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The Society for Psychophysiological Research and accompanying journal, Psychophysiology, have increasingly incorporated diversity and inclusion into their posted values, conference programming, and science. Much of this focus on equity, diversity, and inclusion work has occurred since 2010. The current review content analyzed the articles published in Psychophysiology from 2010 through 2020 to determine if SPR and Psychophysiology's commitment to diversity and inclusion has resulted in changes to reporting and analysis of participant demographics. Demographic reporting practices were compared to APA reporting standards and the use of demographic variables assessed according to the guidance proffered in the introduction to Psychophysiology's 2016 Special Issue on Diversity and Representation. Results of the content analysis indicated near perfect reporting of biological sex and frequent reporting of average age. Age range and educational attainment were reported in over half of studies, while race or ethnicity were reported in only 17%. Socioeconomic status, income, gender identity, and sexual orientation were almost never reported. In over 60% of studies at least one major demographic variable was reported, but was not used in preliminary, main, or supplementary analyses as a covariate, moderator, or otherwise. SPR and Psychophysiology should continue advocating for increased reporting of major demographic variables and ethical analysis of demographic modulation of various psychophysiological mechanisms. We provide a preliminary template of reporting standards and call for the inclusion of more open science practices by psychophysiologists. Content analyses can help a field understand the impact of its policies or stated values. This paper outlines the reporting and use of demographic variables in articles published in Psychophysiology to trace the impact of SPR's commitment to DEI. Results indicate continued efforts are needed to diversify samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Acute stress is often conceptualized as a response pattern that activates the fight-or-flight response via the sympathetic nervous system (SNS). However, other stress response patterns can manifest as well, such as parasympathetic nervous system (PNS) shutdown, and SNS-PNS coactive hypervigilance. Each response pattern engages many dimensions, including physiological, emotional, and behavioral. As stress unfolds over time, these patterns can change to adjust to the changing nature of the stressor. This proof of concept study introduces novel time series methodology to track the multidimensional patterns of acute stress. The defense cascade provides a model with which to understand and predict response patterns over the time course of an acute stressor. The time series methodology introduced in this study holds promise for identifying mechanisms of change in therapy and clinical settings. • Acute stress can trigger a range of response patterns. • The defense cascade offers a model of acute stress responses. • Virtual reality provides a dynamic threat stimulus to measure stress responses. • Sympathetic, parasympathetic, and emotion indices capture multidimensional patterns. • Time series analysis helps identify changes in response strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research on the autonomic specificity of emotion has spanned decades, yet the findings of this research are still highly debated. Although many studies have explored the autonomic specificity of emotions, few have concurrently explored the influence by which the induction methods themselves have had in directing autonomic change. The current study was conducted to assess whether the methods for emotion elicitation could be meaningfully captured by multivariate pattern classification techniques that have been previously used to explore autonomic specificity of emotion. This aim was achieved by using three separate emotion-elicitation methods to elicit five separate emotions. A sample of 64 college-aged students watched film clips, read imagery scripts, and recalled personal memories for five emotion states. Using multivariate pattern classification analysis, the evidence from the current study lends further support for autonomic specificity of emotion, but also highlights the role that the specific induction technique contributes to autonomic changes that accompany emotions in the laboratory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The startle response (SR) has a close relationship with stress responses. Startle modification (SRM) has been widely used to study stress disorders (e.g., posttraumatic stress disorder). The framework of the behavioral inhibition and activation systems (BIS/BAS) has been thought to correspond with withdrawal and approach motivational processes underlying affective SRM and can influence stress reactivity. Vagally-mediated cardiac activity as indexed by heart rate variability (HRV) has been associated with SRM and regulatory processes during stress. In the present study, the influence of individual differences in the BIS/BAS and resting HRV on affective SRM were examined. Eighty-six subjects viewed affective pictures while acoustic SR stimuli were delivered. Individual differences in motivation were measured by the BIS/BAS scales. The magnitude of SR was assessed as electromyographic activity of the SR eyeblink during pictures of different valences. Resting HRV was derived from electrocardiography. In contrast to previous studies, the present results showed that startle inhibition and potentiation were related to BAS and HRV, but not to BIS. There was also an interaction of BAS and HRV, indicating that the relationship between HRV and SRM strengthened as BAS scores decreased. The present findings suggest that BAS may relate to both withdrawal and approach, and trait stress reactivity is influenced by BAS and cardiac vagal activity. In addition, BAS moderates the relationship between cardiac vagal activity and SRM. These findings have both theoretical and practical implications for the study of SRM, stress disorders, and