Relationship between emotional reactivity to visual stimuli and basic personality traits

Two studies with the same goal, but different instruments, investigated the correlation between basic personality traits and electrodermal reactivity to aversive visual stimuli. Study 1 focused on the Five Factor Model traits, while in Study 2, we investigated the HEXACO model, and an additional trait, Disintegration. In Study 1, emotional reactivity was expressed using Polyscore, a composite polygraph measure in which electrodermal response (EDR) had the largest weight, and it was measured with respect to stimuli with positive, neutral, and negative valences. In Study 2, we employed several measures of EDR to stimuli with negative valence. In both experiments, Conscientiousness correlated positively with EDR to aversive stimuli. Additionally, in Study 2, there was a negative correlation between Disintegration and EDR to aversive stimuli. Other traits were not related to EDR to aversive stimuli, and, in Study 1, we found no relationship between personality traits and reactivity to stimuli with positive or neutral valence.

Gender Differences in Stress Responses during a Virtual Reality Trier Social Stress Test

The Trier Social Stress Test (TSST) is commonly used to induce stress in laboratories by instructing participants to deliver a speech and to solve arithmetic tasks in front of a committee. Its implementation in virtual reality (VR) enables an investigation of stress responses under highly standardized controllable conditions. The aim of this study was to compare stress responses among men and women in a VR version of the TSST (VR-TSST). To this end, 16 women taking oral contraceptives and 16 men underwent the VR-TSST in a modified version including a competitor. Stress ratings, heart rate, electrodermal reactivity, and salivary cortisol responses were analyzed. The VR-TSST induced endocrine, peripher-physiological and self-reported stress responses, indicated by a significant increase in heart rate, electrodermal activity and stress ratings as well as a small but significant cortisol response. Significant gender differences were found only for stress ratings. In conclusion, these findings confirm earlier results that VR is suitable to induce social stress both in males and females.

Broader autism phenotype and couple interactions in parents of children with autism

The broader autism phenotype refers to sub-clinical autism spectrum disorder characteristics involving socially and emotionally aloof and rigid personality traits and social communication difficulties. Relatives of individuals with autism spectrum disorder, including parents, evidence an increased rate of broader autism phenotype. The goal of this study was to evaluate the association between actor (one’s own) and partner (their partner’s) broader autism phenotype and the self-reported, observed, and physiological (i.e. electrodermal reactivity) markers of the quality of videotaped couple problem-solving interactions in 158 couples, who had a child with autism spectrum disorder (aged 5–12 years). The mean age of mothers was 39.79 (standard deviation = 5.06) years and the mean age of fathers was 41.77 (standard deviation = 6.02) years for fathers, and 36.6% of parents did not have a college degree. Actor–partner interdependence models, using structural equation modeling in analysis of moment structures, were conducted. Results indicated that parent broader autism phenotype was positively related to adverse couple problem-solving interactions across all measurement methods (observed codes, self-reported affect, and electrodermal reactivity). These effects were independent of child-related challenges. The effect of parent broader autism phenotype occurred through both actor and partner pathways and was strongest for father broader autism phenotype.

Mothers’ Attitudes as Organizers of Discipline Practices and Related Anticipatory Processes

We hypothesized that mothers’ negative attitudes toward their toddlers would set in motion an anticipatory social cognitive-affective cascade that influenced their parenting during immediately subsequent discipline encounters. Ninety-seven mothers of 2- to 3-year-old children completed a laboratory assessment consisting of (a) an interview/observational measure of their attitudes toward their toddlers, questionnaires tapping (b) expectancies of their children’s difficult behavior in upcoming discipline encounters and (c) anticipatory changes in their own experience of negative emotion, (d) measures of anticipatory changes in their heart rate and electrodermal activity, and (e) observations of their overreactive and lax discipline. Negative maternal attitudes were associated with lax discipline, negative expectancies, and anticipatory electrodermal reactivity. Negative expectancies were associated with anticipatory increases in mothers’ experience of negative emotion. Other than negative maternal attitudes, however, no factor in the hypothesized social cognitive-affective cascade predicted discipline. Thus, the hypothesized model was not fully supported by the data.

Electrodermal hyporeactivity evaluation for detecting suicidal propensity in depressed patients

IntroductionSince 1987 several publications have focused on electrodermal reactivity in groups with different suicidal behaviors, but with varying results. However, using an untraditional statistical approach with clinical application in focus revealed between themselves confirming results of a strong relationship between electrodermal hyporeactivity and suicide.ObjectivesThe objectives were to investigate how this research tool can be implemented for detecting suicide risk in depressed patients.AimsThe aims were to find a base for the objective test of electrodermal reactivity to be used as support in suicidal risk assessments in depressed patients.MethodsMore than ten published studies on electrodermal hyporeactivity and suicide were reviewed subsequent to the application of an untraditional statistical approach. Gender, age,subdiagnoses and depressive depth were considered. All subjects were tested in a habituation experiment of the electrodermal response to a moderately strong tone stimulus.ResultsThe percentage of electrodermally hyporeactive depressed patients who later committed suicide was 86–97%. The percentage of electrodermally reactive patients that did not commit suicide was 96–98%. Hyporeactivity seems to be stable in at least 1–2 years in remission.ConclusionsIt was considered favorable to test for hyporeactivity as early as possible, i.e. already in the primary care. That enables right treatment of right patients very early. The number of referrals to psychiatric specialists could be expected to decrease. Possible causes of hyporeactivity begin to be revealed, giving ideas of several treatment approaches.Disclosure of interestThe author has not supplied his declaration of competing interest.

Blunted Electrodermal and Psychological Response to Acute Stress in Family Caregivers of People with Eating Disorders

Caring for an offspring with an eating disorder (ED) is associated with high levels of distress, and health problems. Indeed, ED caregivers have to cope with a range of challenges related to their caring role, which represents a chronic stress situation. This tends to alter body homeostasis and caregivers’ health status. This study aimed to analyse the electrodermal reactivity and psychological response to acute stress in ED caregivers compared to non-caregivers. As expected, caregivers showed lower electrodermal (p < .001, η2partial = .269 for SCL and p < .01, η2partial = .214 for NSCRs) and psychological response (p < .05, η2partial = .198) to acute stress than non-caregivers. The findings suggest the existence of physiological adaptation to chronic stress in family caregivers of people with EDs.