Coherence Between Feelings and Heart Rate: Links to Early Adversity and Responses to Stress.

ABSTRACT: Past research suggests that higher coherence between feelings and physiology under stress may confer regulatory advantages. Research and theory also suggest that higher resting vagal tone (rVT) may promote more adaptive responses to stress. The present study examines the roles of response system coherence (RSC; defined as the within-individual covariation between feelings and heart rate over time) and rVT in mediating the links between childhood adversity and later-life responses to acute stressors. Using data from 279 adults from the Second Generation Study of the Harvard Study of Adult Development who completed stressful public speaking and mental arithmetic tasks, we find that individuals who report more childhood adversity have lower RSC, but not lower rVT. We further find that lower R

SUBMITTER: Petrova K 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9382966 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature