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The Multitasking Framework: The Effects of Increasing Workload on Acute Psychobiological Stress Reactivity
Abstract
A variety of techniques exist for eliciting acute psychological stress in the laboratory; however, they vary in terms of their ease of use, reliability to elicit consistent responses and the extent to which they represent the stressors encountered in everyday life. There is, therefore, a need to develop simple laboratory techniques that reliably elicit psychobiological stress reactivity that are representative of the types of stressors encountered in everyday life. The multitasking framework is a performance-based, cognitively demanding stressor, representative of environments where individuals are required to attend and respond to several different stimuli simultaneously with varying levels of workload. Psychological (mood and perceived workload) and physiological (heart rate and blood pressure) stress reactivity was observed in response to a 15-min period of multitasking at different levels of workload intensity in a sample of 20 healthy participants. Multitasking stress elicited increases in heart rate and blood pressure, and increased workload intensity elicited dose-response increases in levels of perceived workload and mood. As individuals rarely attend to single tasks in real life, the multitasking framework provides an alternative technique for modelling acute stress and workload in the laboratory. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
... The multi-tasking framework (MTF; Purple Research Solutions) is a computerized stressor that reliably elicits cognitive demand, negative affect, stress, and anxiety (Scholey et al., 2009;Wetherell & Carter, 2014). The MTF requires participants to attend to four tasks simultaneously that vary in terms of time pressure and/or difficulty; tasks are performance-driven and demand is manipulated through instructing participants to achieve as high a score as they can. ...
... The MTF requires participants to attend to four tasks simultaneously that vary in terms of time pressure and/or difficulty; tasks are performance-driven and demand is manipulated through instructing participants to achieve as high a score as they can. The current version consisted of four tasks (visual warning, mail alert, telephone entry, and maths), which required visual monitoring, accurate data entry, and mental arithmetic (for a detailed description of tasks, see Wetherell & Carter, 2014). ...
... The pattern of results demonstrates a physiological response to the stressor (increased HR) in placebo but not Zembrin ® group (Figure 3).4 | DISCUSSIONResults of the current studies provide the first tentative behavioral evidence to support the anxiolytic properties of Sceletium tortuosum (25 mg Zembrin ® ) but fail to replicate the previously reported enhancement of cognitive function. In the current studies, stress induction was confirmed in study 1 as participants reported increased subjective experience of alertness and decreased feelings of calmness following completion of the MTF (seeWetherell & Carter, 2014) and in study 2 by participants reporting elevated feelings of anxiety/stress and increased HR following completion of the simulated public speech task. With regard to the therapeutic properties of Sceletium tortuosum (Zembrin ® ), study 1 failed to show any effect of treatment on feelings stress or memory performance; however, study 2 demonstrated that Sceletium tortuosum (Zembrin ® ) ameliorated the anticipatory increase in subjective feelings of anxiety associated with the anticipated onset of a stressor and ameliorated increases in HR during a stressor. ...
Objective
To investigate the anxiolytic properties of a standardized extract of Sceletium tortuosum (trademarked―Zembrin®).
Methods
Two studies utilized a placebo‐controlled, double‐blind, between‐subject experimental design to investigate the effects of a single dose of Sceletium tortuosum (25 mg, Zembrin®) on laboratory stress/anxiety responding in 20 young healthy volunteers. To elicit feelings of stress/anxiety, participants completed 20 min of the multitasking framework in study 1 and a 5‐min simulated public speaking task in study 2. Study 1 measured subjective experiences of mood at baseline, prestress induction, and poststress induction. Study 2 measured subjective experiences of anxiety and physiological indicators of stress (heart rate [HR] and galvanic skin response) at baseline, prestress induction, during stress induction, and poststress induction.
Results
A series of analysis of covariances (baseline entered as the covariate) revealed no treatment effect in study 1; however, study 2 revealed subjective anxiety levels to be significantly lower in the Zembrin® group at the prestress induction point and a significant interaction between treatment and time on HR. Taken together, results indicate that a single dose of Zembrin® can ameliorate laboratory stress/anxiety responding in healthy volunteers.
Conclusion
We provide the first tentative behavioral evidence to support the anxiolytic properties of Sceletium tortuosum (25 mg Zembrin®).
... This study used the multi-tasking framework (MTF; Purple Research Solutions) to act as both a stressor and an assessment of cognitive performance [44]. This task was completed three times at each assessment visit: at pre-treatment baseline, then one and three hours post-dose. ...
... As part of the MTF, four tasks were displayed, one in each quadrant of the monitor, which were required to be completed simultaneously for a period of 20 min for each of the three assessments at each testing day. Completion of the MTF has previously been shown to increase both subjective stress and physiological measures, such as heart rate and blood pressure [44]. The implementation of the MTF used in the current study was set to medium intensity and was identical to that described in previous investigations of anti-stress and cognitive enhancing properties of glucose and caffeine [45], chewing gum [46], Bacopa monnieri [47] and multi-vitamin supplementation [48]. ...
... The Bond and Lader [20] mood scales have been used extensively in studying the mood effects of a range of psychopharmacological interventions, and changes as a result of MTF completion have been demonstrated [44]. The scale consists of 16 items, each a 100-mm line with antonyms at either end (for example, "lethargic" and "energetic"). ...
L-theanine (γ-glutamylethylamide) is an amino acid found primarily in the green tea plant. This study explored the effects of an L-theanine-based nutrient drink on mood responses to a cognitive stressor. Additional measures included an assessment of cognitive performance and resting state alpha oscillatory activity using magnetoencephalography (MEG). Thirty-four healthy adults aged 18–40 participated in this double-blind, placebo-controlled, balanced crossover study. The primary outcome measure, subjective stress response to a multitasking cognitive stressor, was significantly reduced one hour after administration of the L-theanine drink when compared to placebo. The salivary cortisol response to the stressor was reduced three hours post-dose following active treatment. No treatment-related cognitive performance changes were observed. Resting state alpha oscillatory activity was significantly greater in posterior MEG sensors after active treatment compared to placebo two hours post-dose; however, this effect was only apparent for those higher in trait anxiety. This change in resting state alpha oscillatory activity was not correlated with the change in subjective stress response or the cortisol response, suggesting further research is required to assess the functional relevance of these treatment-related changes in resting alpha activity. These findings further support the anti-stress effects of L-theanine.
... The laboratory stressors which have been employed in these previous investigations have tended to comprise cognitive tasks such as demanding mental arithmetic. However, an important consideration of studies designed to induce stress in the laboratory is that the administered stressors should be representative of the demands that an individual may routinely face in the real world (Kudielka & Wüst, 2010;Wetherell & Carter, 2014). This is a particularly important consideration in context of the premise that the increased risk of adverse coronary health outcomes in Type D individuals arises from recurrent lifetime atypical reactivity to stress. ...
... In order to adequately address this question, studies need to ensure that the laboratory stressor employed is analogous to the kinds of stress which participants are routinely exposed to on a day to day basis. An example of one such ecologically valid stressor is that of multitasking (Wetherell & Carter, 2014). Similarly to the stressors employed by previous Type D studies in young adults, the Multitasking Framework (Wetherell & Sidgreaves, 2005) is performancebased and cognitively demanding, but has the advantage of being representative of environments where participants have to attend and respond to several different stimuli simultaneously, such as in many busy work settings. ...
... The Multitasking Framework (Purple Research Solutions, UK; see Wetherell & Sidgreaves, 2005) required participants to simultaneously perform four tasks which were presented on a computer screen and is representative of everyday situations that require individuals to attend and respond to several stimuli concurrently (Wetherell & Carter, 2014). The four Framework modules used in this study were Memory Search, Mail Alert, Target Tracker and Telephone Number Entry (see Figure 1 for a screen grab depicting the four modules as presented in the present study). ...
Abstract Previous research investigating the influence of Type D personality on cardiovascular reactivity to stress in healthy young adults is somewhat mixed. The present study sought to investigate this question using an ecologically valid laboratory stressor. Beat-to-beat blood pressure and heart rate were measured in 77 healthy young adults during exposure to multitasking stress. Mood and background stress were both associated with Type D personality when Type D was conceptualised as a dimensional construct, with less robust findings observed using the traditional dichotomous typological approach. However, the continuous Type D construct added limited predictive value of the self-report measures above that of its constituent components, negative affectivity (NA) and social inhibition (SI). Further, an inverse relationship between the continuous Type D construct and blood pressure reactivity to multitasking stress was observed. In summary, our findings suggest that Type D personality is predictive of blunted cardiovascular reactivity to stress in healthy individuals when Type D is considered as a dimensional construct and the independent influence of NA and SI is controlled for. Further, our findings suggest that Type D does not predict additional variance in mood and background stress above that of NA and SI when these constituent factors are considered independently.
... Multitasking requires the switching between multiple tasks, challenging working memory capacities and negatively affecting cognitive performance (Baumgartner et al., 2014;Ophir et al., 2009). Regarding computer use, logging and physiological data demonstrate that multitasking is associated with decreases in heart rate variability and increases in arousal, suggesting that multitasking is related to increased physiological stress (Mark et al., 2014;Wetherell & Carter, 2014;Yeykelis et al., 2014). Self-report data, too, suggest media multitasking to be positively related to stress (Freytag et al., 2021;Reinecke et al., 2017). ...
... An additional discrepancy to past findings emerged with regard to media multitasking, which past research identified as a predictor of stress (Mark et al., 2014;Reinecke et al., 2017;Wetherell & Carter, 2014). We, however, found neither direct nor indirect effects of/via media multitasking on stress. ...
Mobile connectivity can negatively affect smartphone users by eliciting stress. Past research focused on stress-inducing potentials of smartphone use behaviors and, recently, on the cognitive-motivational engagement with online interactions. However, theoretical perspectives as the mobile connectivity paradox and the IM³UNE model further suggest that digital stress effects may be conditional. A preregistered experience sampling study ( n = 123; 1,427 use episodes) investigated relationships of cognitive-motivational (online vigilance) and behavioral (communication load, media multitasking) smartphone use patterns with perceived stress and introduced two situational boundary conditions (goal conflict, autonomy need dissatisfaction). Results demonstrate that online vigilance can induce stress directly and via increasing communication load. Goal conflict and autonomy need dissatisfaction moderated the influence of online vigilance and media multitasking on stress. Findings are discussed in the context of effect directionality and the need to further investigate boundary conditions in digital well-being research.
