Family history of hypertension--an individual trait interacting with spontaneously occurring job stressors.

Family history of hypertension has been associated with enhanced blood pressure reactivity and a "noncomplaining" life attitude. The present empirical study supported the notion that enhanced blood pressure reactivity is associated with other endocrinologic hormonal reactivity patterns (plasma cortisol, prolactin, and testosterone) not directly related to blood pressure during increasing job strain (demands/decision latitude). Furthermore, it was found that noise effects on blood pressure rise at work occur mainly among people with a family history of hypertension. Interaction between stressors and individual characteristics seems important in the analysis of the health effects of job stressors, and "family history of hypertension" seems to be an important individual characteristic not only of blood pressure associations but also of other relationships between job environment and health.