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Review
. 2009 Dec;77(6):1747-76.
doi: 10.1111/j.1467-6494.2009.00599.x. Epub 2009 Sep 30.

Positive affect and psychobiological processes relevant to health

Andrew Steptoe  1 , Samantha Dockray, Jane Wardle
Affiliations
Review

Positive affect and psychobiological processes relevant to health

Andrew Steptoe et al. J Pers. 2009 Dec.

Abstract

Empirical evidence suggests that there are marked associations between positive psychological states and health outcomes, including reduced cardiovascular disease risk and increased resistance to infection. These observations have stimulated the investigation of behavioral and biological processes that might mediate protective effects. Evidence linking positive affect with health behaviors has been mixed, though recent cross-cultural research has documented associations with exercising regularly, not smoking, and prudent diet. At the biological level, cortisol output has been consistently shown to be lower among individuals reporting positive affect, and favorable associations with heart rate, blood pressure, and inflammatory markers such as interleukin-6 have also been described. Importantly, these relationships are independent of negative affect and depressed mood, suggesting that positive affect may have distinctive biological correlates that can benefit health. At the same time, positive affect is associated with protective psychosocial factors such as greater social connectedness, perceived social support, optimism, and preference for adaptive coping responses. Positive affect may be part of a broader profile of psychosocial resilience that reduces risk of adverse physical health outcomes.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Proportion of young adults in Western Europe and the United States (solid line), Central and Eastern Europe (dashed line), and Pacific Asian countries (dotted line) reporting not smoking, using sunscreen, exercising regularly, and eating fruit daily in relation to life satisfaction. Adapted from Grant et al. (2009).
Figure 2
Figure 2
Mean cortisol sampled on waking and 30 min and 60 min later in young men divided on the basis of EMA assessments into low (solid line) and high (dotted line) positive affect groups. Values are adjusted for age, BMI, time of waking, and negative affect. Error bars are standard error of the mean. Adapted from Steptoe et al. (2007)
Figure 3
Figure 3
Mean power in the high frequency (0.15–0.40 Hz) waveband of the power spectrum of heart rate variability in normalized units (nu) in patients reporting high (solid bars) and low (stippled bars) positive affect. The 24-hr monitoring period began at 9:00 a.m. and is divided into five time segments. Values are adjusted statistically for age, gender, cardiovascular disease status, and use of medications, including beta-blockade. Error bars are standard error of the mean. Adapted from Bhattacharyya et al. (2008).
Figure 4
Figure 4
Mean plasma fibrinogen sampled at baseline (base), immediately following challenging behavioral tasks (tasks), and 45-min posttasks (recovery) in participants in the highest (solid line) and lowest (dashed line) of a cohort of 209 individuals. Values are adjusted for age, gender, grade of employment, smoking, BMI, and hematocrit. Adapted from Steptoe et al. (2005).
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