Childhood adversity is often associated with devastating physical, cognitive, and psychosocial outcomes, and is a major public health problem in terms of its prevalence and economic cost. Childhood adversity is associated with increased risk for psychopathology, as well as with dysregulation of the neurobiological stress response. An additional factor known to alter neuroendocrine functioning and increase psychopathology risk is polymorphisms within the FKBP5 gene. The goal of the current study was to examine the gene-environment interaction of childhood adversity and variation in the FKBP5 gene on the cortisol response to a psychosocial stress task (i.e., the Trier Social Stress Test). The final sample consisted of 90 depressed and non-depressed adolescents and young adults (11 - 21 years). Childhood adversity was assessed using the Childhood Experience and Abuse Scale (CECA; Bifulco et al., 1994), and was defined as the presence versus absence prior to 18 years of age of severe physical, sexual, or emotional abuse or neglect, witness to domestic discord/violence, or peer-perpetrated bullying. Participants were genotyped at the rs1360780 site of the FKBP5 gene and grouped according to whether they had at least one risk T allele (i.e., TT or TC genotype versus the CC genotype). Controlling for depression and anxiety psychopathology, I found a significant interaction of FKBP5 and childhood adversity status such that individuals with the FKBP5 risk allele (i.e., TT or TC genotype) and a history of childhood adversity showed a distinct cortisol response pattern characterized by decreasing cortisol from baseline and less cortisol output compared to individuals without childhood adversity. This relationship was specific to the experience of severe adversity and appeared to be strongest when adversity was defined as witnessing domestic discord/violence. These results are consistent with a diathesis-stress model in which the FKBP5 risk allele leaves individuals vulnerable to neurobiological dysregulation in the face of severe adverse experience in childhood. The implications of this research for understanding stress-related psychopathology and the limitations of this gene-environment interaction design are discussed. / Thesis (Master, Psychology) -- Queen's University, 2013-09-05 11:24:45.764

Dysregulation of the hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis activity has been commonly observed among breast cancer patients and has been linked to adverse health consequences. However, whether these alterations persist long after the cancer diagnosis has not been well-documented. In the first study, the diurnal cortisol rhythms and the cortisol stress response of breast cancer survivors who had completed all local and/or systemic adjuvant therapy with the exception of hormonal therapy were compared to those of women without a history of cancer. The Trier Social Stress Test was used to elicit a moderate stress response and the subjective levels of stress of participants were recorded using visual analog scales. The results indicate similar diurnal patterns in both groups; however, significant differences in stress reactivity were noted, with breast cancer survivors displaying a relatively flat profile following the acute stress induction. Subjective levels of psychological stress were similar in both groups, indicating that the subjective appraisal did not account for the blunted cortisol stress response. In the second study, the impact of the stressful life events that happened during the previous year on the cortisol stress response was analyzed in the same groups of participants. The frequency of stressful life events as well as their subjective impact was documented using the Life Experience Survey. Results suggest no group differences between the total number of stressful life events and their perceived effect. However, the number of stressful life events and their perceived impact correlated negatively with the peak cortisol concentration in breast cancer survivors. The results suggest that the cumulative effect of stressful life events contribute significantly to the low levels of cortisol reported in breast cancer survivors following a stressful situation. Together, these studies emphasize that breast cancer survivors are at risk of presenting a subtle alteration of their HPA axis activity when their system is challenged and that an accumulation of stressors plays a role in this dysregulation. These results reinforce the need for interventions intended to reduce the levels of psychological stress experienced by breast cancer survivors.

