Pollatos Olga, Herbert Beate M, Kaufmann Christian, Auer Dorothee P, Schandry Rainer
Department of Psychology, LMU University, Munich, Germany.
Int J Psychophysiol. 2007 Aug;65(2):167-73. doi: 10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2007.03.005. Epub 2007 Mar 14.
The present study was designed to investigate the relation between cardiovascular reactivity, trait anxiety and the interoceptive awareness. Eighteen male subjects underwent a heartbeat perception task and performed an isometric handgrip exercise. Subjects with high reactivity showed a higher degree of interoceptive awareness and trait anxiety suggesting that a habitually increased sympathetic outflow might be one variable contributing to the establishment of high interoceptive awareness and trait anxiety.
