Displacement behaviour regulates the experience of stress in men

Abstract

Behavioural coping strategies represent a key means by which people regulate their stress levels. Attention has recently focused on the potential role in coping of 'displacement behaviour' - activities such as scratching, lip biting and face touching. Increased levels of displacement behaviour are associated with feelings of anxiety and stress; however, the extent to which displacement behaviour, as a short-term behavioural response to emotionally challenging stimuli, influences the subsequent experience of stress remains poorly understood. The aim of this study was to investigate the potential role of displacement behaviour in coping with stress. In a study population of 42 healthy adult men (mean age = 28.09 years, SD = 7.98), we quantified displacement behaviour during a Trier Social Stress Test (TSST), and used self-report questionnaires to assess trait and state anxiety before the TSST, and the experience of stress afterwards. We predicted displacement behaviour would diminish the negative impact of the stressful situation, and hence be associated with lower post-TSST stress levels. Furthermore, we predicted displacement behaviour would mediate the link between state and trait anxiety on the one hand and the experience of stress on the other. Results showed the rate of displacement behaviour was positively correlated with state anxiety but unrelated to trait anxiety, and negatively correlated with the self-reported experience of stress, in agreement with the idea that displacement behaviour has a crucial impact on regulation of stress. Moreover, serial mediation analyses using a bias-corrected bootstrapping approach indicated displacement behaviour mediated the relationship between state anxiety and the experience of stress, and that state anxiety and displacement behaviour - in combination, respectively - mediated the link between trait anxiety and experience of stress. These results shed important new light on the function of displacement behaviour, and highlight promising new avenues for research into emotional expression and stress regulation.

Neuroticism and stress: the role of displacement behavior

“…The link between displacement behavior and fundamental personality traits, such as neuroticism, in healthy populations is much more rarely considered. Previously, we have shown that the rate of displacement behavior during a TSST is unrelated to trait anxiety levels in men (Mohiyeddini & Semple, 2013) and is negatively related to public self-consciousness in women (Mohiyeddini et al, 2013b). There is marked interindividual variation in displacement behavior among both normal (Bardi, Koone, Mewaldt, & O'Connor, 2011) and clinical (Troisi, Spalletta, & Pasini, 1998) populations.…”

“…It has long been established that the rate of displacement behavior increases with the experience of negative emotional states such as anxiety and stress C. Mohiyeddini et al 392 (Ekman & Friesen 1972;Mohiyeddini & Semple, 2013;Mohiyeddini, Bauer, & Semple, 2013a, 2013bTroisi, 2002). It is only relatively recently, however, that research has highlighted the importance of displacement behavior as a particularly salient variable underlying individual differences in coping with social stress.…”

“…Mohiyeddini and Semple (2013) found evidence that displacement behavior in men mediates the relationship between state anxiety before a social stressor and the experience of stress following this stressor. A subsequent study indicated that displacement behavior is associated with reduced stress levels among men but not women (Mohiyeddini et al, 2013a).…”

“…Displacement behavior -a group of activities such as scratching and face touching that appear to be irrelevant to the situation in which they occur (Troisi, 2002) -may be important to investigate in this respect, as there is evidence that such behavior has an important role in regulating the impact of stressors (Mohiyeddini & Semple, 2013;PicoAlfonso et al, 2007). It has long been established that the rate of displacement behavior increases with the experience of negative emotional states such as anxiety and stress C. Mohiyeddini et al 392 (Ekman & Friesen 1972;Mohiyeddini & Semple, 2013;Mohiyeddini, Bauer, & Semple, 2013a, 2013bTroisi, 2002).…”

Facial expression: An under-utilised tool for the assessment of welfare in mammals

“…Stereotypies and self-directed behavior may develop as coping mechanisms, and therefore individuals that perform these may experience better welfare states than those in comparable environments that lack coping strategies (Mason and Latham, 2004;Mohiyeddini and Semple, 2013). Furthermore, animals that perform stereotypies are resistant to behavioral extinction and therefore the existence of stereotypies do not necessarily indicate current welfare state (Mason and Latham, 2004;Mason, 2006).…”