Test anxiety is an individual personality trait, which results in elevated state anxiety in situations of performance evaluation. For school-age children, high-stakes examinations occurring at the culmination of programmes of study are where they frequently experience such evaluation. Alongside its impact on an individual's wellbeing, heightened test anxiety has been reliably linked to deficits in performance on examinations and assessments. Attentional bias has been shown to be an aspect of many forms of anxiety and is considered to have role in the maintenance of state anxiety, though the mechanisms underlying this are not fully clear. However, Attentional Control Theory (Eysenck, Derakshan, Santos, & Calvo, 2007) implicates preferential allocation of attention to threat in its explanation of performance deficits associated with test anxiety. The presence of attentional bias in test anxiety appears theoretically plausible with some empirical support (e.g. Putwain, Langdale, Woods and Nicholson, 2011); however, its reliability is under question. This study aims to investigate the presence of attentional bias in test anxiety, with a view to further understanding its underlying mechanisms and informing the development of interventions to ameliorate its effects. To ensure ecological validity, this study was conducted in schools and colleges, with a sample of 16-18-year olds following high-stakes programmes of study. Full investigation of test anxiety requires individuals to experience heightened state anxiety through performance evaluation threat; hence, the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST) was modified to make it applicable to this context and population. This study was conducted in two experimental phases, both of which adopted a mixed methodological approach to provide quantitative and qualitative data. The preliminary phase evaluated the materials and anxiety manipulation protocols. The main phase employed the modified-TSST in collaboration with a dot-probe task to investigate participants' attentional bias when under high performance evaluation threat. No patterns of attentional bias were uncovered to indicate a consistent relationship to either trait test anxiety or attentional control. However, there was a level of congruence between how some individuals describe themselves in evaluative situations and the attentional bias they displayed. Further investigation employing mixed methodological approaches such as Single Case Experimental Design is recommended to identify and address attentional bias in test anxiety.

No description available.

Hoarding disorder (HD) is characterized by (a) the acquisition of and inability to discard a large number of possessions; (b) clutter that interferes with the use of appliances and general living areas in the home; and (c) clinically significant distress or impairment in functioning. Although previous studies have reported that individuals with HD exhibit emotional dysregulation when discarding personal items, this investigation is the first to examine the biological indices of distress. The current study aimed to examine whether individuals with HD differed from healthy controls in their psychological and biological responses to a general psychosocial stressor and to investigate whether individual differences in stress response relate to differences in symptom severity and impairment. Twenty-one individuals with HD and 22 healthy controls (CTLs) completed the Trier Social Stress Task and self-reported affect and salivary cortisol responses to the stressor were assessed. Individuals with HD did not significantly differ compared to CTLs in their salivary cortisol levels in relation to the stressor. However, individuals with HD significant-ly differed compared to CTLs in their subjective levels of distress in relation to the stressor. Contrary to our hypotheses, responses to stress were not significantly correlated with measures of symptom severity and impairment due to hoarding. The current findings indicate that individuals with HD exhibit a greater self-reported emotional response to a general stressor. The implications of these findings are discussed. / Thesis / Master of Science (MS)

No description available.

No description available.

Fatigue is common in the general population, and is the hallmark of chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalomyelitis (CFS/ME). Although the occurrence of sleep difficulties is known to be common in subjects with fatigue, research on insomnia in such subjects is absent. The current study sought to examine the impact comorbid insomnia has on level of fatigue in subjects with chronic fatigue. The aim of this study is to assess the relationship between insomnia and chronic fatigue, and examine if the relationship is affected by the endocrine activity in the HPA axis. The following hypotheses were tested: 1) Do patients with chronic fatigue and comorbid insomnia experience more fatigue than patients with chronic fatigue without comorbid insomnia? 2) Do patients with chronic fatigue and with initially comorbid insomnia experience more fatigue after treatment than chronic fatigue patients without comorbid insomnia? 3) Do patients with chronic fatigue who experience improvement in insomnia after treatment also experience less fatigue by the end of treatment compared with patients who do not experience improvement in insomnia? 4) Is the potential relationship between insomnia and chronic fatigue influenced by the activity of the HPA axis as expressed by variation in cortisol output measured by Trier Social Stress Test for Groups (TSST-G)? The study sample consisted of 75 patients with chronic fatigue. Thirty-three met criteria for insomnia, while 42 did not. While staying at Hysnes Rehabilitation Center in Trondheim, Norway, they received a work-related Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) treatment intervention lasting 3.5 weeks. In addition, they participated in a standardized stress test (Trier Social Stress Test) pre- and post-treatment. Saliva cortisol samples were collected during the test in order to measure variation in cortisol output. The current finding is the first description of how insomnia in patients with chronic fatigue is associated with higher levels of fatigue (p < .05). Further, this study gives preliminary support indicating that remission of insomnia in patients with chronic fatigue can significantly reduce levels of fatigue (p < .05), and furthermore improve the physiological stress-response (p < .05). These results might encourage clinicians to assess and provide specific treatment for insomnia in patients with chronic fatigue as this might improve their treatment results. An aim for further research should be to investigate the effect of specified treatment for insomnia in patients with chronic fatigue.

The purpose of this study was to disentangle the psychobiological mechanisms and social-evaluative conditions that mediate the process by which the Autonomic Nervous System reacts in male and female humans. We used the original Trier Social Stress Test, as well as two modifications to this original social stressor: a punishment modification and a reward modification. We obtained measures of autonomic (heart rate and respiratory sinus arrhythmia; HR and SA respectively) reactivity before, during and after the stress test. To distinguish the contribution of the different modifications and any additional difference in reactivity due to gender, the participants were randomly separated into the three modifications, where N=35 (17 male) for the no modification group, N=12 (7 male) for the punishment condition, and N=13 (8 male) for the reward condition. All participants exhibited ANS reactivity to the stressor; females exhibited the most magnified response to all modifications. Overall, the most ANS reactivity was found within the reward condition, with the no modification group exhibiting the least amount of reactivity. This suggests that the reward paradigm was the most salient of all the stressors. Evidence indicated that the ANS stress response system is highly sensitive to potential for gain and reward, especially in females.

Cardiovascular disease has been a leading cause of death worldwide over the last decades (Roth et al., 2015; WHO, 2021a). In countries with middle or elevated gross domestic product indices, stroke and myocardial infarction represent the prevalent causes of death. Over the years, the scientific community has identified significant cognitive and emotional impacts on survivors of coronary heart disease and cardiovascular disease. We know that ageing populations and high-stress levels associated with contemporary lifestyles play a crucial role in the prognosis and recovery of individuals with myocardial infarction. These factors are associated with an increased societal burden related to survivors’ care. As they age, a higher proportion of women than men are affected by coronary heart disease, including myocardial infarction. Nonetheless, women remain under-represented in studies addressing trajectories of recovery associated with myocardial infarction. The arching goal of this thesis is to expand the knowledge on the association of various environmental and physical factors with a history of myocardial infarction in a sample of Canadian women. The accomplished research is presented in the form of two empirical studies carried out on samples of Canadian women with and without a history of myocardial infarction, as well as two systematic reviews of the literature. The first study established the state of knowledge on the Trier Social Stress Test paradigm, a tool that we later used in our laboratory study. Through an in-depth examination of the protocols used by different research groups, this systematic review identified essential elements for valid conclusions and proposed a set of recommendations for standardizing the use of the Trier Social Stress Test in research. The second systematic review updated the current scientific knowledge concerning the cognitive consequences of women with a history of coronary heart disease. Despite cardiovascular disease, including coronary heart disease, remainsunderstudied in women, the last decade has seen an emergence of research supporting cognition to be affected. Our findings support subtle cognitive impairments in women with a history of coronary heart disease. Our literature review was conducted to facilitate interpreting the results obtained in a sample of women with a history of MI in this thesis’ fourth study. Regarding data collection, an online questionnaire validated the presence of specific risk factors and symptoms associated with myocardial infarction in a sample of middle-aged Canadian women (N = 366). Finally, a laboratory study measured alterations in the physiological responses (i.e., heart rate variability and salivary cortisol secretion) associated with exposure to a social stressor (i.e., Trier Social Stress Test) in women with a history of myocardial infarction and age-matched controls (N = 29). This body of data and analytic reviews contribute to expanding the knowledge of physiological and cognitive impairments in women with a MI history. Our research also helps improve testing paradigms to examine deficits and identify areas where further research is needed. Our findings support women experiencing different symptoms than those described in men, and it pleads for these to be no longer described as "atypical." Our work highlights a similar prevalence of certain factors (e.g., hypertension) in Canadian women and women from other parts of the world. In terms of the laboratory study, our results indicate subjective/perceived levels of stress intensity to be comparable between the myocardial infarction and non-myocardial infarction women groups. However, we only found tendencies in changes related to measured physiological variables.