Experience, cortisol reactivity, and the coordination of emotional responses to skydiving

Meyer, Vanessa J.; Lee, Yoojin; Böttger, Christian; Leonbacher, Uwe; Allison, Amber L.; Shirtcliff, Elizabeth A.

doi:10.3389/fnhum.2015.00138

Cited by 37 publications

(52 citation statements)

References 48 publications

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“…There was a greater increase in cortisol levels in response to stress in the men than in the women, as reported elsewhere [56] Another report showed that experienced individuals had a lower increase in cortisol levels and faster recovery compared to those without experience [57]. Although we did not demonstrate an effect of experience, that the longer experience of the female emergency medical dispatchers may have affected the results.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 75%

Stress and salivary cortisol in emergency medical dispatchers: A randomized shifts control trial

Bedini

Bart

Weibel³

et al. 2017

PLoS ONE

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Stress at work is a public health concern. Phone operators in emergency medical dispatch centers are particularly at risk. We aimed to demonstrate that the most stressful time for emergency medical dispatchers is the shift when they receive emergency incoming calls, with cortisol as a biomarker of stress. For each emergency medical dispatcher, we measured outcomes over a control day and during three types of shift: Incoming emergency call, Dispatch and Re-assessment. The pattern of shifts was randomized. Saliva was sampled every 15 minutes for 2 hours, i.e. 6 consecutive times, starting 15 minutes after the first life-and-death incoming emergency call between 2 and 5 pm during three types of shift. We measured saliva cortisol every 2 hours over a control day, from 7am to 9pm. Perceived stress was assessed by a visual analog scale. We recruited 22 phone operators aged 36.4+/-10.8 years old (14 women and 8 men). Cortisol values were higher during the Incoming emergency call shift than during the Dispatch (p = .04) and Re-assessment (p = .04) shifts. The increase in cortisol levels was greater in men than in women (p = .009). There were no differences between control values and those of the three shifts. The kinetics of cortisol increased with greater perceived stress overall (p < .001) and for each type of shift (Incoming emergency call, p = .02; Dispatch p = .03; Re-assessment: p < .001). The kinetics of cortisol in response to incoming emergency calls was greater when the call was an absolute emergency (p = .03), and also tended to further increase when a subsequent absolute incoming emergency call was received (p = 0.07). In conclusion, the incoming emergency call shift carries particular risk for dispatchers, who have greater perceived stress and a greater increase in cortisol levels.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 75%

Stress and salivary cortisol in emergency medical dispatchers: A randomized shifts control trial

Bedini

Bart

Weibel³

et al. 2017

PLoS ONE

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“…Our findings are conclusive in showing that thrill experiences like a tandem skydive should not be suggested as a possible treatment for anhedonia, as the skydive did not provide the hypothesized motivational boost to kick start the implementation of the lifestyle advice. Possibly, a tandem skydive is only effective in increasing immediate pleasure and motivation, as was found in previous studies (Meyer et al, 2015;Wang & Tsien, 2011), and does not have a persistent effect. Our lack of effects may indicate that a skydive is not effective in decreasing anhedonia.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 52%

“…Even though it is considered to be safe, falling from a great height evokes a substantial fight-flight response in virtually all individuals (Hare, Wetherell, & Smith, 2013). Physiologically, skydiving results in increases in heart rate, blood pressure, and alpha-amylase and cortisol levels (Chatterton et al, 1997;Hare et al, 2013;Meyer et al, 2015). Psychologically, individuals experience extreme fear before and during the free fall experience (Hare et al, 2013), followed by euphoria afterwards (Meyer et al, 2015).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Physiologically, skydiving results in increases in heart rate, blood pressure, and alpha-amylase and cortisol levels (Chatterton et al, 1997;Hare et al, 2013;Meyer et al, 2015). Psychologically, individuals experience extreme fear before and during the free fall experience (Hare et al, 2013), followed by euphoria afterwards (Meyer et al, 2015). This contrast in emotions can be explained by Solomon's opponent process theory of acquired motivation (Solomon, 1980), which states that humans automatically contrast extreme emotions, such as fear and euphoria.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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An Exploratory Randomized Controlled Trial of Personalized Lifestyle Advice and Tandem Skydives as a Means to Reduce Anhedonia

