Romantic partner embraces reduce cortisol release after acute stress induction in women but not in men.

ABSTRACT: Stress is omnipresent in our everyday lives. It is therefore critical to identify potential stress-buffering behaviors that can help to prevent the negative effects of acute stress in daily life. Massages, a form of social touch, are an effective buffer against both the endocrinological and sympathetic stress response in women. However, for other forms of social touch, potential stress-buffering effects have not been investigated in detail. Furthermore, the possible stress-buffering effects of social touch on men have not been researched so far. The present study focused on embracing, one of the most common forms of social touch across many cultures. We used a short-term embrace between romantic partners as a social touch intervention prior to the induction of acute stress via the Socially

SUBMITTER: Berretz G 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9116618 | biostudies-literature | 2022

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature