Examining the Autonomic Nervous System in the Relationship among Heart Rate Variability, Stress Coping, and Cognitive Ability in Individuals with Psychiatric Disorders.

Depression is one of the most severe psychiatric disorders and affects patients on emotional, physical, and cognitive levels. Comorbid somatic conditions, such as cardiovascular diseases, are frequent and affect the quality of life, as well as mortality. Underlying maladaptive autonomic nervous system regulation influences emotional and cognitive processes. This study, thus, aimed to investigate the relationship among heart rate variability (HRV), self-reported coping strategies, executive function, and inhibition in individuals with psychiatric disorders. Data of 97 patients treated in a multi-professional psychiatric rehabilitation center for 6 weeks were analyzed. Subjects underwent psychological tests (Stress Coping Style Questionnaire, Emotional Competence Questionnaire, and Becks Depression Inventory-II), a cognitive test (Color-Word Interference Test), and a 24 h electrocardiogram to record HRV. Patients with higher depression scores had significantly lower HRVs and decreased self-reported abilities for stress coping. Depression severity did not affect cognitive inhibitory abilities. HRV was related to neither coping strategies nor cognitive inhibition abilities. However, lower HRV was related to higher values of Negative Stress Coping (ß = −0.21, p < 0.05). This relationship was fully mediated by depression severity (−4.79, 95% CI: −8.72, −0.72). HRV is not related to quantitative cognitive inhibition, but to the self-reported ability to cope with negative emotions in individuals with psychiatric disorders.

Academic Goal Orientation and Cardiovascular Reactivity in a Performance Situation.

The present study investigated whether students' academic goal orientation (learning goals, performance goals, work avoidance) and their individual competence beliefs (their academic self-concept) can predict motivation-related cardiovascular activation patterns in a demanding performance situation. A sample of seventy-two undergraduate students rated their academic goal orientation as well as their competence beliefs and completed a mental arithmetic task. Heart rate (HR), blood pressure, pre-ejection period (PEP) as well as cardiac output (CO) and total peripheral resistance were monitored continuously during rest and task exposure. Students scoring higher on work avoidance showed smaller increases in HR and CO, and a smaller shortening of the PEP. A lower academic self-concept was associated with attenuated CO reactivity and a smaller shortening of the PEP. Learning and performance goals were unrelated to cardiovascular activity. The attenuated cardiac activity observed for work avoidance and competence beliefs was interpreted in terms of reduced task engagement resulting from lower success importance.

Social support and prolonged cardiovascular reactivity: the moderating influence of relationship quality and type of support.

The present study investigated the moderating influence of relationship quality on the cardiovascular effects of social support during anticipation of, performance of, and recovery from an evaluative speaking task. Additionally, the generalizability of effects across different types of support was addressed. Sixty normotensive female students were assigned to one of the five support conditions: active verbal support provided by either a supportive or ambivalent friend, mental activation of either a supportive or ambivalent friend, no support. Active support by an ambivalent friend was found to elicit higher magnitude increases in systolic blood pressure (SBP) across all stressor phases. A detrimental influence of mental activation of ambivalent ties on SBP reactivity was observed during speech performance, only. Effects of ambivalence did not extend to experienced emotions and cognitive appraisals. The present findings extend previous research by indicating that interactions with ambivalent ties might be an important determinant of sustained cardiovascular activity.

The influence of social support on cardiovascular responses during stressor anticipation and active coping.

This study investigated effects of different types of social support on cardiovascular reactivity during anticipation of, performance of and recovery from an evaluative speaking task. Thirty male and 30 female students were assigned to one of three social conditions: alone, mental activation of supportive ties, actual support transactions. Cardiovascular effects of social support were found to differ over task conditions and they were not unidirectional. During passive stressor anticipation, support conditions attenuated SBP reactivity, in particular mental activation of supportive ties. During active speech performance gender-specific support effects were observed. The alone condition elicited higher SBP reactivity in men compared to women, support conditions enhanced SBP reactivity in women and attenuated SBP reactivity in men resulting in comparable cardiovascular activation across gender groups. Drawing from research on active coping and energization gender-specific cardiovascular activation was attributed to differences in effort expenditure.

Effects of social anxiety and evaluative threat on cardiovascular responses to active performance situations.

This study investigated the joint influence of trait social anxiety and evaluative threat on psychological and cardiovascular responses to active coping situations. Fifty-two normotensive female students characterized as either high or low in trait social anxiety performed a mental arithmetic task and a speech task requiring persuasive behavior in a context of high or low evaluative threat. Trait social anxiety exerted a substantial influence on cardiovascular reactivity. High socially anxious individuals overall exhibited greater heart rate reactivity. For systolic and diastolic blood pressure enhanced reactivity of socially anxious individuals was confined to low evaluative threat. At high levels of evaluative threat no group differences were observed due to somewhat attenuated reactivity in high compared to low socially anxious individuals. Cognitive appraisals and affective arousal were not found to mediate the effects of social anxiety on cardiovascular reactivity. Results were attributed to differences in effort expenditure rather than experienced anxiety.

Effects of trait dominance on psychological and cardiovascular responses to social influence attempts: the role of gender and partner dominance.

This study investigated the influence of trait dominance on cardiovascular reactivity to and recovery from a dyadic interaction task requiring active social influence attempts. Thirty-six male and 36 female normotensive high-school students characterized as either high or low in trait dominance engaged in a mixed-gender discussion with a high or low dominant partner. Trait dominance substantially influenced cardiovascular reactivity to the interpersonal stressor. High dominant participants displayed higher increases in systolic blood pressure (SBP) and pulse pressure (PP), but lower diastolic elevations than low dominant participants. The difference in diastolic reactivity was particularly pronounced in females. Recovery from stress was influenced by level of partner dominance. Participants interacting with a dominant partner showed delayed diastolic recovery. The observed cardiovascular effects seem to reflect greater task engagement and efficient coping in dominant subjects. Group differences in cognitive task appraisals and affective experiences are consistent with this interpretation. Differences in psychological responding were not found to mediate the relation between trait dominance and cardiovascular responses, however.