This systematic review examines the evidence on the association between social cognition and cortisol in the general population. Literature was searched in six databases. Of the 401 studies identified, meta-analyses were conducted on 46 effect sizes (Pearson's correlation coefficients) from 19 studies, supplemented by a narrative review. Pooled estimates suggest that better emotion control is associated with increased cortisol concentrations [r = 0.083, 95% CI (0.033, 0.132)]. Emotion recognition or empathy were not significantly associated with cortisol concentrations [r = 0.072, 95% CI (−0.020, 0.165) and r = 0.004, 95% CI (−0.061, 0.068) respectively]. Subgroup analyses showed that the association between emotion control and cortisol concentrations is significant in males, for morning cortisol, when the cortisol data are transformed to correct for skewed distributions, or when participants are instructed to avoid food and drink intake for at least one hour before sample collection. There was no evidence for an association between social cognition with diurnal cortisol slope or cortisol awakening response. More validation work with greater standardization of methodological procedures is required.

中文翻译：

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一般人群的社会认知和皮质醇：系统评价和荟萃分析

本系统评价检查了一般人群中社会认知与皮质醇之间关联的证据。在六个数据库中检索了文献。在确定的 401 项研究中，对 19 项研究的 46 项效应量（皮尔逊相关系数）进行了荟萃分析，并辅以叙述性评论。汇总估计表明，更好的情绪控制与皮质醇浓度增加有关 [ r  = 0.083, 95% CI (0.033, 0.132)]。情绪识别或同理心与皮质醇浓度无显着相关 [ r  = 0.072, 95% CI (-0.020, 0.165) 和r = 0.004, 95% CI (-0.061, 0.068)]。亚组分析表明，男性的情绪控制与皮质醇浓度之间的关联在男性中显着，对于早晨皮质醇，当皮质醇数据被转换以校正偏态分布时，或者当参与者被指示在运动前至少一小时避免进食和饮水时样品采集。没有证据表明社会认知与昼夜皮质醇斜率或皮质醇觉醒反应之间存在关联。需要更多的验证工作，使方法程序更加标准化。