Open AccessA large-scale study of stress, emotions, and blood pressure in daily life using a digital platform
Author(s) -
Amie M. Gordon,
Wendy Berry Mendes
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
proceedings of the national academy of sciences of the united states of america
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 5.011
H-Index - 771
eISSN - 1091-6490
pISSN - 0027-8424
DOI - 10.1073/pnas.2105573118
Subject(s) - arousal , stress measures , blood pressure , reactivity (psychology) , psychology , perceived stress scale , heart rate , valence (chemistry) , stress (linguistics) , clinical psychology , medicine , social psychology , linguistics , philosophy , physics , alternative medicine , pathology , quantum mechanics
Significance Exaggerated blood pressure (BP) reactivity is associated with the development of hypertension and cardiovascular disease. Stress, and, to a lesser extent, emotions are suggested to be linked to BP reactivity, but this theorizing lacks robust evidence beyond small laboratory or field studies with narrow participant demographics. Using an app-based research study and analyzing more than 330,000 daily responses from over 20,000 people, we show that momentary stress, conceptualized as the perception of demands relative to resources, is associated with greater BP and heart rate reactivity. High-arousal negative emotions are associated with increased physiologic reactivity whereas low-arousal positive emotions are associated with decreased reactivity. These data point to daily stress experiences as likely candidates for improving physical health.