University of Wyoming Psychology, Laramie, WY, United States; 1227, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403, United States.
Psychoneuroendocrinology. 2013 Dec;38(12):2905-13. doi: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2013.07.018. Epub 2013 Aug 7.
Mindfulness is known to improve individuals' and couples' subjective stress regulation, but little is known about how it impacts hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis responses to acute psychosocial stress. The current study tested effects of dispositional mindfulness facets on young adult couples' cortisol responses to a conflict discussion stressor, as well as associations with psychological adjustment. One hundred heterosexual couples completed the five facet mindfulness questionnaire one week before engaging in a conflict discussion task. Each partner provided five saliva samples from pre- to post-conflict, which were assayed for cortisol. Measures of adjustment - depression and anxiety symptoms and global well-being - were also completed at this session. Hierarchical linear modeling of cortisol trajectories revealed sex-specific effects; whereas women's mindfulness (nonreactivity facet) predicted higher conflict stress cortisol levels, men's mindfulness (describing facet) predicted less pronounced cortisol reactivity/recovery curves. These patterns were related to better adjustment-lower depression symptoms for women and greater well-being for men. Implications for sex differences in mindfulness benefits are discussed.
正念被认为可以改善个体和伴侣的主观压力调节能力，但对于其如何影响下丘脑-垂体-肾上腺（HPA）轴对急性心理社会应激的反应知之甚少。本研究测试了特质正念各维度对年轻成年夫妇应对冲突讨论应激源时皮质醇反应的影响，以及与心理适应的关联。100 对异性伴侣在进行冲突讨论任务前一周完成了五因素正念问卷。每位伴侣在冲突前到冲突后提供了五份唾液样本，用于测定皮质醇。在这一环节还完成了调整措施——抑郁和焦虑症状以及整体幸福感的评估。皮质醇轨迹的层次线性模型显示出性别特异性效应；女性的正念（非反应性维度）预测了更高的冲突应激皮质醇水平，而男性的正念（描述维度）预测了皮质醇反应性/恢复曲线不那么明显。这些模式与更好的适应相关——女性的抑郁症状减轻，男性的幸福感增强。讨论了正念益处中存在的性别差异的意义。
