Mind over matter: Reappraising arousal improves cardiovascular and cognitive responses to stress.

Abstract

Researchers have theorized that changing the way we think about our bodily responses can improve our physiological and cognitive reactions to stressful events. However, the underlying processes through which mental states improve downstream outcomes are not well-understood. To this end, we examined whether reappraising stress-induced arousal could improve cardiovascular outcomes and decrease attentional bias for emotionally-negative information. Participants were randomly assigned to either a reappraisal condition in which they were instructed to think about their physiological arousal during a stressful task as functional and adaptive, or to one of two control conditions: attention reorientation and no instructions. Relative to controls, participants instructed to reappraise their arousal exhibited more adaptive cardiovascular stress responses – increased cardiac efficiency and lower vascular resistance – and decreased attentional bias. Thus, reappraising arousal shows physiological and cognitive benefits. Implications for health and potential clinical applications are discussed.

Acceptance lowers stress reactivity: Dismantling mindfulness training in a randomized controlled trial

“…More research is needed to evaluate whether the booster session is a necessary condition for reducing biological stress reactivity (i.e., it was essential for activating the skills developed through the training program) or whether the effects of 14 days of mindfulness training persist without this skills reminder session prior to stress exposure. Although some acute interventions can shift one's perspective in ways that promote a more adaptive physiological response to stress (e.g., shifting from self-promotion to compassionate goals; appraising stress as functional; Abelson et al, 2014;Jamieson et al, 2012), these single session inductions are quite different from the intervention approach tested here. Given that previous evidence shows no benefits of mindfulness training for reducing biological stress reactivity after 3 training sessions (with the 3 rd session similarly acting as a booster session immediately before mTSST performance; , the effects observed here likely hinge upon the development of mindfulness skills over the course of 14 lessons.…”

Self-talk as a regulatory mechanism: How you do it matters.

“…These findings are noteworthy because prior research indicates that challenge-threat appraisals influence how people think, feel, and behave under social stress. Specifically, challenge (compared with threat) appraisals predict adaptive subjective, physiological, and behavioral responses (e.g., Blascovich, Seery, Mugridge, Norris, & Weisbuch, 2004;Dienstbier, 1989;Jamieson, Nock, & Mendes, 2012).…”

“…On the one hand, our findings regarding challenge-threat appraisals provide initial clues about the processes that may explain some of the benefits of non-first-person self-talk on self-regulation. Specifically, prior research indicates that experimentally enhancing challenge-threat appraisals enhances performance under stress and reduces post performance distress and perseveration (e.g., Blascovich et al, 2004;Dienstbier, 1989;Jamieson et al, 2012). For example, Jamieson, Mendes, Blackstock, and Schmader (2010) found that cueing people to appraise their anxiety surrounding having to take the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) in challenging terms led them to perform better on the exam, worry less about how anxious they were after the exam, and display healthier patterns of sympathetic nervous system activation.…”

Complexity Under Stress: Integrative Approaches to Overdetermined Vulnerabilities

“…increased heart rate, sweaty palms, anxiety) as facilitative to the task at hand can help bring about a challenge instead of a threat response, in turn supporting complex thinking. 63 As in the case of positive reappraisal, embracing stress may not necessarily remove the negative emotions related to stress. Rather, it seems to add positive emotions to the appraisal.…”