ABSTRACT

Researchers typically assume that all forms of positive affect (PA) are equally beneficial for attenuating the physiological stress response. We tested whether this association is more nuanced by examining the role of arousal level of PA on physiological responses to acute pain. Participants (N = 283, 75.6% female, M_age = 20.6) were randomized to a low, mid, or high arousal (calm, happy, and excited, respectively) induction condition or to a neutral control and then completed an acute pain-inducing cold pressor task. Sympathetic and parasympathetic responses along with self-reported pain and distress were assessed. Results indicated that the calm condition had a flatter sympathetic reactivity and subsequent recovery compared with the control condition. Additionally, calm and excited were associated with steeper increases in parasympathetic reactivity versus controls. These results support past PA stress buffering findings and indicate that not all types of PA are equal when it comes to improving the pain stress response.

Abbreviations: PA: positive affect; PEP: pre-ejection period; RMSSD: root mean square of successive differences

摘要

研究人员通常假设所有形式的积极影响 (PA) 对于减轻生理压力反应同样有益。我们通过检查 PA 的觉醒水平对急性疼痛的生理反应的作用来测试这种关联是否更加细微。参与者（N = 283，75.6% 女性，M_年龄 = 20.6）被随机分配到低、中或高唤醒（分别为平静、快乐和兴奋）诱导条件或中性控制，然后完成急性疼痛诱导冷加压任务。评估了交感神经和副交感神经反应以及自我报告的疼痛和痛苦。结果表明，与对照条件相比，平静条件下的交感神经反应和随后的恢复更平稳。此外，与对照组相比，平静和兴奋与副交感神经反应性的急剧增加有关。这些结果支持过去的 PA 压力缓冲研究结果，并表明并非所有类型的 PA 在改善疼痛应激反应方面都是平等的。

缩写： PA：积极影响；PEP：预喷射期；RMSSD：连续差的均方根