Chronic Stress and Emotion Regulation: Implications for PTSD

描述（由申请人提供）：本研究计划的主要目的是了解慢性应激和情绪调节策略（抑制和重新评价）如何影响自然环境下的情绪和生理反应。更具体地说，一项研究将检验感知到的慢性压力、抑制和重新评估对健康大学生的情绪体验和皮质醇觉醒反应的影响，这些大学生在使用这些情绪调节策略和他们对压力的感知方面都有所不同。第二项研究旨在了解那些遭受多次自然灾害的人（其中一半人目前经历的症状可能与创伤后应激障碍或PTSD一致）的抑制和重新评估如何与皮质醇觉醒反应相关。这个特殊项目的具体目的有三个：1)在健康人群中建立慢性压力、特质情绪调节、情绪体验和皮质醇觉醒反应之间的关系（研究1）；2)研究自然环境下非创伤后应激障碍慢性应激人群的特质情绪调节与皮质醇觉醒反应之间的关系（研究2）；3)在匹配的创伤暴露样本中研究PTSD与CAR之间的关系，并阐明慢性应激PTSD患者在自然环境下的特质情绪调节与皮质醇唤醒反应之间的关系（研究2）。将利用情绪调节的特征测量、慢性压力问卷、情绪和健康的每日日记报告以及皮质醇评估来实现具体目标。在研究1中，健康的大学生进入实验室，填写关于感知慢性应激和抑制与重评价特质使用的问卷。然后，他们将完成每日日记部分，其中他们将收集两份唾液样本（一份在醒来时，一份在30分钟后）来测量皮质醇唤醒反应，并将每天完成他们当前情绪的清单。在研究2中，将从一个更大的应对自然灾害的研究中招募那些经历过多次自然灾害（如地震、海啸、洪水），有或没有PTSD的参与者。一半符合可能的PTSD标准的参与者将与没有PTSD的参与者进行创伤暴露配对。参与者将完成关于人口统计、健康、创伤暴露和特征使用抑制和重新评价的问卷调查。然后，他们将完成一项与研究1类似的为期1天的每日日记研究，以评估皮质醇唤醒反应。该项目遵循美国国立卫生研究院的使命，因为了解情绪调节如何影响慢性压力背景下的情绪体验和生理，对身心健康具有重要意义。消极情绪反应是对慢性应激源的反应；了解哪种情绪调节策略可以更好地缓解这些反应，可以转化为干预方法。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The broad objective of the proposed program of research is to understand how chronic stress and the emotion regulation strategies of suppression and reappraisal affect emotional and physiological responses in naturalistic settings. More specifically, one study will examine the effects of perceived chronic stress, suppression and reappraisal on emotional experience and the cortisol awakening response in healthy undergraduates, who vary both in the use of these emotion regulation strategies and their perceptions of stress. The second study seeks to understand how suppression and reappraisal are associated with the cortisol awakening response in those who have endured repeated natural disasters (half of whom currently experience symptoms consistent with probable Posttraumatic Stress Disorder or PTSD). The specific aims of this particular program are threefold: 1) to establish the relationship between chronic stress, trait emotion regulation, emotional experience, and the cortisol awakening response in a healthy population (Study 1); 2) to examine the link between trait emotion regulation and the cortisol awakening response in a natural setting among a chronically stressed population without PTSD (Study 2); and 3) to examine the relationship between the PTSD and CAR findings in a matched trauma-exposed sample, and clarify the relationship between trait emotion regulation and the cortisol awakening response in a natural setting among a chronically stressed population with PTSD( Study 2). Trait measures of emotion regulation, questionnaires on chronic stress, daily diary reports of emotion and health, and assessments of cortisol will be utilized to address the specific aims. In Study 1, healthy undergraduates will come into the lab to complete questionnaires on perceived chronic stress and the trait use of suppression and reappraisal. They will then complete a daily diary component where they will collect two saliva samples (one at awakening, one after 30 minutes) to measure the cortisol awakening response and will also complete an inventory on their current emotions each day. In Study 2, participants who have endured repeated natural disasters (e.g., earthquakes, tsunamis, floods), with and without probable PTSD, will be recruited from a larger study of coping with natural disasters. Half of the participants who meet criteria for probable PTSD will be matched on trauma exposure with participants who do not have PTSD. Participants will complete questionnaires on demographics, health, trauma exposure and the trait use of suppression and reappraisal. They will then complete a 1-day daily diary study similar to Study 1 to assess the cortisol awakening response. This project adheres to the mission of NIH because understanding how emotion regulation influences emotional experience and physiology in the context of chronic stress has implications for mental and physical health. Negative emotional responses occur frequently in reaction to chronic stressors; understanding which emotion regulation strategies may be better at alleviating these responses can be translated into intervention approaches. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: This project has relevance to public health because it has the potential to a) shed light on the effects of emotion regulation on emotional experience and physiology in the context of chronic stress b) advance understanding on how specific emotion regulation strategies influence physiology in a healthy and chronically stressed population, and c) inform interventions by suggesting more adaptive emotion regulation processes to utilize when encountering chronic or repeated stressors. This is of great importance because those who suffer from chronic stress and poor emotion regulation are more prone to mental and physical health problems (e.g., clinical depression, coronary heart disease).