Better executive functioning may be associated with more adaptive stress responses than worse executive functioning, potentially due to less propensity for rumination. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that better executive functioning would be associated with decreased total cortisol output and cortisol sensitivity in response to a stressor, and that this association is mediated by rumination about the stressor. Participants completed measures of inhibition, updating/monitoring, and cognitive flexibility, a social-evaluative stressor, and a self-report measure of rumination about the stressor. Participants provided saliva samples at six time points to measure cortisol output and sensitivity. Cognitive flexibility was negatively associated with rumination and total cortisol output, while rumination was associated with cortisol sensitivity with respect to increase/decrease. Females demonstrated better cognitive flexibility and lower total cortisol output compared to males. Findings demonstrate the importance of cognitive flexibility and rumination when predicting dynamic measures of stress-induced cortisol over time.
The death of a spouse is a highly stressful event. Better executive functioning has been shown to benefit men to a greater degree than women during stress. We evaluated potential sex differences in stress and immune dysregulation among control and bereaved participants who completed a self-report measure of perceived stress,
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