Anxiety and striate-muscle activation: Evidence from electromyographic pattern analysis.

Abstract

Electromyographic (EMG) responses of self-reported high-and low-anxious females were recorded during a 15-min anticipation period followed by 5 min of 105-dB binaural white noise stimulation. A computer-controlled scanning electromyograph sampled integrated surface EMG activity from a total of eight muscle sites on the head, neck, and limbs. High-anxious subjects evinced higher mean EMG levels than low-anxious subjects both preceding and during the stimulus period. Microanalysis of the within-subjects data arrays involving P-factoring on principal components provided the first detailed diachronic observations of striate-muscle action in trait-anxious subjects. Little evidence was found for a general tension factor in either low-anxious or high-anxious subjects. Furthermore, no differences were observed in multiple-site covariance structures between the two groups; the EMG elevations in the high-anxious subjects consisted of largely uncorrelated response bursts. The data mitigate prevalent conceptions of increased tonic muscular contraction during arousal and anxiety. Anxiety, we believe, reflects activation more than immobilization or defense.Elevated striate-muscle activity is often presumed to accompany high levels of reported anxiety. This presumption has endured despite little systematic observation of the striate musculature's behavior in anxiety states.William James asserted the importance of visceral and striate-muscle feedback for the perception of strong emotions (James, 1884), and he identified a muscularly tense hyperactive personality type (James, 1890). From a centralist perspective on emotion (cf. Cannon, 1929), anxiety has been interpreted as a sympatheticotonic imbalance (Wenger, Jones, & Jones, 1956) that gives rise to preparatory or defensive muscular responses

Muscular Tension and Body Posture in Relation to Voice Handicap and Voice Quality in Teachers with Persistent Voice Complaints

“…A high position of the thyroid cartilage and hyoid bone, and high muscular tension in the head and neck region are considered to be part of hypertonic voice use, as mentioned by several authors [1,6,16,17] . However, others explain the perilaryngeal muscle hypertonicity as a result, partially, of psycho-emotional stress, as is the case in the Repetitive Strain Injury Syndrome [2,[23][24][25][26] . Physical stressors, like noise, environmental vibrations, as well as mental stressors, force an individual to use higher levels of muscular stiffness to achieve a same level of precision of activity.…”

A Psychological Cascade Model for Persisting Voice Problems in Teachers

“…The findings of a high position of the thyroid cartilage and hyoid bone and high muscular tension of the head and neck region are considered to be associated with 'hypertonic' voice use. This may be due to psychoemotional stressors, as is the case in the repetitive strain injury syndrome [47][48][49][50][51][52].…”

Forearm EMG response activity during motor performance in individuals prone to increased stress reactivity

“…Goldstein [1964] speaks, in this context, of generalized muscular tension as an expression of immobilization and defense. More recent research has articulated this view in the sense that electromyographic (EMG) patterns of high-anxious persons are particularly characterized by uncorrelated response bursts [Fridlund et al, 1986]. The latter of the elements mentioned, i.e., non-specific activation or arousal contributing to neuromotor noise, will play a role in our etiological model of WRUEDs as well.…”