health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research shows that when a gender stereotype is made salient and the target of the stereotype is asked to perform in the stereotyped domain, targets of the stereotype often perform at a lower level compared to situations when the stereotype was not made salient. The noticeable absence of female faculty and students in math and science departments at coed universities throughout the United States may increase the belief in gender stereotypes and discourage women from pursuing careers in these fields. Contact with counterstereotypical exemplars, such as female science experts, decreases belief in gender stereotypes and increases women's motivation to pursue careers in science. Thus, the present study examined whether imagining an interpersonal interaction with a counterstereotypical exemplar removes the physiological and performance effects of stereotype threat. Subjects were asked to imagine either a nature scene or meeting a female math professor, and were also assigned to either a control or stereotype threat condition. Imagination was used because studies have shown it to be an effective method of simulating interpersonal contact. Subjects were 139 young women (mean age 19 years) recruited from a pool of undergraduates. Results showed that the stereotype threat manipulation elicited greater vagal withdrawal and poorer working memory capacity during the n-back, and that vagal withdrawal was attenuated when the stereotype threat manipulation was preceded by a brief imagined interaction with a counterstereotypical exemplar. This study provides novel evidence that exposure to counterstereotypical exemplars can diminish cardiovascular reactions to salient information about threatening gender stereotypes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Effortful control (EC) and ego-resiliency (often shortened to resiliency) may similarly encode adaptability to stress. Differentiation of these traits in terms of autonomic control may highlight each construct's relative mechanisms in stress regulation. In the current study, 84 subjects self-reported levels of EC and resiliency and then were exposed to 3 mental stressors (mental arithmetic, speech preparation, verbal fluency), during which heart rate variability (HRV) was assessed to index cardiac vagal influences. Interbeat intervals (IBIs) were also collected, while pre-ejection period (PEP) and left ventricular ejection time (LVET) were assessed as sympathetic indices. Multiple regression was used to explore the extent to which autonomic control was moderated by each EC and resiliency. Results indicate that EC was related to concordance between IBI and HRV, along with negative emotion. Resiliency was more associated with coherence between IBI and PEP, and with positive emotion. Findings suggest that regulatory processes play a role in EC's adaptability to stress, while resiliency may involve approach motivation in stress control. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Asymmetry in central nervous system ( CNS) control of autonomic nervous system ( ANS) activity, a widely debated topic, was investigated via lateralized presentation of two ANS challenges: cold pressor, which elicits primarily sympathetic activation, and facial cooling, a predominantly vagal task. Seventy-three university students (37 female) engaged in these tasks while cardiovascular and electrodermal measures were acquired. Compared to right-side cold pressor, left cold pressor elicited generally larger cardiac, blood pressure, and skin conductance responses, but did not evoke asymmetric changes in heart rate variability. Facial cooling elicited significant increases in vagally mediated heart rate variability, but they were also not lateralized. These findings are consistent with reports of right hemisphere dominance in sympathetic regulation, but indicate that CNS vagal control is relatively symmetric. These results are framed in terms of polyvagal theory and neurovisceral integration two influential models of CNS-ANS integration in the service of adaptive environmental engagement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] Redundancy analysis applied to physiological and self-reported data from emotion induction study. [•] Results indicate that approximately 27–28% of the variance in self-reported affect can be explained by autonomic variables, and vice versa. [•] These levels of explained variance suggest substantial coherence between feelings and physiology when all the constraints of the study are considered. [•] Results suggest that the low levels of emotional coherence that have often been reported in the literature underestimate coherence in basic emotion contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Stress modulates feedback-based learning, a process that has been implicated in declining mental function in aging and mental disorders. While acute physical and psychosocial stressors have been used interchangeably in studies on feedback-based learning, the two types of stressors involve distinct physiological and psychological processes. Whether the two types of stressors differentially influence feedback processing remains unclear. The present study compared the effects of physical and psychosocial stressors on feedback-based learning. Ninety-six subjects (Mage = 19.11 years; 50 female) completed either a cold pressor task (CPT) or mental arithmetic task (MAT), as the physical or psychosocial stressor, while electrocardiography and blood pressure were measured to assess cardiovascular stress reactivity (CVR). Self-ratings on the emotional valence of the stressors were also obtained. A probabilistic learning task was given prior to and after the stressors. Accuracy in selecting positive (Go accuracy) and avoiding negative stimuli (No-go accuracy) were recorded as learning outcomes. Repeated measures ANOVA and multiple regressions were used to compare the effects of two stressors and examine the effects of CVR and valence on the learning outcomes. The results showed that although the effects of CPT and MAT on feedback processing were not different, CVR and