Reduced positive affect on days with stress exposure predicts depression, anxiety disorders, and low trait positive affect 7 years later.

Abstract

Positive emotions serve important functions for mental health. Susceptibility to reduced positive emotions in the context of stress may increase risk for poor mental health outcomes, including anxiety and depressive disorders and low overall levels of positive emotion. In an 8-day daily diary study within a larger panel study (N = 1,517), we tested whether degree of reduction in time spent experiencing positive affect on days of stress exposure predicted lower levels of positive affect and elevated risk for major depressive and anxiety disorders (generalized anxiety disorder or panic disorder) 7 years later. Bayesian multilevel structural equation modeling controlling for overall levels of affect, stress exposure, leisure time, sex, age, and past year diagnoses of depression and anxiety disorders was conducted. Participants, on average, reported less time experiencing positive affect on days with stressors compared to days without stressors. In addition, participants varied in the extent to which their time spent experiencing positive affect differed across days with and without stressors. Those who reported an especially reduced proportion of the day experiencing positive affect on days with stressors also experienced lower positive affect and greater risk for major depressive disorder and anxiety disorders 7 years later. These prospective associations suggest that between-person differences in the within-person association between stress and positive emotions have implications for mental health years later. The efficacy of preventive interventions could be improved by fostering resilience of positive emotions during common stressful events.

Improving Mentorship and Supervision during COVID-19 to Reduce Graduate Student Anxiety and Depression Aided by an Online Commercial Platform Narrative Research Group

“…Positive emotions have been shown to have an important function for mental health, with reduced positive emotions in the context of stress increasing the risk of poor mental health outcomes [7]. Mentoring and supervision, in encouraging self-direction in research, have been identified as unsurpassed in their ability to positively affect graduate students to increase their work satisfaction and fulfilment [8].…”

Reinforcement sensitivity predicts affective psychopathology via emotion regulation: Cross-sectional, longitudinal and quasi-experimental evidence

“…These patterns are also found when BIS hypersensitivity is measured directly (Gray, 1987;Leen-Feldner et al, 2004;Tull et al, 2010), especially at times of actively stressful situations (Heponiemi et al, 2003;Rackoff & Newman, 2020). On the other hand, higher levels of BAS sensitivity and extraversion predict a greater preference for most positive emotions (Khazanov et al, 2020), along with coping styles that pursue such emotions, such as positive reappraisal (Barańczuk, 2019;Carl et al, 2013;Gable et al, 2000).…”

The prevalence, incidence, prognosis and risk factors for depression and anxiety in a UK cohort during the COVID-19 pandemic

“…This demonstrates how the direct impacts of COVID-19 on life situations (e.g., loss of close others, changes in employment, financial situations and relationships) can meaningfully impacting mental health among the population. These risk factors of poor mental health were seen in evidence from both before-(23, 24) and during-COVID-19. (4) These results firstly suggest that the demand for mental healthcare might increase further post-restrictions, posing challenges for psychiatry and primary care.…”