... Thus, in study 1, where the research goal was to test whether self-harming behavior occurred even when no opponent was present, a paradigm combining multitasking with white noise was developed. Multitasking has been shown to have stress-inducing effects that are largely not perceived by humans [27]. In order to increase perceptibility, white noise serves to make the stress unpleasantly audible. ...
... However, participants were further informed that before they chose between the two variants, they needed to be aware that previous studies had found a stress-inducing effect of multitasking [27], such that it could be counted as self-harming behavior. They were informed that they should be further aware that the stress induced is typically not perceived by humans. ...
The Dark Triad of personality has been associated with aggression against others as a reaction to perceived provocations. However, previous work has also shown that such responsive aggression even occurs if it means harming oneself. The first of two laboratory studies aimed to investigate whether this relation between the Dark Triad and self-harming behavior also occurs in situations where no others are affected but self-harm is likely. The second laboratory study considered two different settings in a within-participants design in order to analyze the stability of self-harming behavior and to what extent the Dark Triad constructs influence this behavior. The sample for study 1 consisted of 151 students (45.7% female) with a mean age of 21.40 years (SD = 2.19); the sample for study 2 consisted of 251 students (76.0% female) with a mean age of 22.21 years (SD = 3.90). Aside from the Dark Triad’s common core, depending on how self-harm was triggered (ego-threat (mainly narcissism), being alone with one’s own thoughts (mainly psychopathy), or reward condition (mainly Machiavellianism)), the Dark Triad traits differed in their responsiveness but were stable over the last two conditions, thereby suggesting a vulnerable side of the Dark Triad.
... Multitasking requires the switching between multiple tasks, challenging working memory capacities and negatively affecting cognitive performance (Baumgartner et al., 2014;Liefooghe et al., 2008;Ophir et al., 2009). Regarding computer use, logging and physiological data demonstrate that multitasking is associated with decreases in heart rate variability and increases in arousal, suggesting that multitasking is related to increased physiological stress (Mark et al., 2014;Wetherell & Carter, 2014;Yeykelis et al., 2014). Selfreport data, too, suggest media multitasking to be positively related to stress (Freytag et al., 2021;Reinecke et al., 2017). ...
... An additional discrepancy to past findings emerged with regard to media multitasking, which past research identified as a strong predictor of stress (Mark et al., 2014;Reinecke et al., 2017;Wetherell & Carter, 2014). We, however, found neither direct nor indirect effects of/via media multitasking on stress. ...
Mobile connectivity can negatively affect smartphone users by eliciting stress. Past research focused on stress-inducing potentials of smartphone use behaviours and, recently, on the cognitive-motivational engagement with online interactions. However, theoretical perspectives as the mobile connectivity paradox (Vanden Abeele, 2021) and the IM³UNE model (Schneider et al., 2021) further suggest that digital stress effects may be conditional. A preregistered experience sampling study (N = 123; 1,427 use episodes) investigated relationships of cognitive-motivational (online vigilance) and behavioural (communication load, media multitasking) smartphone use patterns with perceived stress and introduced two situational boundary conditions (goal conflict, autonomy need dissatisfaction). Results demonstrate that online vigilance can induce stress directly and indirectly via communication load. Goal conflict and autonomy need dissatisfaction moderated the influence of online vigilance and media multitasking on stress. Findings are discussed in context of effect directionality and the need to further investigate boundary conditions in digital well-being research.
... The Multitasking Framework (MTF: Purple Research Solutions, UK) is a computerized stressor that requires participants to attend to four tasks simultaneously that vary in terms of time pressure and/or difficulty; tasks are performance driven and demand is manipulated through instructing participants to achieve as high a score as they can. The present study included the following tasks: auditory monitoring, where participants are required to report a target tone; number tap, where participants are required to identify and report the highest digits in a 4 × 4 grid; visual monitoring, where participants are required to monitor and rest a cursor to prevent it leaving a target area; and a Stroop task (for a detailed description of tasks see Wetherell and Carter, 2014). ...
... Upon arrival at the laboratory, participants were seated and the DINAMAP cuff was placed on their non-dominant arm. After a seated rest period of 10 min (Balodis et al., 2010), participants were given a 2-min demonstration of the tasks by the researcher (Wetherell and Carter, 2014). Prior to commencement of the 20-min period of multitasking, participants were informed that they needed to work as fast and accurately as possible, and to attain their highest achievable score. ...
Previous work suggests that relative increases in socially evaluative threat modulate the psychobiological stress response. However, few studies have compared stressors which manipulate the level of socially evaluative threat to which the participant is exposed. Here we present two studies. In the first, we assessed the integrity of an ecologically valid, laboratory stressor (direct socially evaluated multitasking) and its effects on acute psychobiological reactivity and ability to evoke an anticipatory response prior to participation. Specifically, we assessed whether the expectation and experience of direct social evaluation (multitasking while standing and facing an evaluator) evokes greater reactivity than indirect evaluation (over-the-shoulder evaluation). In the second study, we sought to replicate the findings regarding acute stress reactivity whilst extending the assessment window to assess the extent to which the stressor evokes anticipatory responses. As hypothesized, greater reactivity was observed following direct social evaluation compared with indirect observation. Increases in anxiety, heart rate and blood pressure were demonstrated across both studies and the paradigm therefore provides an ecologically valid technique for the activation of psychological and cardiovascular stress responding. Additionally, anticipation of experiencing socially evaluated multitasking led to increases in anxiety, tension, and worry prior to the event itself, supporting previous suggestions that threat anticipation may prolong the activation of stress mechanisms. In the present studies we assessed whether the expectation and experience of direct social evaluation evokes greater reactivity than indirect evaluation. The findings have demonstrated that direct social evaluation of multitasking is a more potent stressor than multitasking with indirect evaluation. Furthermore, our findings indicate that the period of anticipation of stressful events may be critical to understanding the process of stress regulation, and as such we recommend extending the sampling window to allow for the investigation of these processes.
... Such procedures are retrospective and mostly carried out in laboratory settings [23,24]. Acute stressors observed in the laboratory rarely represent real-world situations accurately [25]. Moreover, only single-dimension characteristics of stressful events can be investigated in a laboratory setting, while real-life situations are far more complex [25]. ...
... Acute stressors observed in the laboratory rarely represent real-world situations accurately [25]. Moreover, only single-dimension characteristics of stressful events can be investigated in a laboratory setting, while real-life situations are far more complex [25]. Furthermore, self-report is not always reliable; a phenomenon reflected in overestimation of physical activity level upon self-evaluation [26,27]. ...
Chronic stress is the main cause of health problems in high-risk jobs. Wearable sensors can become an ecologically valid method of stress level assessment in real-life applications. We sought to determine a non-invasive technique for objective stress monitoring. Data were collected from firefighters during 24-h shifts using sensor belts equipped with a dry-lead electrocardiograph (ECG) and a three-axial accelerometer. Levels of stress experienced during fire incidents were evaluated via a brief self-assessment questionnaire. Types of physical activity were distinguished basing on accelerometer readings, and heart rate variability (HRV) time series were segmented accordingly into corresponding fragments. Those segments were classified as stress/no-stress conditions. Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) analysis showed true positive classification as stress condition for 15% of incidents (while maintaining almost zero False Positive Rate), which parallels the amount of truly stressful incidents reported in the questionnaires. These results show a firm correspondence between the perceived stress level and physiological data. Psychophysiological measurements are reliable indicators of stress even in ecological settings and appear promising for chronic stress monitoring in high-risk jobs, such as firefighting.
... Indeed, driving and flying are complex skills which require several cognitive processes and as such, are not strict measures of divided attention per se. Nevertheless, complex tasks are a realistic representation of real-world activities where attention is often divided across several stimuli streams, causing cognitive demand [29] and a stress reactivity response [30], characterized by increased negative mood, cortisol, and self-reported stress [30,31]. ...
... Indeed, driving and flying are complex skills which require several cognitive processes and as such, are not strict measures of divided attention per se. Nevertheless, complex tasks are a realistic representation of real-world activities where attention is often divided across several stimuli streams, causing cognitive demand [29] and a stress reactivity response [30], characterized by increased negative mood, cortisol, and self-reported stress [30,31]. ...
The aim of this study was to examine the effects of hangover on mood, multitasking ability, and psychological stress reactivity to cognitive demand. Using a crossover design and semi-naturalistic methodology, 25 participants attended the laboratory in the morning following a night of (i) alcohol abstinence and (ii) alcohol self-administration during a typical night out (with order counterbalanced across participants). They completed a four-module multitasking framework (MTF, a widely used laboratory stressor) and a battery of questionnaires assessing mood, hangover symptom severity, and previous night’s sleep. The effects of the MTF on mood and perceived workload were also assessed. Participants in the hangover condition reported significantly lower alertness and contentment coupled with a higher mental fatigue and anxiety. Multitasking ability was also significantly impaired in the hangover condition. Completion of the cognitive stressor increased reported levels of mental demand, effort, and frustration, and decreased perceived level of performance. MTF completion did not differentially affect mood. Lastly, participants rated their sleep as significantly worse during the night prior to the hangover compared with the control condition. These findings confirm the negative cognitive and mood effects of hangover on mood. They also demonstrate that hangover is associated with greater perceived effort during task performance.
... In line with the well-documented effects of acute stress on blood pressure (e.g. Vrijkotte, van Doornen, & de Geus, 2000;Wetherell & Carter, 2014), both systolic and diastolic measures increased initially then began to reduce in the recovery phase. Interestingly, similar to the findings of Kelly-Hughes et al. (2014), Type D individuals exhibited lower blood pressure levels (both systolic and diastolic) than non-Type Ds. ...
