Smith Michael A, Riccalton Victoria C, Kelly-Hughes Denise H, Craw Olivia A, Allen Sarah F, O'Connor Daryl B, Wetherell Mark A
a Department of Psychology, Faculty of Health and Life Sciences , Northumbria University , Newcastle upon Tyne , UK.
b Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences , University of Western Australia , Perth , Australia.
Stress. 2018 May;21(3):229-236. doi: 10.1080/10253890.2018.1435637. Epub 2018 Feb 5.
Type D personality has been associated with minor health complaints in the general population and dysregulation of basal cortisol secretion in coronary patients. The aims of the present study were to investigate (i) whether there is an association between Type D personality and basal cortisol secretion in the general population, and (ii) whether subjective measures of stress and anxiety, as well as indices of basal cortisol secretion, mediate the relationship between Type D personality and self-reported physical symptoms in this group. Self-report measures of stress, trait anxiety and physical symptoms were provided by 101 individuals aged 18-45 years. Saliva samples were also provided over two consecutive "typical" days, to enable indices of the cortisol awakening response and diurnal cortisol profile to be determined. There was a significant relationship between Type D personality and self-reported physical symptoms, which was fully mediated by subjective stress and anxiety. However, there were no significant relationships between Type D personality and the basal cortisol indices. These findings suggest that the association between Type D personality and minor health complaints in the general population can be explained by feelings of stress and anxiety, but a precise biological mechanism for this link is yet to be elucidated.
D型人格与普通人群的轻微健康问题以及冠心病患者基础皮质醇分泌失调有关。本研究的目的是调查：（i）普通人群中D型人格与基础皮质醇分泌之间是否存在关联；（ii）压力和焦虑的主观测量指标以及基础皮质醇分泌指标是否介导该人群中D型人格与自我报告的身体症状之间的关系。101名年龄在18至45岁之间的个体提供了压力、特质焦虑和身体症状的自我报告测量数据。还在连续两个“典型”日采集了唾液样本，以确定皮质醇觉醒反应和昼夜皮质醇谱指标。D型人格与自我报告的身体症状之间存在显著关系，这完全由主观压力和焦虑介导。然而，D型人格与基础皮质醇指标之间没有显著关系。这些发现表明，普通人群中D型人格与轻微健康问题之间的关联可以通过压力和焦虑感来解释，但这种联系的确切生物学机制尚待阐明。
