Study Discovers Cynical Hostility Shows Potential Risk of Cardiovascular Disease

In our current situation, where the pandemic limited people's moves, going out and having some fun is controlled by the government to avoid the spread of COVID-19, staying indoors for a very long time posed risks of being moody, irritable, and demotivated.

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Too much stress can increase an individual's risk of cynical hostility. Baylor University researchers found out that cynical hostility is a potential pathway to cardiovascular disease by averting a healthy response in stress over time. In an interview with Psychiatric News, epidemiologist and research fellow at INSERM, Herman Nabi, Ph.D., added that cynical hostility is a long-term vulnerability factor depressive mood. He said that cynical hostility's personality characteristic relates to the increase of interpersonal conflicts, lower social support, and more stressful life events.

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Results of the study

According to the release by Baylor University, although hostility is connected to increased risk for heart disease, the research also explored three types of hostility, such as behavioral, emotional, and cognitive, to identify whether one is more predictive of the risk factors. In the release, the lead author of the study and doctoral candidate in psychology and neuroscience at Baylor University, Alexandra T. Tyra, said that the findings of the study reveal a greater tendency to engage in cynical hostility - which applies to us because of our present environment - can be harmful not only from the short-term stress responses but also to an individual's health in the long run.

Tyra added that the increased risk of hostility is likely due to the heightened physiological arousal to psychological stress, which can strain the cardiovascular system over time. However, Tyra stressed in the release that there is still a need for research in examining the physiological responses across multiple stress exposures to resemble life-like conditions better and assess adaptation overtime. She also emphasized in the release that when an individual is exposed to the same thing or stressor multiple times, the newness of the situation unravels, and the reaction is not that big as the first time. Although a healthy response, Tyra said that their study shows a higher tendency that cynical hostility might disturb the decrease in response over time. Resulting in the cardiovascular system reacts like the first time, which can be unhealthy in the long run.

Methods

According to the release, the researchers analyzed stress test data from 196 participants collected by Carnegie Mellon University's Laboratory to study stress, immunity, and disease. Participants underwent a series of tests psychological scale throughout the two lab sessions in measuring personality and temperament, psychological stress test five-minute arithmetic test. According to Tyra, these social and self-evaluation methods are designed to heighten the experience of stress and have been validated in prior research.

Tyra stressed in the release that the researchers could find out that emotional and behavioral hostility do not have connection stress responses. However, she said that the results do not imply that emotional and behavioral hostility is good for an individual because it may affect an individual's health in other ways.

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