... The current study has various methodological strengths. Firstly, the multitasking framework is an ecologically valid acute stress paradigm that reflects multitasking demands an individual may experience in the real world (Kelly-Hughes et al., 2014;Wetherell & Carter, 2014). The additional negative feedback provided by the researcher strengthened the validity of the stressor (Wetherell et al., 2017). ...
Type D personality is characterised by increased social inhibition and negative affectivity. Research demonstrates associations between Type D and poor physical health. Maladaptive sympathetic arousal is suggested as a potential mechanism, however, findings are inconsistent and studies mainly focus on basic cardiovascular parameters. The current study examines cardiovascular and haemodynamic parameters in addition to salivary alpha amylase (sAA) as markers of sympathetic stress reactivity in Type D individuals. Healthy adults (N=75; 33 Type D; age 18-42; 64% female) completed a multitasking stressor while continuous beat-to-beat cardiovascular function was measured. Saliva samples were obtained at baseline, pre-task, post-task, +10minutes and +20minutes post-task. Type Ds exhibited dysfunctional cardiovascular reactivity, characterised by blunted total peripheral resistance, slower stroke volume recovery and potentially unhealthy changes in haemodynamic profile. Alpha amylase reactivity was evident, but group differences were not significant. Findings indicate dysregulated sympathetic reactivity in Type D individuals, exemplified by a maladaptive haemodynamic profile. Lay summary: Individuals who are naturally quite anxious or distressed but are also socially inhibited are referred to as having Type D personality. These individuals are deemed at higher risk of negative health outcomes, particularly in terms of their cardiac health. This study demonstrates that this could be because aspects of their cardiovascular system may respond in an abnormal way to stress.
... "The multitasking framework is a performance-based, cognitively demanding stressor, representative of environments where individuals are required to attend and respond to several different stimuli simultaneously with varying levels of workload." [21]. As such, it is not designed to be a means of directly assessing cognition, and scores on the four modules are not equally weighted. ...
... What is of greater importance is the impact of the multi-tasking framework on the physiological and subjective measures. Previous studies have consistently shown that the multi-tasking framework employed here can significantly increase heart rate and blood pressure from baseline levels [21] [22] [23]. The current study found responses of the same kind, but notably much greater in the control condition. ...
... Therefore to measure human stress, it is ideal to develop a multitasking framework comprising of several stressors, to induce stress via increasing the number of stressors or increasing the time pressure. In [13], psychological and physiological stress reactivity is assessed using a multitasking framework. It is noted that there was an increase in heart rate and blood pressure but no stress classification is done. ...
... EEG data's pattern analysis for induced stress is done, but no classification is done in [3]. Through [13] and [3], we can conclude that multitask framework is a feasible technique to be used for inducing real world stress to subjects. In this study, we have adopted a multitask framework and increases the difficulties by inducing different time pressure in different sessions to indicate various levels of stress. ...
... The limited cognitive resources of media users represent a potential explanation for the fact that multitasking may lead to stress. Results of a study by Wetherell and Carter (2014) demonstrate stress-eliciting effects of multitasking by testing its ability to increase psychological stress in the laboratory. Moreover, results of a survey by Becker, Alzahabi, and Hopwood (2013) indicate an association between media multitasking, depression, and social anxiety symptoms. ...
Digital stress can be defined as stress elicited by the confrontation or interaction with, use of, or cognitive orientation toward digital information and communication technologies (ICTs). ICTs hereby cover all digital and thus mostly Internet-based technologies and media such as e-mails, messengers, social media, and smartphones, but also digital technical applications and the Internet in general. Synonymous or related terms for digital stress are digital strain, technostress, techno-strain, communication stress, or (social) media(-induced) stress. Digital stress varies between different situations that provide more or less digital strain, but shows also variance between persons, with individuals being in general more or less vulnerable to digital stress than others. This entry will briefly trace the historical development of digital stress research, explain the emergence of digital stress from a psychological perspective, describe causes (i.e., stressors) for and consequences of digital stress, and provide an outlook for future discussions and research on the topic.
... Task Demand Scale (TDS): three items ("work fast", "work hard", "do too much") were selected from the Quantitative Workload Inventory (Spector & Jex, 1998), validated in Italian by Barbaranelli et al. (2013), based on to their face validity, simplicity, and shared content with Job Demand items from Karasek et al. (1998). A fourth item ("doing multiple things at once") was also included to account for the multi-tasking component of Task Demand, whose manipulation has been associated with mental demand and physiological activation (e.g., Wetherell & Carter, 2014). TDS items were introduced by the instruction "In relation to the main job task performed in the last 10 minutes…". ...
Experience sampling methods are increasingly used in workplace stress assessment, yet rarely developed and validated following the available best practices. Here, we developed and evaluated parsimonious measures of momentary stressors (Task Demand and Task Control) and the Italian adaptation of the Multidimensional Mood Questionnaire as an indicator of momentary strain (Negative Valence, Tense Arousal, and Fatigue). Data from 139 full-time office workers that received seven experience sampling questionnaires per day over 3 workdays suggested satisfactory validity (including weak invariance cross-level isomorphism), level-specific reliability, and sensitivity to change. The scales also showed substantial correlations with retrospective measures of the corresponding or similar constructs and a degree of sensitivity to work sampling categories (type and mean of job task, people involved). Opportunities and recommendations for the investigation and the routine assessment of workplace stress are discussed.
... While flexible work schemes are sometimes considered beneficial for organizations and for employees, they are part and parcel of many performance cultures and may disrupt work-life balance and increase stress by reinforcing the pressure on individual employees to manage their time off work as well as their work-time (Anderson-Connolly et al., 2002;Dewe & Kompier, 2010; see also Carter et al., 2011). More recently, growing expectations on employees to multitask and be available by email has been associated with increased stress levels (Barley et al., 2011;Wetherell & Carter, 2014). ...
The worldwide spread of work‐related mental unhealth suggests that this is a major problem affecting organizations and employees on a global scale. In this paper, we therefore provide a thematic review of the literatures that address this issue in management and organization studies (MOS) and related fields. While these literatures examine how employee mental health is affected by organizational and occupational structures and managed by organizations and employees, they have paid relatively little attention to the capitalist labour relations which underpin the unhealthy conditions of contemporary working life. They have paid even less attention to how these conditions may be resisted. To help future scholarship in MOS challenge this state of affairs, we draw on some of the most basic but central notions of exploitation, alienation and resistance in classic and current critiques of capitalism, optimistic that this may help strengthen the field's capacity to confront mental unhealth in settings of work and organization.
... Time for leisure, community and political participation can also be diminished, reduced, borrowed or negated by mental labor (Anxo et al., 2011;Maume, 2008;Maume et al., 2009;Shaw, 2008). Further, studies show that when there is little time to focus on one thing, employed mothers report increased anxiety and stress (Ruppanner, Tan, Carson & Ratcliff, 2021;McLean et al., 2011;Papanek, 1979;Wetherell & Carter, 2014). Offer's (2014) research found mothers and fathers spent similar amounts of time thinking about 'family-specific mental labor' but only mothers reported poorer emotional well-being as a consequence. ...
The mental load has received considerable public attention especially in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. In this article, we synthesize existing literature to argue that the mental load is a combination of cognitive and emotional labor and it is this combination that makes the mental work a load. We argue that the way the mental load operates within families and society has three characteristics: (1) it is invisible in that it is enacted internally yet results in a range of unpaid, physical labor; (2) it is boundaryless in that can be brought to work and into leisure and sleep time; and (3) enduring in that it is never complete because it is tied to caring for loved ones which is constant. We also offer some future directions for addressing the problems associated with the mental load. First, questions measuring the mental load should be standard in health and social surveys to better understand the problem. Second, employers should adopt better policies that allow for greater work-life reconciliation to lessen the mental load. Third, caregiving should be vital infrastructure developed and invested in by governments to reduce competing work and care demands that accelerate the deleterious consequences of the mental load.
... Neurophysiological evidence substantiates this survey finding. One examination (Wetherell & Carter, 2014) found that a 15-min period of multitasking (mental arithmetic, auditory monitoring, visual monitoring, and a Stroop task performed on a computer) led to increases in heart rate and systolic and diastolic blood pressure. ...
As a consequence of lockdowns due to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and the resulting restricted social mobility, several billion people worldwide have recently had to replace physical face-to-face communication with computer-mediated interaction. Notably, the adoption rates of videoconferencing increased significantly in 2020, predominantly because videoconferencing resembles face-to-face interaction. Tools such as Zoom, Microsoft Teams, and Cisco Webex are used by hundreds of millions of people today. Videoconferencing may bring benefits (e.g., saving of travel costs, preservation of environment). However, prolonged and inappropriate use of videoconferencing may also have an enormous stress potential. A new phenomenon and term emerged, Zoom fatigue, a synonym for videoconference fatigue. This paper develops a definition for Zoom fatigue and presents a conceptual framework that explores the major root causes of videoconferencing fatigue and stress. The development of the framework draws upon media naturalness theory and its underlying theorizing is based on research published across various scientific fields, including the disciplines of both behavioral science and neuroscience. Based on this theoretical foundation, hypotheses are outlined. Moreover, implications for research and practice are discussed.
... The MTF is a performance-based assessment of how individuals respond to several different stimuli with varying levels of workload [32]. There are eight generic cognitive tasks. ...
Recent estimates for the global brain health supplement category, i.e. nootropic market size, will grow to nearly $5.8 billion by 2023. Overall, nearly one-quarter (23%) of adults currently take a supplement to maintain or improve brain health or delay and reverse dementia. Not surprisingly, the use of such supplements increases with age - more than one-third of the oldest generation (ages 74 and older) takes a supplement for brain health. This widespread use is being driven by a strong desire both in the younger and older generations to enhance cognitive performance and achieve healthy aging. The most prevalent botanicals currently dominating the nootropic marketplace include Gingko biloba, American ginseng, and Bacopa monnieri. However, other botanicals that affect stress, focus, attention, and sleep have also been procured by dietary supplement companies developing products for improving both, short and long-term brain health. This review focuses on efficacy data for neuroactive botanicals targeted at improving cognitive function, stress reduction, memory, mood, attention, concentration, focus, and alertness, including Bacopa monnieri, Ginkgo biloba, Holy basil, American ginseng, Gotu kola, Lemon balm, Common and Spanish sages and spearmint. Botanicals are discussed in terms of available clinical efficacy data and current safety profiles. Data gaps are highlighted for both efficacy and safety to bring attention to unmet needs and future research.
