or neck-pain-related disability of nursing staff in hospitals, nursing homes and home care in seven countries--results from the European NEXT-Study. Int J Nurs Stud. 2008 Jan;45(1):24-34. PubMed PMID: 17217951.

by Michael Simon

BACKGROUND: Musculoskeletal disorders are a widespread affliction in the nursing profession. Back or neck-pain-related... more BACKGROUND: Musculoskeletal disorders are a widespread affliction in the nursing profession. Back or neck-pain-related disability of nursing staff is mainly attributed to physical and psychosocial risk factors.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate which-and to what extent-physical and psychosocial risk factors are associated with neck/back-pain-related disability in nursing, and to assess the role of the type of health care institution (hospitals, nursing homes and home care institutions) within different countries in this problem.

DESIGN: Cross-sectional secondary analysis of multinational data of nurses and auxiliary staff in hospitals (n=16,770), nursing homes (n=2140) and home care institutions (n=2606) in seven countries from the European NEXT-Study.

METHODS: Multinomial logistic regression analysis with raw models for each factor and mutually adjusted with all analysed variables.

RESULTS: Analysis of the pooled data revealed effort-reward imbalance as the predominant risk factor for disability in all settings (odds ratios for high disability by effort-reward ratio: hospital 5.05 [4.30-5.93]; nursing home 6.52 [4.04-10.52] and home care 6.4 [3.83-10.70] [after mutual adjustment of psychosocial and physical risk factors]). In contrast, physical exposure to lifting and bending showed only limited associations with odds ratios below 1.6; the availability and use of lifting aids was-after mutual adjustment-not or only marginally associated with disability. These findings were basically confirmed in separate analyses for all seven countries and types of institutions.

CONCLUSIONS: The findings show a pronounced association between psychosocial factors and back or neck-pain-related disability. Further research should consider psychosocial factors and should take the setting where nurses work into account.

Assessment of Maternally Reported Life Events: in Children and Adolescents: A Comparison of Interview and Checklist Methods

by Jennifer L. Allen

This study compared the number and impact of maternally reported life events experienced by children assessed using... more This study compared the number and impact of maternally reported life events experienced by children assessed using interview and checklist approaches. Psychometric properties of a new checklist measure were also examined. Participants were 80 children aged 7 to 16 years recruited from the general community. Mothers completed an interview, the Psychosocial Assessment of Child Experiences (PACE; Sandberg et al. (Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry 34(6): 879–897, 1993)) and the Child and Adolescent Survey of Experiences (CASE), a checklist derived from PACE and featuring parent and child self-report versions. PACE and CASE assessed a similar number of negative life events, however CASE assessed more positive life events. The two measures showed fair to substantial agreement for the number and perceived impact of life events. Both PACE and CASE detected significant associations etween negative, but not positive life events and child psychopathology. An evaluation of the psychometric properties of CASE revealed that mother-child agreement was good for the overall number of life events, with agreement ranging from poor to substantial for specific life events. CASE demonstrated good one-week retest reliability; however younger children were less reliable reporters of life events than adolescents. Findings are discussed in terms of the relative utility of the two assessment methods for research and clinical practice.

A G15719C Leptin Gene Polymorphism is Associated with Lesser Perception of Stress and Other Physiological Reactions to Stress in Adult Working Pakistani Women

by IJCRIMPH Journal

How does attention training work in social phobia: Disengagement from threat or re-engagement to non-threat?

by Alexandre Heeren

Heeren, A., Lievens, L., & Philippot, P. (2011). How does attention training work in social phobia: Disengagement from threat or reengagement to non-threat? Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 25, 1108-1115.

Una teoría sobre el estrés

by Carlos Manuel Quirce Balma

En este artículo el autor plantea un modelo de revisión y re-estructuración de la temática del ‘stress’ (tensión... more En este artículo el autor plantea un modelo de revisión y re-estructuración de la temática del ‘stress’ (tensión nerviosa), considerándolo como una alteración no-adaptativa del ordenamiento homeostático original. En el trabajo se apunta la posibilidad de integración real, en la interpretación del ‘stress’, de la biología, la psicología y la sociología.

Stress Generation Research in Depression: A Commentary

by Richard Liu

My Dissertation: An Investigation into the Effects of Pushchair Orientation on the Stress Levels of Infants

by Hannah Young

The current study was conducted as a preliminary investigation into the effects of pushchair orientation on the stress... more The current study was conducted as a preliminary investigation into the effects of pushchair orientation on the stress levels of infants.  A total of 2722 observations, carried out in city centres across the United Kingdom, investigated infant and parental behaviours during pushchair journeys.  Results showed a relationship between pushchair orientation and parent-infant interaction, crying and sleeping patterns.  Experimental research involved a total of 26 mothers and infants, from 6 to 24 months old, in a 30 minute pushchair journey during which heart rate was measured and crying and sleeping patterns were recorded.  Heart rate measures and sleeping patterns were in the predicted direction.  Crying patterns were not in the predicted direction, although differences between conditions were not significant.  These pilot findings point to the value of follow-up work, as the possibility that pushchair orientation affects infant’s stress levels is an important outcome for parents and professionals to be aware of.