The effects of defensiveness and hostility on cardiovascular reactivity during an anger -recall interview

Research has demonstrated an inconsistent relationship between hostility and cardiovascular reactivity (CVR). This inconsistency may be related to a failure to utilize interpersonal stressor tasks or to consider hostility in combination with other personality traits (e.g., defensiveness). This study investigated defensiveness and hostility as predictors of CVR during an interpersonal stressor task, an anger-recall interview (ARI). Individuals high on both traits were expected to display greater CVR to the interview than individuals scoring high on only one or neither of these traits.;The present study also investigated the relationship between pain and anger. Both clinical and laboratory studies have demonstrated that pain can increase anger arousal. It was predicted that participants completing a pain task prior to the interview would display greater reactivity than the participants in the reverse condition. Participants were 108 healthy undergraduate students at Ohio University.;Participants completed the Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale and the Cook-Medley Hostility Scale. Brachial and digital systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), and heart rate (HR) were recorded during a ten-minute baseline, a five-minute ischemic pain task, and a five-minute ARI.;Six regression analyses were performed to examine defensiveness, hostility, and the interaction of these two variables as predictors of the six measures (three brachial and three digital) measures of CVR. Higher scores on the interaction variable predicted lower digital SBP reactivity to the interview, R2 change = .06; F change (1,94) = 8.77, p < .01. The interaction variable also predicted lower DBP reactivity to the interview, R2 change = .04; F change (1,94) = 6.72, p < .05. Higher scores on defensiveness predicted lower brachial DBP to the ARI, R2 change = .04; F change (1,88) = 4.30, p < .05. These findings suggest that defensiveness and hostility were effective in predicting CVR to an interpersonal stressor; however, the relationships were not in the expected direction.;As predicted, digital SBP and DBP reactivity was higher in the group of participants completing the pain task prior to the anger interview. There was a similar but non-significant trend with brachial BP measures.