... These behaviors might have some advantages, for example, a (perceived) increase of efficiency, a quick retrieval of relevant information, a potential reduction of boredom, as well as an experience of fun and pleasure (Hwang et al. 2014). At the same time, one might also think of disadvantages, as multitasking can induce stress (Wetherell and Carter 2014) or reduce speed and quality of performance (e.g., Brünken et al. 2002;Starcke et al. 2011). ...
In several studies, individuals who reported to frequently multitask with different media displayed reduced cognitive performance, for example in fluid intelligence and executive functioning. These cognitive functions are relevant for making advantageous decisions under both objective risk (requiring reflection and strategical planning) and ambiguous risk (requiring learning from feedback). Thus, compared to low media multitaskers (LMMs), high media multitaskers (HMMs) may perform worse in both types of decision situations. The current study investigated HMMs and LMMs in a laboratory setting with the Game of Dice Task (GDT; objective risk), the Iowa Gambling Task (IGT; ambiguous risk), various tests quantifying cognitive functions (logical reasoning, working memory, information processing, general executive functions), and self-report measures of impulsivity, media multitasking expectancies, and problematic Internet use. From 182 participants, 25 HMMs and 19 LMMs were identified using the Media Multitasking Index. Results show that HMMs compared to LMMs performed weaker on the IGT but not on the GDT. Furthermore, HMMs had slightly decreased performance in tests of logical reasoning and working memory capacity. HMMs tended to increased information processing speed but this difference was not significant. Furthermore, HMMs have more positive expectancies regarding media multitasking and reported higher tendencies toward problematic Internet use. HMMs and LMMs did not differ significantly with respect to impulsivity and executive functions. The results give a first hint that HMMs may have difficulties in decision-making under ambiguous but not under objective risk. HMMs may be more prone to errors in tasks that require feedback processing. However, HMMs appear not to be impaired in aspects of long-term strategic decision-making.
... This comprises of eight different performance-related and cognitive demanding tasks that can be applied either singularly or in combination. This strategy enables the experimental manipulation of participants' workload by increasing the number of tasks the participants have to complete or by changing the difficulty level of the tasks (Wetherell & Carter, 2014;Wetherell, Craw, Smith, & Smith, 2017). Biological measurements taken in laboratory stress testing studies include products of the stress system and its interactions: cortisol, catecholamines and α-amylase, heart rate and blood pressure, blood glucose, and also inflammatory markers (Gerin, 2010;Thoma, Kirschbaum, Wolf, & Rohleder, 2012). ...
Demographic and positive psychological factors are relevant to Type 2 Diabetes (T2D) risk and progression, but the biological underpinnings are unclear. This PhD consists of four studies aiming to better understand the role of demographic and positive psychological factors on T2D risk and progression, and the biological mechanisms involved. Study 1 used data from a nationally representative cohort to examine a) the relationship between different types of subjective well-being and T2D incidence in initially healthy participants and b) the amount of association explained by sociodemographic, behavioural, and clinical characteristics. Hedonic but not eudaimonic well-being predicted lower T2D rate over 12 years. Sociodemographic, behavioural, and clinical factors together accounted for 36% of the association. Studies 2 and 3 used data from a laboratory stress testing study. Study 2 tested sex differences in inflammatory stress responses in people with existing T2D. Results showed that women with T2D produced larger interleukin(IL)-6 stress responses compared with men. Study 3 examined the association between hedonic well-being and inflammatory stress responses in individuals with T2D. Hedonic well-being was associated with lower inflammatory markers pre- and post-stress. Inflammatory stress responses did not differ in people varying in hedonic well-being. Study 4 is a 7.5-year follow-up of this laboratory study. Study 4 looked at the possible mediating role of IL-6 stress (re)activity in associations linking sex or hedonic well-being with health outcomes in participants with T2D. Results showed that women with T2D experienced worse mental health-related quality of life at follow-up and greater IL-6 stress responses at baseline predicted diminished mental health-related quality of life. IL-6 stress responsivity did not mediate the link between sex and mental health at follow-up. These findings highlight the role of hedonic well-being in T2D development. The relationship between sex or hedonic well-being with T2D outcomes may be mediated via increased inflammatory (re)activity.
... Kedua hal tersebut sama-sama dapat memicu timbulnya stres dalam diri seseorang. Dalam hal ini dapat dilihat bahwa beban kerja merupakan salah satu pemicu timbulnya stres (Wetherell & Carter, 2014). ...
The police officers working at the crime units often face a heavy workload due to the uncertainty of their work hours and the difficult situations they should deal with during their duties in solving criminal cases. This can cause them being prone to experience stress due to their exposure to situations that can cause trauma. This study aims to analyze the workload and traumatic stress in police officers serving in the crime units. Subjects involved in this study were 73 officers from eight crime divisions. All subjects were male and are serving their duties in Jakarta. Data were collected using a survey method and analyzed using correlation and a simple linear regression tests. The result shows that most subjects have workload and stress levels in the medium category. The correlation test shows that there is a positive relationship between workload and traumatic among subjects, while the simple linear regression test shows that workload has a significant contribution in predicting the participants’ traumatic stress. This result confirms previous studies which conclude that the workload experienced by police officers impacts on their stress. Key words: Workload, traumatic stress, police officersAbstrak: Anggota kepolisian yang bertugas di bagian unit kriminal sering menghadapi beban kerja yang berat karena harus mengalami ketidakpastian jam kerja dan situasi sulit yang tidak jarang melampaui ambang batas mereka ketika menyelesaikan kasus-kasus kriminal. Hal ini dapat berimplikasi pada kemungkinan terpaparnya para personel polisi dengan situasi traumatik. Hal tersebut menyebabkan polisi yang bertugas di bagian ini rawan mengalami stres. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk menguji beban kerja dan stres traumatik pada anggota kepolisian yang bertugas di unit kriminal. Subjek yang terlibat berjumlah 73 orang berasal dari delapan divisi kriminal. Semua subjek berjenis kelamin laki-laki dan bertugas di Jakarta. Data dikumpulkan menggunakan metode survei dengan menyebarkan angket dan dianalisis menggunakan uji korelasi dan uji regresi linier sederhana. Hasil menunjukkan rata-rata subjek memiliki beban kerja dan tingkat stres dalam kategori sedang. Hasil uji korelasi menunjukkan terdapat hubungan yang positif antara beban kerja dan stres traumatik pada subjek, sedangkan hasil uji regresi linier sederhana menunjukkan bahwa beban kerja berkontribusi secara signifikan terhadap stres traumatik subjek. Hasil penelitian ini mengonfirmasi penelitian sebelumnya yang menyimpulkan bahwa beban kerja anggota berdampak pada stres yang dialami.
... Task-switching between similar tasks is known to increase stress [28]. Possible causes might be increasing the number of deadlines because of working on more tasks and decreasing the time available to meet the deadlines because of decreased productivity. ...
Multi-project agile software development is a relatively new area of research. While original Scrum caters to co-located teams working on a single project, multi-project Scrum teams are a day-to-day reality, especially in small organizations. Multitasking across projects is frequently associated with loss of effectiveness, but this assumption is not sufficiently supported by empirical evidence. In order to better understand the phenomenon, we review existing literature across scientific domains and execute an action research project. Our findings show that the Team Portfolio Scrum (TPS) practice designed to support multitasking across projects is perceived to be useful, but with an associated increase in overhead.
... The limited cognitive resources of media users represent a potential explanation for the fact that multitasking may lead to stress. Results of a study by Wetherell and Carter (2014) demonstrate stress-eliciting effects of multitasking by testing its ability to increase psychological stress in the laboratory. Moreover, results of a survey by Becker, Alzahabi, and Hopwood (2013) indicate an association between media multitasking, depression, and social anxiety symptoms. ...
One rather dramatic change in people’s media-related behavior that has taken place during roughly the last decade is the penetration of everyday life with internet communication: Mobile devices and broadband connection give individuals – at least in industrial countries – the possibility to use the internet almost anywhere and anytime. Obviously, an ever-increasing majority makes full use of this option (Vorderer & Kohring, 2013). There can be no doubt that this permanent access to the (mobile) internet makes contemporary life easier in many respects. More than that, the option of being almost permanently in touch and together with others via the internet may provide users with a feeling of belonging and social support (e.g., Oh, Ozkaya & LaRose, 2014; Valkenburg & Peter, 2007).
There are, however, also a number of downsides to this possibility of permanent access: It may, in fact, lead to an ‘always-on’-mentality, which, in turn, can result in (social) information overload and stress through constant communication demands. The internet could also overwhelm users with its multitude of information, as they now almost constantly have to decide what to read, to watch, or to what to listen. Furthermore, digital connectedness and permanent access to information provoke and facilitate multitasking and permanent task switching (Vorderer & Kohring, 2013). The following chapter outlines existing results, scrutinizes theoretical explanations of processes as well as moderating factors, and points out potential future research perspectives. Our starting point is a closer look at the theoretical concept of stress and a consideration of attributes, functions, and possibilities of todays’ internet communication that may contribute to the emergence of stress.
... A computerised MTF was used. This platform offers relatively high ecological validity in terms of the cognitive demands required to complete several disparate tasks simultaneously in the work environment (Wetherell and Carter, 2013). The computerised MTF comprises four cognitive and psychomotor tasks that are undertaken simultaneously using a four-way split screen. ...
