0000000000217617
AUTHOR
Jesús Gómez-amor
Autonomic markers associated with generalized social phobia symptoms: heart rate variability and salivary alpha-amylase.
The study of autonomic nervous system changes associated with generalized social phobia (GSP) disorder has increased in recent years, showing contradictory results. The present study aimed to evaluate how young people with GSP reacted before, during, and after exposure to the Trier Stress Social Test (TSST), focusing on their autonomic changes (heart rate variability (HRV) and salivary alpha-amylase (sAA)) compared to a control group (non-GSP). Some psychological variables were also considered. Sex was specifically studied as a possible modulator of autonomic fluctuations and psychological state. Eighty young people were randomly distributed into two counterbalanced situations: stress condi…
Autonomic, hormonal, and subjective responses to a modified version of the TSST: a pilot study
El objetivo de esta investigación fue estudiar las respuestas hormonales, autonómicas y afectivas a una versión modificada del estresor TSST en una muestra de jóvenes universitarios compuesta de treinta y ocho sujetos (11 hombres y veintisiete mujeres, 11 en la fase lútea del ciclo menstrual, 16 mujeres en la fase folicular). La respuesta hormonal se evaluó con niveles de cortisol. La frecuencia cardíaca y la actividad electrodérmica se registraron durante toda la sesión experimental y la ansiedad rasgo y estado se evaluaron antes y después de la tarea. La fase de discurso provocó la frecuencia cardíaca más alta, la mayor frecuencia de respuestas inespecíficas y el mayor nivel de conductanc…
No effects of psychosocial stress on memory retrieval in non-treated young students with Generalized Social Phobia.
Generalized Social Phobia (GSP) is a common anxiety disorder that produces clear social life disruptions. There is no consensus on the specific processes involved in its development, but the role of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis has been suggested. This study analyzed the effects of the cortisol response to the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST) on the memory retrieval of pictures with different emotional valences in 45 non-treated young students with GSP and 50 non-anxious (NA) subjects (mean=19.35years, SD=0.18). No differences were found in the cortisol response of GSP and NA subjects to the TSST and control sessions. In addition, psychosocial stress impaired memory retrieva…
Acute stress affects free recall and recognition of pictures differently depending on age and sex.
Little is known about age differences in the effects of stress on memory retrieval. Our aim was to perform an in-depth examination of acute psychosocial stress effects on memory retrieval, depending on age and sex. For this purpose, data from 52 older subjects (27 men and 25 women) were reanalyzed along with data from a novel group of 50 young subjects (26 men and 24 women). Participants were exposed to an acute psychosocial stress task (Trier Social Stress Test) or a control task. After the experimental manipulation, the retrieval of positive, negative and neutral pictures learned the previous day was tested. As expected, there was a significant response to the exposure to the stress task,…
Gender differences in cardiovascular and electrodermal responses to public speaking task: the role of anxiety and mood states
Gender moderates psychophysiological responses to stress. In addition to the hormonal background, different psychological states related to social stressors, such as anxiety and mood, could affect this response. The purpose of this study was to examine the existence of gender differences in the cardiovascular and electrodermal responses to a speech task and their relationship with anxiety and the mood variations experienced. For this, non-specific skin conductance responses (NSRs), heart rate (HR), and finger pulse volume (FPV) were measured at rest, and during preparation, task and recovery periods of an academic career speech in undergraduate men (n=15) and women (n=23), with assessment o…
The impact of cortisol reactivity to acute stress on memory: Sex differences in middle-aged people
Stress has been identified as a main factor involved in the cognitive changes that occur during the aging process. This study investigated sex differences in the relationship between the magnitude of the acute stress-induced salivary cortisol response and memory performance among middle-aged people. To this end, 16 men and 16 women (aged 54-72 years) were exposed to the Trier Social Stress Test and a control condition in a crossover design. Afterwards their memory performance was measured using a standardized memory test (Rey's Auditory Verbal Learning Test). Only among women, there was an acute impact of stress on memory performance and a significant relationship between a higher cortisol …
Acute pre-learning stress and declarative memory: impact of sex, cortisol response and menstrual cycle phase.
This study explores the influence of pre-learning stress on performance on declarative memory tasks in healthy young adults in relation to sex and menstrual cycle phase. The sample was composed of 119 students (32 men and 87 women) from 18 to 25 years of age. The women were tested in different hormonal stages (30 in follicular phase, 34 in luteal phase, and 23 using oral contraceptives). The participants were exposed to the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST) or a control condition. Afterwards, their memory performance was measured using a standardized memory test (Rey's Auditory Verbal Learning Test). In the control condition, all groups of women recalled more words than men, but these differe…
Anticipatory autonomic response to a public speaking task in women
The aim of this research was to study anticipatory autonomic responses their relationship to trait anxiety. Twenty-three women prepared an evaluated speech (S-condition) and 22 women an evaluated essay (W-condition). Heart rate (HR), finger pulse volume (FPV) and skin conductance were recorded before, during and after preparation of the task and during task performance; state-anxiety was evaluated before and after the task. In the total sample, state-anxiety was higher in the S- than in W-condition and this anxiety increase was accompanied by FPV reductions. However, when the sample was split according to trait anxiety scores, HR during preparation and increases of state-anxiety were greate…
Enhancing effects of acute psychosocial stress on priming of non-declarative memory in healthy young adults.
Social stress affects cognitive processes in general, and memory performance in particular. However, the direction of these effects has not been clearly established, as it depends on several factors. Our aim was to determine the impact of the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and sympathetic nervous system (SNS) reactivity to psychosocial stress on short-term non-declarative memory and declarative memory performance. Fifty-two young participants (18 men, 34 women) were subjected to the Trier Social Stress Task (TSST) and a control condition in a crossover design. Implicit memory was assessed by a priming test, and explicit memory was assessed by the Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test…
Salivary alpha-amylase response to acute psychosocial stress: The impact of age
a b s t r a c t The impact of stress on health varies across the different stages of human life. Aging is associated with psychobiological changes that could limit our ability to cope with stressors. Therefore, it is crucial to clarify the physiological mechanisms that underlie the stress response and the changes that occur in them as we age. Our aim was to investigate age differences in the salivary alpha amylase (sAA) response to stress, and its relationship with other typical stress biomarkers such as cortisol and heart rate (HR). Sixty-two participants divided into two age groups (younger group: N = 31, age range: 18-35 years; older group: N = 31, age range: 54-71 years) were exposed to…