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Experimental effects of rumination styles on salivary cortisol responses

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Abstract

Emerging research suggests that rumination increases risk for negative health outcomes. In the first experiment to investigate cortisol responses during angry rumination, participants were provoked and induced to engage in self-focused rumination, provocation-focused rumination, or distraction. Consistent with social threat theory, self-focused rumination maintained high levels of cortisol following provocation, whereas provocation-focused rumination and distraction facilitated decreases in cortisol. However, even within the provocation-focused rumination condition, adopting an emotionally reactive, self-immersed perspective was associated with higher levels of cortisol as were thoughts about the self. Individual differences in displaced aggression but not general aggression were also positively associated with cortisol levels in the provocation-focused condition. The present findings shed light on rumination styles and cortisol responses in ways that may have long-term consequences for health and well-being.

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Notes

  1. Disagreement over one case was resolved via discussion.

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Acknowledgments

This research was supported by the Australian Research Council’s Discovery Projects funding scheme (DP0985182). We thank Michelle Moulds for comments on an earlier draft of this article.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Psychology, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, 2052, Australia

    Thomas F. Denson & Emma C. Fabiansson

  2. Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

    J. David Creswell

  3. California State University, Long Beach, CA, USA

    William C. Pedersen

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  1. Thomas F. Denson
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  2. Emma C. Fabiansson
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Correspondence to Thomas F. Denson.

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Denson, T.F., Fabiansson, E.C., Creswell, J.D. et al. Experimental effects of rumination styles on salivary cortisol responses. Motiv Emot 33, 42–48 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11031-008-9114-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11031-008-9114-0

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