Background
This study assessed the effects of two doses of glucose and a caffeine–glucose combination on mood and performance of an ecologically valid, computerised multi-tasking platform.Materials and methodsFollowing a double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomised, parallel-groups design, 150 healthy adults (mean age 34.78 years) consumed drinks containing placebo, 25 g glucose, 60 g glucose or 60 g glucose with 40 mg caffeine. They completed a multi-tasking framework at baseline and then 30 min following drink consumption with mood assessments immediately before and after the multi-tasking framework. Blood glucose and salivary caffeine were co-monitored.ResultsThe caffeine–glucose group had significantly better total multi-tasking scores than the placebo or 60 g glucose groups and were significantly faster at mental arithmetic tasks than either glucose drink group. There were no significant treatment effects on mood. Caffeine and glucose levels confirmed compliance with overnight abstinence/fasting, respectively, and followed the predicted post-drink patterns.Conclusion
These data suggest that co-administration of glucose and caffeine allows greater allocation of attentional resources than placebo or glucose alone. At present, we cannot rule out the possibility that the effects are due to caffeine alone Future studies should aim at disentangling caffeine and glucose effects. © 2014 The Authors. Human Psychopharmacology: Clinical and Experimental published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
... In common with everyday demanding situations, the Multitask Framework elicits psychobiological responses indicative of heightened stress. These include increased neuroendocrine and immune activation, subjective feelings of stress and anxiety, and perceptions of greater cognitive demand, increased effort, and frustration (Kennedy et al., 2004;Wetherell and Sidgreaves, 2005;Scholey et al., 2009;Wetherell and Carter, 2014). This task therefore provides a valid and reliable laboratory analog, for stressful multitasking in the real world. ...
Stress develops when an organism requires additional metabolic resources to cope with demanding situations. This review will debate how recreational 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, 'ecstasy') can increase some aspects of acute and chronic stress in humans. Laboratory studies on the acute effects of MDMA on cortisol release and neurohormone levels in drug-free regular ecstasy/MDMA users have been reviewed, and the role of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis in chronic changes in anxiety, stress, and cognitive coping is debated. In the laboratory, acute ecstasy/MDMA use can increase cortisol levels by 100-200%, whereas ecstasy/MDMA-using dance clubbers experience an 800% increase in cortisol levels, because of the combined effects of the stimulant drug and dancing. Three-month hair samples of abstinent users revealed cortisol levels 400% higher than those in controls. Chronic users show heightened cortisol release in stressful environments and deficits in complex neurocognitive tasks. Event-related evoked response potential studies show altered patterns of brain activation, suggestive of increased mental effort, during basic information processing. Chronic mood deficits include more daily stress and higher depression in susceptible individuals. We conclude that ecstasy/MDMA increases cortisol levels acutely and subchronically and that changes in the HPA axis may explain why recreational ecstasy/MDMA users show various aspects of neuropsychobiological stress.
Individuals have unique typing rhythms characterized by specific keystroke dynamics. Changes in state and cardiovascular responding are well documented manifestations of the fight-flight response to stress. However, as stress also leads to changes in muscle tone and motor control, typing rhythms may also be impacted. We aim to determine which individuals are experiencing stress through their typing rhythms and identify universal keystroke markers of stress. Participants (N = 116) typed 80 repetitions of a 6-word, 30-character phrase before and after 15 min of critically evaluated multitasking stress. Cardiovascular, hemodynamic, and state variables were compared across baseline, stress, and recovery periods and measures of typing rhythm were derived for each period and classified using machine-learning algorithms. Critically evaluated multitasking led to significant changes in all stress measures, demonstrating highly robust stress reactivity. Machine learning algorithms accurately classified stressed typing for each individual based on their typing rhythms; however, no universal keystroke markers of stress were identified. Using typing rhythms. We were able to determine whether an individual was stressed or not, but the markers used for classification differed between individuals. These individual changes may provide opportunities for identifying stressful periods through keystroke monitoring, as well as the potential for early identification of disorders which may impact fine motor control. Typing rhythms could therefore be used to monitor health and well-being in individuals who use keyboards in various situations. This is the first rigorous assessment of stress and typing rhythms and has led to the development of a feasible and highly reproducible research protocol.
Background and Objective
Healthcare providers require multitasking and multi-patient care skills, and training programs do not formally incorporate curricula specifically for multitasking skills to trainees. The medical education community is in equipoise on whether multitasking ability is a fixed trait. Furthermore, it is unclear whether multitasking ability affects those who gravitate toward careers that demand it, particularly among medical students deciding on a specialty. We sought to define the association between specialty choice, multitasking abilities and multi-patient care delivery among pre-clinical medical students. For this study, we examined both efficiency and accuracy metrics within multitasking and whether they were different between students choosing specialties.
Methods
This was a planned cross-sectional sub-study focused on 2nd year medical students (MS-IIs) within a parent study evaluating multi-patient care skills using a serious game (VitalSigns:ED TM ) depicting a pediatric emergency department. Subjects completed a Multitasking Ability Test (MTAT) and five VitalSigns:ED gameplays. The predictor variable was specialty choice, categorized into multitasking and non-multitasking groups. Outcome variables measuring efficiency and diagnostic accuracy were obtained from the MTAT and the game. The primary analysis was a Mann–Whitney U test, and secondary analyses employed Spearman Rank correlations.
Results
Twelve students applied to multitasking specialties and 18 applied to others. Those in the multitasking specialties had faster MTAT completions than the other cohort (29.8 vs. 59.7 sec, 95%CI difference -0.9 to -39.8 sec). Differential diagnoses were higher in multitasking specialties in VitalSigns:ED (2.03 vs. 1.06, 95%CI difference +0.05 to +1.54) but efficiency metrics in the game did not differ.
Conclusion
Multitasking and multi-patient care performance show some association with preferred specialty choices for MS-IIs prior to clinical exposure.
Detecting transient changes in heart rate and heart rate variability during experimental simulated autonomous driving scenarios can indicate participant arousal and cognitive load, providing valuable insights into the relationship between human and vehicle autonomy. Successfully detecting such parameters unobtrusively may assist these experimental situations as well as naturalistic driver monitoring systems within an autonomous vehicle. However, non-contact sensors must collect reliable and accurate signals. This study aims to compare the in-seat, non-contact Plessey EPIC sensor to the gold standard, contact Biopac sensor. Thirty participants took part in five-minute simulated autonomous vehicle journeys in a city environment and a rural environment, and a five-minute resting condition. To ensure the seat sensor was sensitive to elevated heart rate values, heart rate was also collected following the energetic Harvard Step Test. Lin concordance coefficients and Bland-Altman analyses were employed to assess the level of agreement between the non-contact Plessey EPIC sensor and the contact Biopac sensor for heart rate and heart rate variability. Analyses revealed a high level of agreement (rc > 0.96) between both sensors for one-minute averaged heart rate and five-minute averaged heart rate variability during simulated autonomous driving and rest, and one-minute averaged heart rate following the Harvard Step Test. In addition, the non-contact sensor was sensitive to significant differences during tasks. This proof of principle study demonstrates the feasibility of using the non-contact Plessey EPIC sensor to accurately detect heart rate and heart rate variability during simulated autonomous driving environments.
Household labor is commonly defined as a set of physical tasks such as cooking, cleaning, and shopping. Sociologists sometimes reference non-physical activities related to “household management,” but these are typically mentioned in passing, imprecisely defined, or treated as equivalent to physical tasks. Using 70 in-depth interviews with members of 35 couples, this study argues that such tasks are better understood as examples of a unique dimension of housework: cognitive labor. The data demonstrate that cognitive labor entails anticipating needs, identifying options for filling them, making decisions, and monitoring progress. Because such work is taxing but often invisible to both cognitive laborers and their partners, it is a frequent source of conflict for couples. Cognitive labor is also a gendered phenomenon: women in this study do more cognitive labor overall and more of the anticipation and monitoring work in particular. However, male and female participation in decision-making, arguably the cognitive labor component most closely linked to power and influence, is roughly equal. These findings identify and define an overlooked—yet potentially consequential—source of gender inequality at the household level and suggest a new direction for research on the division of household labor.
Objective::
We aimed to provide an assessment of the impact of workload manipulations on various cardiac measurements. We further sought to determine the most effective measurement approaches of cognitive workload as well as quantify the conditions under which these measures are most effective for interpretation.
Background::
Cognitive workload affects human performance, particularly when load is relatively high (overload) or low (underload). Despite ongoing interest in assessing cognitive workload through cardiac measures, it is currently unclear which cardiac-based assessments best indicate cognitive workload. Although several quantitative studies and qualitative reviews have sought to provide guidance, no meta-analytic integration of cardiac assessment(s) of cognitive workload exists to date.
Method::
We used Morris and DeShon's meta-analytic procedures to quantify the changes in cardiac measures due to task load conditions.
Results::
Sample-weighted Cohen's d values suggest that several metrics of cardiac activity demonstrate sensitivity in response to cognitive workload manipulations. Heart rate variability measures show sensitivity to task load, conditions of event rate, and task duration. Authors of future work should seek to quantify the utility of leveraging multiple metrics to understand workload.
Conclusion::
Results suggest that assessment of cognitive workload can be done using various cardiac activity indicators. Further, given the number of valid and reliable measures available, researchers and practitioners should base their selection of a psychophysiological measure on the experimental and practical concerns inherent to their task/protocol.
Applications::
Findings bear implications for future assessment of cognitive workload within basic and applied settings. Future research should seek to validate conditions under which measurements are best interpreted, including but not limited to individual differences.
Increasingly health leaders are experiencing greater demands and pressures, which require the need for better focus while limiting unwarranted distractions. This article offers a neurobiological explanation of how the brain focuses and becomes distracted, in order to help health leaders gain insight into their own effectiveness. Two main neural circuits are contrasted: the mind-wandering default mode circuit and the attentional central executive system. These two systems act in an antagonistic pairing, where the degree of toggling between systems is associated with the degree a person can sustain focus and filter out unwarranted distractions. Excessive multitasking appears to compromise the neural switch of these two systems, thereby diminishing our focus and concentration. In contrast, mindfulness practice is shown to have the opposite effect by enhancing the neural switch, thereby enhancing leadership focus that can lead to greater flexibility, foresight, regulation, and creativity. To conclude, leaders who are excessively distracted, such as with multitasking, may be compromising cognitive brain functioning, while engaging in mindfulness may replenish the brain and thereby enhance leaders’ ability to sustain focus and tap into higher cognitive functioning.