et al. 2017

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Anhedonia is a major public health concern and has proven particularly difficult to counteract. It has been hypothesized that anhedonia can be deterred by engagement in rewarding social and physical events. The aims of the present study were to examine (1) the effects of personalized lifestyle advice based on observed individual patterns of lifestyle factors and experienced pleasure in anhedonic young adults; and (2) whether a tandem skydive can enhance the motivation to carry out the recommended lifestyle changes. Participants (N = 69; M = 21.5, SD = 2.0; 79.7% female) were selected through an online screening survey among young adults. Inclusion criteria were persistent anhedonia and willingness to perform a tandem skydive. Participants filled out questionnaires on their smartphones for 2 consecutive months (3 times per day). After the first month, they were randomly assigned to one of three groups: (1) no intervention, (2) lifestyle advice, and (3) lifestyle advice and tandem skydive. The momentary questionnaire data were analyzed using interrupted time series analyses (ITSA) in a multilevel model and monthly pleasure and depression questionnaires by repeated measures ANOVA. No group differences were found in monthly depression and pleasure scores, but the momentary data showed higher positive affect (PA) and pleasure ratings in the month following the intervention in the two intervention groups than in the control group. The tandem skydive did not have any effects above the effects of the lifestyle advice. Our results indicate that providing personalized lifestyle advice to anhedonic young adults can be an effective way to increase PA and pleasure.

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“… 22 However, the peak cortisol concentration before sky-diving is not different between experienced versus less experienced sky-divers 9 where the pattern of cortisol reactivity (eg, quick rise and reduction) is distinct. 10 Therefore, it is anticipated that age and experience might play a greater role in the pattern of cortisol reactivity than in the magnitude of the cortisol response.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The anticipatory stress response to sport competition; a systematic review with meta-analysis of cortisol reactivity

Paridon

Timmis

Nevison

et al. 2017

BMJ Open Sport Exerc Med

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ObjectiveAthletes anticipating sport competition regularly experience distinct emotional and physiological responses as a result of the expected psychosocial and physical stress. Specifically, cortisol, an indicator of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis activation, prepares the athlete for the psychological and physiological demands of competition. The objective of this meta-analysis is to analyse the magnitude of the anticipatory cortisol response in athletes preparing to participate in sport competition and to examine the influence of gender, level of competition and data collection time.DesignSystematic review with meta-analysis.Data sourcesFour electronic databases were searched to March 2017: PubMed, PsycINFO, SPORTDiscus and Scopus.Eligibility criteria for selecting studies(1) Athletes participating in real sport competition;(2) salivary cortisol concentration collected before competition in addition to baseline sample(s);(3) original research article published in English language.ResultsData from 25 studies provided 27 effect sizes. A significant anticipatory cortisol response of g=0.85, p<0.001 was identified. Males had a stronger trend for greater cortisol reactivity (g=1.07) than females (g=0.56, p=0.07). Females and athletes competing at international level did not demonstrate a significant anticipatory stress response. There were no significant differences between level of competition, type of sport or time of competition. Meta-regression indicated that the anticipatory cortisol response is greater when assessed closer to the start of competition (Q=6.85, p=0.009).Summary/conclusionThe anticipatory cortisol response before sport competition reflects moderate cortisol reactivity that prepares athletes optimally for the demands of sport competition via the influence on cognitive processes and attentional control. However, both female athletes and international competitors did not demonstrate a significant anticipatory cortisol response, possibly due to differences in appraisal of the stress of sport competition.

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Experience, cortisol reactivity, and the coordination of emotional responses to skydiving

Cited by 37 publications

References 48 publications

Stress and salivary cortisol in emergency medical dispatchers: A randomized shifts control trial

Stress and salivary cortisol in emergency medical dispatchers: A randomized shifts control trial

An Exploratory Randomized Controlled Trial of Personalized Lifestyle Advice and Tandem Skydives as a Means to Reduce Anhedonia

The anticipatory stress response to sport competition; a systematic review with meta-analysis of cortisol reactivity

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