Decreased cortisol response to awakening is associated with cognitive vulnerability to depression in a nonclinical sample of young adults.

Full Abstract

Due to its high intraindividual stability, the cortisol awakening response (CAR) may be regarded as a trait measure of the dynamics of the HPA-axis activity. The present study aimed at investigating associations of the CAR with rumination as a cognitive vulnerability marker for depression assessed by both a trait measure and by experimental manipulation. After induction of sad mood by viewing a sad sequence of a movie, 42 healthy university students were randomly induced to either ruminatively self-focus on their feelings or to distract themselves from their mood by concentrating on respective text cards for 8min. Trait rumination and distraction were measured by the Response Styles Questionnaire (RSQ) at baseline (T0), while current mood was recorded before (T1) and after (T2) the mood induction as well as after the rumination/distraction induction (T3) using the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS). Basal saliva cortisol levels were measured independently on a different day. After mood induction, levels of mood were lowered significantly. Participants subsequently induced to ruminate kept their negative mood whereas participants induced to distract themselves showed a reduction in negative mood. Self-focused trait rumination amplified low mood in both induction conditions. A decreased CAR was associated with self-focused rumination and with less improvement of sad mood after induced distraction. We conclude that the two variables apparently share specific vulnerability qualities towards depression by hampering the adaptive shift of attention to external cues during dysphoric moods, probably involving lowered disinhibition of task-irrelevant negative emotional processing. The present study provided first indications of a possible relationship between a cognitive vulnerability marker for depression and characteristics of basal neuroendocrine activity regarding their association with the course of experimentally induced dysphoric mood.

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Author information

Author/s: Kuehner, Christine (C); Holzhauer, Susanne (S); Huffziger, Silke (S);

Affiliation: Research Group Longitudinal and Intervention Research, Central Institute of Mental Health, P.O.Box 122120, 68072 Mannheim, Germany. Christine.Kuehner(-atsign-)zi-mannheim.de

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Journal Article; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

Journal: Psychoneuroendocrinology (Psychoneuroendocrinology), published in England. (Language: eng)

Reference: 2007-Feb; vol 32 (issue 2) : pp 199-209

Dates: Created 2007/02/23; Completed 2007/04/16;

PMID: 17291694, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 12/26/2008)

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MeSH headings (categories)

This article was linked to the MESH Headings shown below.

Adaptation, Psychological
Adult
Affect - physiology
Cognition - physiology
Depression - metabolism; psychology
Female
Humans

Humans
Hydrocortisone - metabolism
Male
Questionnaires
Saliva - metabolism
Stress, Psychological - metabolism; psychology
Wakefulness - physiology

Associated Chemicals: Hydrocortisone (50-23-7)

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