In order to understand psychobiological responses to stress it is necessary to observe how people react to controlled stressors. A range of stressors exist for this purpose; however, laboratory stressors that are representative of real life situations provide more ecologically valid opportunities for assessing stress responding. The current study assessed psychobiological responses to an ecologically valid laboratory stressor involving multitasking and critical evaluation. The stressor elicited significant increases in psychological and cardiovascular stress reactivity; however, no cortisol reactivity was observed. Other socially evaluative laboratory stressors that lead to cortisol reactivity typically require a participant to perform tasks that involve verbal responses, whilst standing in front of evaluative others. The current protocol contained critical evaluation of cognitive performance; however, this was delivered from behind a seated participant. The salience of social evaluation may therefore be related to the response format of the task and the method of evaluation. That is, the current protocol did not involve the additional vulnerability associated with in person, face-to-face contact, and verbal delivery. Critical evaluation of multitasking provides an ecologically valid technique for inducing laboratory stress and provides an alternative tool for assessing psychological and cardiovascular reactivity. Future studies could additionally use this paradigm to investigate those components of social evaluation necessary for eliciting a cortisol response.
Abstract The reactivity hypothesis implicates exaggerated cardiovascular reactions to acute psychological stress in the development of hypertension and other cardiovascular disease outcomes. However, exaggerated cardiovascular reactivity has also been suggested as a mediator between a variety of psychosocial and behavioral risk factors and cardiovascular disease. Recent data analyses from the West of Scotland Twenty-07 study and our own group are discussed together, to show that blunted as well as exaggerated cardiovascular reactivity to stress may be associated with negative health outcomes. Blood pressure and heart rate were assessed at rest and during an acute mental arithmetic stress task. We show that depression and obesity are associated with blunted rather than exaggerated reactivity. These seemingly paradoxical results are discussed in terms of implications for the reactivity hypothesis.
Researchers have been incorporating ambulatory cortisol sampling into studies of everyday life for over a decade. Such work provides an important supplement to acute laboratory stress paradigms and provides a novel perspective on the interrelationships between stress, psychological resources, and health. However, the results of many field studies have been inconclusive and more studies have been undertaken than published. We describe some of the challenges facing naturalistic cortisol researchers, including lack of power, methodological and analytical problems, and patterns of confusing or conflictual results. We then summarize key findings of published naturalistic cortisol studies to date, grouped by type of cortisol outcome (morning awakening response, diurnal slope, area under the curve, and associations between momentary experiences and cortisol). We propose research questions relevant to everyday stress researchers and suggest next steps for researchers who are interested in incorporating naturalistic cortisol sampling into future studies.
There is accumulating evidence that individual differences in stress reactivity contribute to the risk for stress-related disease. However, the assessment of stress reactivity remains challenging, and there is a relative lack of questionnaires reliably assessing this construct. We here present the Perceived Stress Reactivity Scale (PSRS), a 23-item questionnaire with 5 subscales and 1 overall scale, based on an existing German-language instrument. Perceived stress reactivity and related constructs were assessed in N = 2,040 participants from the United Kingdom, the United States, and Germany. The 5-factor structure of the PSRS was found to be similar in the 3 countries. In the U.S. sample the questionnaire was applied using 2 modes of administration (paper-pencil and computerized), and measures were repeated after 4 weeks. Measurement invariance analyses demonstrated full invariance across mode of administration and partial invariance across gender and countries. Scale scores differed between countries and genders, with women scoring higher on most scales. Overall, reliability analysis suggested good stability of PSRS scores over a 4-week period, and validation analysis showed expected associations with related constructs such as self-efficacy, neuroticism, chronic stress, and perceived stress. Perceived stress reactivity was also associated with depressive symptoms and sleep. These associations were particularly strong when individuals scoring high on perceived stress reactivity were exposed to chronic stress. In sum, our findings suggest that the PSRS is a useful and easy-to-administer instrument to assess perceived stress reactivity.
Over 60 years ago, Selye1 recognized the paradox that the physiologic systems activated by stress can not only protect and restore but also damage the body. What links these seemingly contradictory roles? How does stress influence the pathogenesis of disease, and what accounts for the variation in vulnerability to stress-related diseases among people with similar life experiences? How can stress-induced damage be quantified? These and many other questions still challenge investigators. This article reviews the long-term effect of the physiologic response to stress, which I refer to as allostatic load.2 Allostasis — the ability to achieve stability through change3 — . . .
In addition to numerous reports about psychophysiological stress responses to acute stressors, there are few data available on gender differences of stress-induced heart rate responses in multiple age groups applying the same psychological stressor. Second, the assessment of poststress recovery appears to be neglected in the empirical literature. For this study, data from 5 independent studies were reanalyzed to investigate the impact of age and gender on heart rate responses and poststress recovery to a standardized psychosocial stress task (Trier Social Stress Test; TSST) in 28 children, 34 younger adults, and 26 older adults. As expected, prestressor baselines correlated significantly with chronological age (r = -.27, p =.01). There was a marked age-related decrease in the heart rate stress response (p =.0003) with children and younger adults showing significantly higher increases than elderly persons. The analysis of gender effects showed that girls had higher heart rate increases during the stress exposure than boys (p =.03). In younger adults, stress responsivity was also higher in women (p =.03). Peak heart rate responses were comparable in older men and women, with only men returning to prestressor baselines during the observation period. In sum, this reanalysis revealed differential heart rate responses and recovery after exposition to the TSST in healthy children, younger adults, and elderly adults.
Salvia officinalis (sage) has previously been shown both to possess in vitro cholinesterase inhibiting properties, and to enhance mnemonic performance and improve mood in healthy young participants. In this double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover study, 30 healthy participants attended the laboratory on three separate days, 7 days apart, receiving a different treatment in counterbalanced order on each occasion (placebo, 300, 600 mg dried sage leaf). On each day mood was assessed predose and at 1 and 4 h postdose. Each mood assessment comprised completion of Bond-Lader mood scales and the State Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) before and after 20 min performance of the Defined Intensity Stress Simulator (DISS) computerized multitasking battery. In a concomitant investigation, an extract of the sage leaf exhibited dose-dependent, in vitro inhibition of acetylcholinesterase and, to a greater extent, butyrylcholinesterase. Both doses of sage led to improved ratings of mood in the absence of the stressor (that is, in pre-DISS mood scores) postdose, with the lower dose reducing anxiety and the higher dose increasing 'alertness', 'calmness' and 'contentedness' on the Bond-Lader mood scales. The reduced anxiety effect following the lower dose was, however, abolished by performing the DISS, with the same dose also being associated with a reduction of alertness during performance. Task performance on the DISS battery was improved for the higher dose at both postdose sessions, but reduced for the lower dose at the later testing session. The results confirm previous observations of the cholinesterase inhibiting properties of S. officinalis, and improved mood and cognitive performance following the administration of single doses to healthy young participants.
After a hint from Lang et al.'s (1997) defence cascade, researchers considered cognitive process experienced when encountering mental stress to be composed of four elements: (serially) first attention (Attent), second unpleasant affect (UnplAff) and sometimes pleasant affect (PlAff), and third cognitive coping (CogCop). The present study investigates the effect of each cognitive element on the provocation of the well-known vascular-dominant reaction pattern during mirror tracing: elevation of mean blood pressure mainly because of increases in total peripheral resistance. Twenty-four male students first underwent four computer-simulated mirror-tracing practices of 3 min each, then a 7 min adaptation followed by a 3 min baseline, and further four kinds of actual mirror tracing trials (Attent, UnplAff, PlAff,and CogCop) of 3 min each. Results on the cardiovascular measures indicated that every mirror-tracing trial indisputably provoked the vascular-dominant reaction pattern. An alpha-adrenergic vascular sympathetic activation was heightened. Self-report measures on the four cognitive elements suggested that heightened Attent seemed to contribute to provoking the reaction pattern. Although the UnplAff and PlAff trials had an active coping feature in a narrow sense, they could not provoke the cardiac-dominant reaction pattern. Differences in task difficulty among the mirror tracings could not explain the results. The implications of these results are discussed in order to better understand cardiovascular hemodynamics during mental stress.
Objectives. To assess the impact of daily life-stress on behaviours (alcohol consumption, food choice and physical exercise) that influence health risk.
Method. Twenty-three nurses and 21 teachers completed daily assessments of mood, alcohol and food intake, together with weekly measures of hassles, perceived stress, anxiety, depression and exercise behaviour, over an eight-week period. Comparisons were made between the two highest and two lowest perceived stress weeks.
Results. Work and home-related hassles were more frequent on high than low stress weeks, and anxiety and depression levels were greater, even after controlling for negative affectivity. Participants who drank alcohol to cope showed increases in consumption between low and high stress weeks. ‘Fast food’ was eaten more frequently during high stress weeks. People who reported that mood control was an important influence on their choice of food showed increases in the amount of cheese they ate, and greater consumption of sweet foods. There were no differences in exercise frequency or duration with changes in perceived stress.
Conclusions. Diary studies allow changes in health behaviour with life-stress to be assessed naturalistically. The impact of stress depends on the moderating effects of motives and coping expectancies associated with specific behavioural domains. Some responses may be prejudicial to long-term health risk.
a b s t r a c t Life is full of stressful events. However, while some individuals are negatively affected by stress, others are more resilient to its effects. The factors that contribute to variability in stress resilience are not fully understood. Here, we tested the hypothesis that trait reappraisal would be associated with greater stress resilience to a first-time tandem skydive. Specifically, we expected measures of ''anxiety'' to be lower and measures of ''euphoria'' to be higher in high trait reappraising individuals. Our findings that trait reap-praisal is negatively correlated with stress reactivity as measured by cortisol, heart rate, and self-report state anxiety, but positively correlated with self-report state euphoria suggest that individuals high in trait reappraisal are more stress resilient. Published by Elsevier Inc.
