Chronic Stress and Emotion Regulation: Implications for PTSD

描述（由申请人提供）：拟议的研究计划的广泛目标是了解慢性压力和抑制和重新评价的情绪调节策略如何影响自然环境中的情绪和生理反应。更具体地说，一项研究将检查感知的慢性压力，抑制和重新评价的情绪体验和皮质醇觉醒反应在健康的大学生，谁在使用这些情绪调节策略和他们的压力感知不同的影响。第二项研究旨在了解压抑和重新评价如何与那些经历过反复自然灾害的人（其中一半人目前经历的症状与可能的创伤后应激障碍或PTSD一致）的皮质醇觉醒反应相关。本研究的具体目标有三个：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）在自然环境中，在无PTSD的慢性压力人群中检查特质情绪调节和皮质醇觉醒反应之间的联系（研究2）;（3）在一个匹配的创伤暴露样本中检验PTSD和CAR结果之间的关系，并在一个患有PTSD的慢性应激人群中阐明在自然环境中特质情绪调节和皮质醇觉醒反应之间的关系（研究2）。情绪调节的特质测量，慢性压力问卷，情绪和健康的每日日记报告，以及皮质醇的评估将被用来解决特定的目标。在研究一中，健康的大学生将进入实验室，完成问卷的知觉慢性压力和特质使用的抑制和重新评价。然后，他们将完成每天的日记部分，他们将收集两个唾液样本（一个在觉醒时，一个在30分钟后）来测量皮质醇觉醒反应，并将每天完成他们当前情绪的清单。在研究2中，经历过多次自然灾害的参与者（例如，地震，海啸，洪水），有和没有可能的创伤后应激障碍，将从一个更大的研究应对自然灾害招募。符合可能PTSD标准的一半参与者将与没有PTSD的参与者在创伤暴露方面进行匹配。参与者将完成关于人口统计学、健康、创伤暴露以及抑制和重新评价的特质使用的问卷。然后，他们将完成一项类似于研究1的为期1天的每日日记研究，以评估皮质醇觉醒反应。这个项目坚持国家卫生研究院的使命，因为了解情绪调节如何影响情绪体验和生理的背景下，慢性压力对心理和身体健康的影响。消极的情绪反应经常发生在慢性应激源的反应;了解哪些情绪调节策略可能更好地缓解这些反应可以转化为干预方法。 公共卫生相关性：该项目与公共卫生相关，因为它有可能a）阐明在慢性压力背景下情绪调节对情绪体验和生理的影响B）促进对特定情绪调节策略如何影响健康和慢性压力人群生理的理解，以及c）通过建议在遇到慢性或重复的压力源时利用的更适应性的情绪调节过程来告知干预。这是非常重要的，因为那些患有慢性压力和情绪调节不良的人更容易出现精神和身体健康问题（例如，临床抑郁症、冠心病）。

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).