(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2023-04-26)
Hughes, MacKenzie L.
Daily stressor exposure has been linked to poorer cognitive functioning, but less is known about the exact mechanisms underlying the relationship. Stressor-related increases in negative affect (NA) and unconstructive repetitive thoughts (URTs) may play a role in explaining why individuals experience more everyday memory lapses on days with stressor exposure. This study investigated correlates of NA and URTs as time-varying constructs and their role in the relationship between stressor exposure and memory functioning. Publicly available daily diary data from the Midlife Development in the United States Refresher 1 sample were analyzed. For eight consecutive days, 716 adults ages 25-75 years old (Mage = 48.16, SD = 12.57) reported their daily experiences via telephone interviews. Multilevel structural equation modeling was used to examine the indirect effect of daily stressor exposure on the frequency of everyday memory lapses through three types of NA (sadness, anxiety, anger) and URTs between- and within-persons. Results highlight important differences in the relationship between stressor exposure and everyday memory functioning at both levels of analysis. Whereas interindividual results suggest URTs mediate the relationship between average stressor exposure and everyday memory lapses, intraindividual results suggest both daily URTs and anxiety mediate the relationship between daily stressor exposure and everyday memory lapses. Additionally, the intraindividual effect of stressors on memory lapses through daily anxiety is stronger in young adults and people high in trait neuroticism whereas the effect through URTs is stronger in people with low executive functioning. Findings extend our understanding of the dynamic relationship between daily stressors and cognitive functioning by shedding light on for whom and under what circumstances memory lapses occur within the context of everyday life.
(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2021-03-04)
Hughes, MacKenzie L.
Identifying individual differences that buffer or exacerbate physiological reactivity to stressors can have important implications for health and well-being. This study focused on the roles perceived life stress, perceived stress reactivity, age, and cognitive ability have on within-person and between-person associations between naturally occurring stressors and cortisol and alpha-amylase activity. Using ecological momentary assessment for 10 consecutive days, 156 individuals ages 20-77 years old (M = 51.45, SD = 18.30) reported stressor exposures and provided seven saliva samples each day from which cortisol and alpha-amylase were assayed. Multilevel modeling was used to examine the role of daily stressors as well as each individual difference variable on the cortisol and alpha-amylase awakening response, diurnal slope, and area under the curve (i.e., total daily output). Results showed that the frequency of daily stressors had a significant positive correlation with perceived stress reactivity and cognitive ability. Within-persons, days with stressor exposures were associated with higher total daily cortisol output and steeper diurnal alpha-amylase slopes. A significant cross-level interaction showed individuals high in perceived stress reactivity who experienced days with more stressor exposure had steeper daily alpha-amylase awakening responses. Between-persons, people who experienced more stressors per day tended to have flatter diurnal alpha-amylase slopes. Individuals higher in perceived stress who experienced more stressors on average had steeper diurnal cortisol slopes. Although there were no age differences in the frequency of reported stressors, older people who experienced more stressors on average had steeper alpha-amylase awakening responses compared to younger people. All effects remained significant after controlling on neuroticism. Findings indicated that naturally occurring stressors predict within-person fluctuations as well as individual differences in cortisol and alpha-amylase activity. The Perceived Stress Reactivity Scale may predict within-person variability in alpha-amylase reactivity to stress, whereas the Perceived Stress Scale may be more closely associated with long-term changes in cortisol activity. Given these findings, higher perceived stress reactivity and perceived stress may be vulnerability factors associated with stressor exposure and reactivity, and age and cognitive ability may be resilience factors.