valence influenced Go and No-go accuracy, respectively. The results suggest that stress-modulated feedback-based learning involves multiple pathways and underscore the link between CVR and reward sensitivity. The findings have clinical implications and may contribute to a better understanding of human behavioral systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Slow breathing is used to induce cardiovascular resonance, a state associated with health benefits, but it can also increase tidal volume and associated dyspnea (respiratory discomfort). Dyspnea may be decreased by induced positive affect. In this study, 71 subjects (36 men, M = 20 years) breathed at 6 breaths per min. In condition one, subjects paced their breathing by inhaling and exhaling as a vertical bar moved up and down. In condition two, breathing was paced by a timed slideshow of positive images; subjects inhaled during a black screen and exhaled as the image appeared. Cardiac, respiratory, and self-reported dyspnea and emotional indices were recorded. Tidal volume and the intensity and unpleasantness of dyspnea were reduced when paced breathing was combined with pleasant images. These results show that positive affect can reduce dyspnea during slow paced breathing, and may have applications for induced cardiovascular resonance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: “What is an emotion?” William James''s seminal paper in Mind (1884) proposed the idea that physiological and behavioral responses precede subjective experience in emotions that are marked by “distinct bodily expression.” This notion has broadly inspired the investigation of emotion-specific autonomic nervous system activity, a research topic with great longevity. The trajectory of this literature is traced through its major theoretical challenges from the Cannon–Bard, activation, and Schachter–Singer theories, through its rich empirical history in the field of psychophysiology. Although these studies are marked by various findings, the overall trend of the research supports the notion of autonomic specificity for basic emotions. The construct of autonomic specificity continues to influence a number of core theoretical issues in affective science, such as the existence of basic or ‘natural kinds’ of emotion, the structure of affective space, the cognition–emotion relationship, and the function of emotion. Moreover, James''s classic paper, which stimulated the emergence of psychology from philosophy and physiology in the latter nineteenth century, remains a dynamic force in contemporary emotion research. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Background: Hostility and anger have been attributed as psychosocial risk factors for coronary heart disease. Heightened cardiovascular reactivity (CVR), and poor recovery, to provocative stressors are thought to hasten this risk. Purpose: To examine the relationship between hostility and anger inhibition (AI), and the moderating situational influences of harassment and evaluation, in predicting CVR and recovery to mental arithmetic (MA) stress using a multiple regression approach. Methods: 48 male undergraduate students engaged in the following 3 minute tasks during recording of the electrocardiogram, impedance cardiography, and blood pressure: baseline, MA, and evaluation. Hostility and AI were assessed with the Cook-Medley Hostility Scale and the Speilberger Anger In subscale, respectively. Results: An interaction between hostility and AI showed high diastolic blood pressure reactivity to the MA task among hostile anger inhibitors. Harassment did not modify this effect. However, harasser evaluation predicted prolonged systolic blood pressure (SBP) responding among men scoring high in AI, and facilitated SBP recovery among those scoring low on AI. Conclusions: The findings highlight the interactive influences of AI and hostility in predicting CVR to stress and underscore the importance of recovery assessments in understanding the potentially pathogenic associations of these constructs. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Worry has been related to delayed stress recovery and cardiovascular disease risk. Cardiovascular responses to a range of laboratory tasks were examined in this study of high and low worriers. Undergraduate women were recruited with the Penn State Worry Questionnaire to form low (n =19) and high (n =22) worry groups. These individuals engaged in six laboratory tasks (orthostatic stress, supine rest, hand cold pressor, mental arithmetic, and worry and relaxation imagery) while heart rate (HR), HR spectral analysis, impedance cardiography, and blood pressure were acquired. The only significant group difference found was a consistently greater HR across tasks in high worriers (p <.05). No group by condition interactions emerged. High trait worry in healthy young women appears to be marked by elevated HR in the absence of autonomic abnormalities. These findings are discussed relative to the literature on worry, with particular reference to its health implications. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Sensory gating refers to the preattentional filtering of irrelevant sensory stimuli. This process may be impaired in schizotypy, which is a trait also associated with cigarette smoking. This association may in part stem from the positive effects of smoking on sensory gating and attention. The relationship among sensory gating, smoking, schizotypy and attention was examined in 39 undergraduates. Sensory gating was indexed by the P50 suppression paradigm, and attention was measured by the Attention Network Test (ANT) and a Stroop task. Results showed sensory gating to be positively correlated with performances on ANT and Stroop reflected in better alerting, less conflict between stimuli, faster reaction time, and greater accuracy. Smokers showed a pattern of a greater number of significant correlations between sensory gating and attention in comparison to non-smokers, although the relationship between sensory gating and attention was not affected by schizotypy. The majority of significant correlations were found in the region surrounding Cz. These findings are discussed relative to the potential modifying influence of smoking and schizotypy on sensory gating and attention. