Repressive and vigilant coping styles in stress and relaxation: evidence for physiological and subjective differences at baseline, but not for differential stress or relaxation responses

Frontiers in Psychology

Psychology

Anna Exner¹  Kristian Kleinke¹  Johannes B. Finke¹  Tobias Stalder¹  Tim Klucken¹  Miriam Kampa²  Holger Klapperich³  Marc Hassenzahl³ 

[1] Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, University of Siegen, Siegen, Germany;Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, University of Siegen, Siegen, Germany;Bender Institute of Neuroimaging, Justus Liebig University Giessen, Giessen, Germany;Ubiquitous Design/Experience and Interaction, University of Siegen, Siegen, Germany;

关键词: repressors;    sensitizers;    heart rate variability;    blood pressure;    MMST;    stress;    relaxation;   

DOI  :  10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1196481

 received in 2023-03-29, accepted in 2023-08-22,  发布年份 2023

来源: Frontiers

【 摘 要 】

IntroductionPrevious research suggested differential stress reactivity depending on individuals’ coping style, e.g., as classified by the model of coping modes. Specifically, stronger physiological reactivity and weaker subjective stress ratings were found for repressors than for sensitizers. However, it remains to be investigated (i) whether these findings, which are largely based on social stress induction protocols, also generalize to other stressors, (ii) whether repressors vs. sensitizers also exhibit differential stress recovery following the application of a relaxation method, and (iii) which stress reactivity and recovery patterns are seen for the two remaining coping styles, i.e., fluctuating, and non-defensive copers. The current study thus examines stress reactivity in physiology and subjective ratings to a non-social stressor and the subsequent ability to relax for the four coping groups of repressors, sensitizers, fluctuating, and non-defensive copers.MethodsA total of 96 healthy participants took part in a stress induction (Mannheim Multicomponent Stress Test) and a subsequent relaxation intervention. Subjective ratings of stress and relaxation, heart rate (HR), heart rate variability (HRV), and blood pressure were assessed during the experiment. HR and blood pressure are markers of the sympathetic stress response that can be regulated by relaxation, while HRV should increase with relaxation. To investigate long-term relaxation effects, subjective ratings were also assessed on the evening of testing.ResultsDespite successful stress induction, no differential responses (baseline to stress, stress to relaxation) were observed between the different coping groups on any of the measures. In contrast, a strong baseline effect was observed that persisted throughout the experiment: In general, fluctuating copers showed lower HR and higher HRV than non-defensive copers, whereas repressors reported lower subjective stress levels and higher levels of relaxation during all study phases. No differences in subjective ratings were observed in the evening of testing.ConclusionContrary to previous research, no differential stress reactivity pattern was observed between coping groups, which could be due to the non-social type of stressor employed in this study. The novel finding of physiological baseline differences between fluctuating and non-defensive individuals is of interest and should be further investigated in other stressor types in future research.

【 授权许可】

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Copyright © 2023 Exner, Kampa, Finke, Stalder, Klapperich, Hassenzahl, Kleinke and Klucken.