Department of Psychology, Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran.
Int J Psychophysiol. 2011 Sep;81(3):225-9. doi: 10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2011.06.015. Epub 2011 Aug 18.
The present study was conducted to investigate the possible relationship of serum serotonin and salivary cortisol with the sensation seeking (SS) trait. Blood and saliva samples were taken from 57 male volunteers (mean age 23±5years) to measure serum serotonin and salivary cortisol concentrations. Zuckerman's Sensation Seeking Scale (SSS-V) was used to assess SS. Pearson's correlation coefficient revealed that high serum serotonin levels did not correlate significantly with low SS scores (r=0.12). However, a negative correlation between SS scores and salivary cortisol levels (r=-0.34, p<0.01) was significant, suggesting that high SS scores are related to low concentrations of salivary cortisol. The negative correlation between salivary cortisol and SS is clearly compatible with the optimal level of Catecholamine system activity (CSA), component of SS theory, indicating that high sensation seekers (HSSers) tend to seek excitement and novelty to compensate for the shortage of CSA achieving optimal arousal. Further investigation is needed before conclusions can be drawn regarding the relationship of serum serotonin and SS.
本研究旨在探讨血清 5-羟色胺和唾液皮质醇与感觉寻求（SS）特质之间的可能关系。从 57 名男性志愿者（平均年龄 23±5 岁）中采集血液和唾液样本，以测量血清 5-羟色胺和唾液皮质醇浓度。采用 Zuckerman 的感觉寻求量表（SSS-V）评估 SS。Pearson 相关系数显示，高血清 5-羟色胺水平与低 SS 评分无显著相关性（r=0.12）。然而，SS 评分与唾液皮质醇水平呈负相关（r=-0.34，p<0.01），表明高 SS 评分与唾液皮质醇浓度较低有关。唾液皮质醇与 SS 之间的负相关与 SS 理论的儿茶酚胺系统活动（CSA）组成部分的最佳水平明显一致，表明高感觉寻求者（HSSers）倾向于寻求兴奋和新奇来弥补 CSA 的不足，以达到最佳唤醒。在得出关于血清 5-羟色胺和 SS 之间关系的结论之前，还需要进一步研究。