Previous work suggests that secretory immunoglobulin-A (S-IgA) reactivity is inversely related to the perceived demands of the stressor. The Defined Intensity Stressor Simulation (DISS) comprises eight stressor modules, and allows for the manipulation of stress either through increasing the number of modules, or increasing the workload of the modules. The current study assessed the effect of increasing the workload of four modules upon S-IgA reactivity and perceived demands. Participants (N = 14) attended three sessions on consecutive days where they provided a timed saliva sample immediately before and after 5 min on the DISS at low, medium and high workload. Following each session participants recorded their perceptions of the task with regard to workload and levels of stress and arousal. Perceived workload and stress, but not arousal, increased in accordance with increases in workload, however, differential S-IgA reactivity was observed. Low workload resulted in a slight increase in S-IgA secretion; medium workload elicited significant up-regulation, while down-regulation of S-IgA occurred following high workload. As DISS is analogous to a variety of working environments it is suggested that the observed S-IgA reactivity is indicative of how individuals react to multi-tasking environments when faced with increases in objective or perceived workload demands. As S-IgA levels are related to protection from illness, down-regulation of S-IgA in those who perceive greater demands may lead to greater vulnerability to ill-health. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Individual differences in baseline executive functioning (EF) capacities have been shown to predict state anxiety during acute stressor exposure. However, no previous studies have clearly demonstrated the relationship between EF and physiological measures of stress. The present study investigated the efficacy of several well-known EF tests (letter fluency, Stroop test, and Wisconsin Card Sorting Test) in predicting both subjective and physiological stress reactivity during acute psychosocial stress exposure. Our results show that letter fluency served as the best predictor for both types of reactivity. Specifically, the higher the letter fluency score, the lower the acute stress reactivity after controlling for the baseline stress response, as indicated by lower levels of state anxiety, negative mood, salivary cortisol, and skin conductance. Moreover, the predictive power of the letter fluency test remained significant for state anxiety and cortisol indices even after further adjustments for covariates by adding the body mass index (BMI) as a covariate. Thus, good EF performance, as reflected by high letter fluency scores, may dampen acute stress responses, which suggests that EF processes are directly associated with aspects of stress regulation.
Administered 16 visual analog scales to 8 normal Ss to test the validity of the scales in measuring drug effects; Ss received 150 mg of butobarbitone sodium, 15 and 30 mg of flurazepam, and a placebo. Results indicate that (a) there were no significant effects on Factor 1 (Alertness), but there was a tendency for Ss to rate themselves as more alert after placebo; (b) there was a significant Drug * Times interaction effect on Factor 2 (Contentedness); and (c) Factor 3 (Calmness) also showed a significant Drug * Times interaction effect which was caused by the anti-anxiety effect of flurazepam. (15 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2004 APA, all rights reserved)
The finding that chewing gum can moderate stress and mood changes following a multi-task cognitive stressor (Scholey et al., 2009) was re-examined. In a repeated measures cross-over design, thirty participants completed a 20-min multi-tasking stressor on consecutive days, both with and without chewing gum. Both prior to and post stressor, participants provided salivary cortisol samples and self-rated measures of stress, state anxiety, calmness, contentedness, and alertness. Contrary to Scholey et al. (2009), chewing gum failed to attenuate both salivary cortisol levels and the increase in self-rated stress. Self-rated anxiety, calmness, and contentedness were not impacted by chewing gum. This suggests that the stress effects reported by Scholey et al. may be constrained by particular features of that study (e.g. morning testing). However, consistent with Scholey et al. (2009), chewing gum was shown to increase alertness following the stressor. The mechanisms underpinning heightened alertness are unclear; however, such increases may be linked to greater cerebral activity following the chewing of gum (Fang Li, Lu, Gong, & Yew, 2005).
A significant minority of the population consume multi-vitamins/minerals for their putative health benefits, including potentially beneficial effects on cognitive performance, fatigue and mood. The current study investigated the effect of supplementation with a multi-vitamin/mineral on fatigue and cognitive function in healthy females.
In this placebo-controlled, double blind, randomized, parallel groups trial the effect of a multi-vitamin/mineral (Supradyn) was assessed in 216 females aged 25-50 years. Participants attended the laboratory before and 9 weeks after commencing treatment. During both visits cognitive function and the modulation of task related mood/fatigue were assessed in two discrete 20-min assessment periods during which participants completed a four-module version of the Multi-Tasking Framework.
Those in the vitamin/mineral group exhibited an attenuation of the negative effects of extended task completion on mood/fatigue. Multi-tasking performance for this group was also improved in terms of accuracy across all tasks, and on two of the individual tasks (Mathematical Processing and Stroop) in terms of both faster and more accurate responses. Analysis of a subsection (N = 102) demonstrated significant reductions in homocysteine levels following the vitamins/mineral supplement.
These findings suggest that healthy members of the general population may benefit from augmented levels of vitamins/minerals via direct dietary supplementation.
To recreate stress in laboratory conditions, the nature of the elicited physiological reactions to the presentation of mental tasks has been extensively studied. However, whether this experimental response is equivalent to real-life stress reactivity is still under debate. We investigated cardio-respiratory reactivity to a sequential protocol of different mental tasks of varying difficulties, some of them involving emotional material, and repeated the measures in a baseline and in a real-life stress situation. R-R interval (RRI), breathing frequency and volumes, and respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) were computed. Baseline results showed a superior sensitivity of respiratory parameters to mental task load over RRI and RSA, no effect of task difficulty or emotional material, and a habituation response of all parameters along the protocol. Stress results showed a dual effect: first, a decreased RRI and RSA in rest values, and second, a decreased reactivity in RRI in response to mental tasks. These findings are discussed through the interaction of activation, considered to be a tonic variable, and arousal, as a phasic response.
Though it is well known that solving mental tasks elicits tonic increases in cardiovascular activity, a good theory explaining the specificity of this effect is lacking. It is also unclear why different kinds of mental tasks elicit different response patterns. The aim of the experiment was to compare cardiovascular response patterns during three tasks matched for their duration (8 min) and probability of success (.5): a simple RT task and two numeral tasks. One of them (a RUN task) involved program running (performing basic arithmetical operations), the other (an EDIT task) required searching for a problem solution. Seven cardiovascular variables, measured by a Portapres monitor, were analyzed. The analysis showed, among other findings, that the tonic increase in blood pressure and heart rate was greater during the RUN task than during the RT task. On the other hand, the EDIT task and the RT task produced almost identical response patterns.
Stress is one of the most significant health problems in modern societies and the 21st century. This explains a pressing need for investigations into the biological pathways linking stress and health. Besides the locus coeruleus-noradrenaline/autonomic (sympathetic) nervous system ( Chrousos and Gold 1992 ), the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis is the major physiological stress response system in the body. Since alterations in HPA axis regulation under basal conditions and in response to acute stress appear to be a close correlate or even a determining factor of the onset of different diseases or disease progression ( Holsboer 1989 ; Chrousos and Gold 1992 ; Tsigos and Chrousos 1994, 2002 ; Stratakis and Chrousos 1995 ; McEwen 1998 ; Heim et al. 2000a ; Raison and Miller 2003 ), the characterization of an individual's HPA axis activity as well as reactivity pattern to psychosocial stress appears to be of major interest. It is obvious that such a research agenda substantially depends on the availability of appropriate measures. However, since the HPA axis is a highly adaptive system which is characterized by marked inter- and intraindividual variability ( Mason 1968 ; Hellhammer et al. 2009 ), the development of such markers of HPA axis regulation in humans was-and still is-a rather challenging task. In this brief review, we focus on findings on two HPA axis measures, namely the cortisol-awakening response (CAR) to assess HPA axis basal activity and the Trier social stress test (TSST) to investigate HPA axis stress reactivity.
The notion that chewing gum may relieve stress was investigated in a controlled setting. A multi-tasking framework which reliably evokes stress and also includes performance measures was used to induce acute stress in the laboratory. Using a randomised crossover design forty participants (mean age 21.98 years) performed on the multi-tasking framework at two intensities (on separate days) both while chewing and not chewing. Order of workload intensity and chewing conditions were counterbalanced. Before and after undergoing the platform participants completed the state portion of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, Bond-Lader visual analogue mood scales, a single Stress Visual Analogue Scale and provided saliva samples for cortisol measurement. Baseline measures showed that both levels of the multi-tasking framework were effective in significantly reducing self-rated alertness, calmness and contentment while increasing self-rated stress and state anxiety. Cortisol levels fell during both levels of the stressor during the morning, reflecting the predominance of a.m. diurnal changes, but this effect was reversed in the afternoon which may reflect a measurable stress response. Pre-post stressor changes (Delta) for each measure at baseline were subtracted from Delta scores under chewing and no chewing conditions. During both levels of stress the chewing gum condition was associated with significantly better alertness and reduced state anxiety, stress and salivary cortisol. Overall performance on the framework was also significantly better in the chewing condition. The mechanisms underlying these effects are unknown but may involve improved cerebral blood flow and/or effects secondary to performance improvement during gum chewing.
This meta-analysis included 729 studies from 161 articles investigating how acute stress responsivity (including stress reactivity and recovery of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal [HPA] axis, autonomic, and cardiovascular systems) changes with various chronic psychosocial exposures (job stress; general life stress; depression or hopelessness; anxiety, neuroticism, or negative affect; hostility, aggression, or Type-A behavior; fatigue, burnout, or exhaustion; positive psychological states or traits) in healthy populations. In either the overall meta-analysis or the methodologically strong subanalysis, positive psychological states or traits were associated with reduced HPA reactivity. Hostility, aggression, or Type-A behavior was associated with increased cardiovascular (heart rate or blood pressure) reactivity, whereas anxiety, neuroticism, or negative affect was associated with decreased cardiovascular reactivity. General life stress and anxiety, neuroticism, or negative affect were associated with poorer cardiovascular recovery. However, regarding the sympathetic nervous system and parasympathetic nervous system, there were no associations between the chronic psychosocial factors and stress reactivity or recovery. The results largely reflect an integrated stress response pattern of hypo- or hyperactivity depending on the specific nature of the psychosocial background.
Secretory immunoglobulin A (sIgA) in saliva and cardiovascular reactions to mental arithmetic and cold pressor tasks were recorded in 16 healthy young men on two sessions, 4 weeks apart. Both tasks elicited significant increases in sIgA secretion rate, reflecting increases in both salivary volume and sIgA concentration. Whereas mental arithmetic elicited a mixed pattern of alpha- and beta-adrenergic cardiovascular reactions, the pattern of reactions to cold pressor was predominantly alpha-adrenergic. Task levels of sIgA secretion rate, sIgA concentration, and saliva volume showed moderate to high test-retest reliability (r = .52-.83), although test-retest correlations were less impressive for change scores (r = -.19-.53). The pattern of correlations between change in sIgA secretion rate and cardiovascular reactivity variables was inconsistent.
The increased morbidity and mortality associated with depression is substantial. In this paper, we review evidence suggesting that depression contributes to disease and death through immune dysregulation.
This review focuses on recent human studies addressing the impact of depression on immune function, and the health consequences of those changes.
There is growing evidence that depression can directly stimulate the production of proinflammatory cytokines that influence a spectrum of conditions associated with aging, including cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis, arthritis, type 2 diabetes, certain cancers, periodontal disease, frailty, and functional decline. Additionally, depression can down-regulate the cellular immune response; as a consequence, processes such as prolonged infection and delayed wound healing that fuel sustained proinflammatory cytokine production may be promoted by depression.
These direct and indirect processes pose the greatest health risks for older adults who already show age-related increases in proinflammatory cytokine production. Thus, aging interacts with depression to enhance risks for morbidity and mortality.
This study examined relations between reactivity (i.e., peak response) and regulation (i.e., response dampening) in 6-month-old infants' cortisol and behavioral responses to inoculation (N = 62). Data showed that reactivity and regulation were unrelated for both cortisol and behavior. The independence of reactivity and regulation suggests that measures of both are needed to characterize infant cortisol or behavioral response to stress more completely. For both reactivity and regulation, cortisol and behavior were unrelated, suggesting that measures of both are needed to assess infant stress more adequately. There was considerable variation in the timing of the peak cortisol response, suggesting that obtaining only a single poststressor cortisol sample does not provide a sensitive measure of cortisol reactivity.
Acute hypercapnia was studied to assess its potential as a noninvasive and simple test for evoking neuroendocrine, cardiovascular and psychological responses to stress in man. A single breath of four concentrations of carbon dioxide (CO(2)), 5%, 25%, 35% and 50%, was administered to nine healthy volunteers in a randomized, single-blind fashion. Although no adverse effects occurred, most subjects were unable to take a full inspired vital capacity breath of 50% CO(2). In response to the remaining exposures, subjective and somatic symptoms of anxiety increased in a dose-dependent manner. Unlike 5% and 25% CO(2), 35% CO(2) stimulated significant adrenocorticotropic hormone and noradrenaline release at 2 min and cortisol and prolactin release at 15 min following inhalation. This same dose also provoked a significant bradycardia that was followed by an acute pressor response. No significant habituation of psychological, hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) or cardiovascular responses following 35% CO(2) was seen when this dose was repeated after 1 week. A single breath of 35% CO(2) safely and reliably produced sympathetic and HPA axis activation and should prove a useful addition to currently available laboratory tests of the human stress response.
The effects of an acute stressor upon secretory immunoglobulin A (S-IgA) were assessed using a task that requires participants to attend and respond to several stimuli simultaneously and is therefore analogous to a variety of working environments. In two studies, the task was administered for periods of 5 min to healthy samples of men and women at two sessions 24 h apart (n = 49) and three times in succession within one session (n = 20). Multi-tasking stress was, at all sessions, associated with increases in S-IgA secretion. Inter and intra-session reliability of pre and post-stress S-IgA measures was observed, although the reliability of stress reactivity data was reduced. Classification of participants as either high or low S-IgA reactors revealed differences in their perceptions of task workload. Low S-IgA reactors consistently perceived the task to be more demanding and frustrating than did those who demonstrated high S-IgA reactivity. We conclude that S-IgA reactivity to stressful situations depends not just upon the task, but also upon individual perceptions of the stressor.
Melissa officinalis (lemon balm) is contemporaneously used as a mild sedative and/or calming agent. Although recent research has demonstrated modulation of mood in keeping with these roles, no studies to date have directly investigated the effects of this herbal medication on laboratory-induced psychological stress.
In this double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized, balanced crossover experiment, 18 healthy volunteers received two separate single doses of a standardized M. officinalis extract (300 mg, 600 mg) and a placebo, on separate days separated by a 7-day washout period. Modulation of mood was assessed during predose and 1-hour postdose completions of a 20-minute version of the Defined Intensity Stressor Simulation (DISS) battery. Cognitive performance on the four concurrent tasks of the battery was also assessed.
The results showed that the 600-mg dose of Melissa ameliorated the negative mood effects of the DISS, with significantly increased self-ratings of calmness and reduced self-ratings of alertness. In addition, a significant increase in the speed of mathematical processing, with no reduction in accuracy, was observed after ingestion of the 300-mg dose.
These results suggest that the potential for M. officinalis to mitigate the effects of stress deserves further investigation.
Cortisol measures often are used to examine variation in hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis (HPA) activity as well as broader patterns of differential health. However, substantial within-individual variation renders single cortisol measurements unreliable as estimates for probing differences between individuals and groups. A standard practice to clarify between-individual differences involves collecting multiple samples from each participant and then deriving person-specific averages. By ignoring information about variation at between- and within-individual levels, this technique impedes cross-study comparison of results, ignores data useful for future study design, and hinders the analysis of cross-level interactions. This report describes how multilevel approaches can simultaneously model between- and within-individual variation in diurnal cortisol levels without using crude averages. We apply these models to data from children in Nepal (n=29, 11-15 samples per child), Mongolia (n=47, 8-12 samples per child) and the US (n=1269, 1-6 samples per child). Using the Nepal data, we show how an analysis of crude time-adjusted aggregates does not detect an association between aggressive behavior and cortisol levels, while a multilevel analysis does. More importantly, we argue that the 'roadmap' to variation generated by these multilevel models provides meaningful information about the predictive accuracy--not just statistical significance--of relationships between cortisol levels and individual-level variables, such as psychopathology, age, and gender. The 'roadmap' also facilitates comparison between the results from different studies and estimation of the necessary number of cortisol measurements for future investigations.
Melissa officinalis (lemon balm) and Valeriana officinalis (valerian) have been used both traditionally and contemporaneously as mild sedatives, anxiolytics and hypnotics. Recent research has suggested that both may attenuate laboratory induced stress. As the two herbs are most often sold in combination with each other the current study assessed the anxiolytic properties of such a combination during laboratory-induced stress.
In this double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized, balanced cross-over experiment, 24 healthy volunteers received three separate single doses (600 mg, 1200 mg, 1800 mg) of a standardized product containing M. officinalis and V. officinalis extracts, plus a placebo, on separate days separated by a 7 day wash out period. Modulation of mood and anxiety were assessed during pre-dose and 1 h, 3 h and 6 h post-dose completions of a 20 min version of the Defined Intensity Stressor Simulation (DISS) battery. Cognitive performance on the four concurrent tasks of the battery was also assessed.
The results showed that the 600 mg dose of the combination ameliorated the negative effects of the DISS on ratings of anxiety. However, the highest dose (1800 mg) showed an increase in anxiety that was less marked but which reached significance during one testing session. In addition, all three doses led to decrements in performance on the Stroop task module within the battery, and the two lower doses led to decrements on the overall score generated on the DISS battery.
These results suggest that a combination of Melissa officinalis and Valeriana officinalis possesses anxiolytic properties that deserve further investigation.
Hypercapnia is a threat to homeostasis and results in neuroendocrine, autonomic and anxiogenic responses. The inhalation of carbon dioxide (CO2) may, therefore, provide a good paradigm for exploring the pathways by which stress can lead to increased susceptibility to ill-health through physiological and psychological stress reactivity. The current study was designed, therefore, to assess the psychological and physiological responses to the inhalation of CO2.
Healthy participants (N = 24) inhaled a single vital capacity breath of a mixture of CO2 (35%) and oxygen (65%). Blood pressure and heart rate were recorded for 5 min before and after the test and blood and saliva samples were taken immediately before and 2, 10, 20 and 30 min post-inhalation for the measurement of noradrenaline, salivary and serum cortisol and salivary alpha amylase. In addition, psychosomatic symptoms were recorded immediately before and after the test. The same protocol was repeated 4-6 weeks later at the same time of day.
A single inhalation of CO2 increased blood pressure, noradrenaline, salivary alpha amylase and psychosomatic symptoms, but decreased heart rate at both testing sessions. Analyses of salivary cortisol data revealed that 70% of the sample could be reliably classified as either responders (i.e. demonstrated a post-CO2 cortisol increase) or non-responders (i.e. responded with a decrease or no change in cortisol following CO2) at both test sessions. Responders also perceived the test to be more aversive than non-responders.
Inhalation of 35% CO2 reliably stimulated the key mechanisms involved in the human stress response. The inter-individual differences in the reactivity of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis were also related to differences in the perception of the test.
Psychological stress elicits measurable changes in sympathetic-parasympathetic balance and the tone of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, which might negatively affect the cardiovascular system both acutely-by precipitating myocardial infarction, left-ventricular dysfunction, or dysrhythmia; and chronically-by accelerating the atherosclerotic process. We provide an overview of the association between stress and cardiovascular morbidity, discuss the mechanisms for this association, and address possible therapeutic implications.
- M A Wetherell
- M E Hyland
- Harris
Wetherell, M. A., Hyland, M. E., & Harris, J. E. (2004).
- Psychobiological Multitasking
- M A Stress Reactivity
- K Wetherell
- Carter
Multitasking and Psychobiological Stress Reactivity
M. A. Wetherell and K. Carter
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Stress Health 30: 103–109 (2014) © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Protective and damaging effects of stress mediators
- McKewen