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Men have a greater risk of schizophrenia than women, and are generally heavier smokers than women. Smoking has been viewed as a form of self-medication in both schizophrenia and schizotypy, to the degree that it helps control negative symptoms and enhance cognitive function. To identify how smoking affects men and women differently on schizotypal traits and cognitive failures, the effects of gender and smoking on schizotypy traits and cognitive failures were assessed in 613 undergraduate men and women (mean age=19.0years), using Schizotypal Personality Questionnaire (SPQ) and Cognitive Failures Questionnaire (CFQ). Participants were divided into non-smokers, daily smokers, and non-daily smokers. In general, men showed more Interpersonal and Disorganized Deficits (SPQ) and Names Lapses (CFQ; failure to recall a name), than women. Independent of gender, daily smoking was associated with greater Cognitive-Perceptual Deficits (SPQ) and more Names Lapses, and non-daily smoking was positively correlated with memory (CFQ). In addition, non-daily smoking was associated with increased Interpersonal Deficits in men but decreased scores on this scale in women. Support for the self-medication model of smoking was found among daily smoking, but the relationship among non-daily smoking, schizotypy, cognitive failures, and gender was complex, bearing closer scrutiny in future research. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The autonomic characteristics of hostility and defensiveness were assessed in 55 male undergraduates based on composite Cook Medley Hostility (Chost) and Marlowe Crowne Social Desirability (MC) scores to create 4 groups: Defensive Hostile (DH; high MC, high Chost), High Hostile (HH; low MC, high Chost), Defensive (Def; high MC, low Chost) and Low Hostile (LH; low MC, low Chost). All subjects engaged in a video game (VG) and hand cold pressor (CP) task. Cardiovascular responses in DH subjects were predicted to show enhanced sympathetic α and β-adrenergic activity and the least vagal control compared to others across tasks. DH and LH men showed significant heart rate reactivity to the CP task compared to HH men. LH men showed significant reductions in high frequency power (vagal assessment) to the tasks compared to HH men. Future studies may employ harassment techniques and include the factors of gender and ethnicity in their assessments. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Research on heart rate variability (HRV), cardiac vagal tone, and their relationship to anxiety is reviewed in the context of the autonomic flexibility and neurovisceral integration models of adaptive functioning. These perspectives address the qualities of response flexibility and inhibition across multiple levels, incorporating central and autonomic nervous system mechanisms of environmental engagement, as well as principles derived from non-linear dynamics. These models predict reduced HRV and vagal tone in anxiety, and the literature has generally supported this prediction, with exceptions as are noted. State, trait, and clinical expressions of anxiety are considered, along with the clinical, methodological, and theoretical implications of this research. A portrayal of anxiety as a restricted response range across biological and behavioral realms of functioning is drawn from the literature on anxiety and HRV. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The present study addressed autonomic nervous system (ANS) patterning during experimentally manipulated emotion. Film clips previously shown to induce amusement, anger, contentment, disgust, fear and sadness, in addition to a neutral control film, were presented to 34 college-aged subjects while skin conductance, blood pressure and the electrocardiogram (ECG) were recorded, as was self-reported affect. Both mean of and mean successive difference of heart period were derived from the ECG. Pattern classification analyses revealed emotion-specific autonomic patterning for all emotion conditions except disgust; all emotion conditions exhibited significant patterning using self-report. Discriminant function analysis was used to describe the location of discrete emotions within dimensional affective space using both self-report and ANS variables. Findings suggest that the dimensions of valence and activation portray the structure of self-reported emotion, but that valence is more accurately described as approach–withdrawal when applied to autonomic responses during discrete emotions. The findings provide further support for the existence of emotion-specific ANS activity, and are consistent with a hybrid discrete–dimensional model of affective space. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

A study was conducted to expand the conventional view of cardiovascular (CV) reactivity by using the idiodynamic paradigm for investigation of individuals. Patterns of autonomic CV regulation were assessed in six subjects across diverse laboratory tasks on three separate occasions. Individual CV profiles were derived from these data with P-technique factor analysis, and then group aggregated with chain P-technique. The composite pattern suggested a three-component solution consisting of cardiac rate, cardiac contractility, and peripheral resistance factors. Individual profiles were compared to the composite pattern; these profiles differed in the number of components derived, percentage variance explained by these components, and relative dominance of specific CV components. A hypothesis that emerged is that the subjects differed in the complexity of CV control. It appears that the idiodynamic framework, combined with novel research designs and statistical methods, may help expand the view of CV reactivity beyond the traditional unitary view as response magnitude. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is increasing evidence that the behavior of living systems can be conceptualized as a self-organizing dynamical system. Moreover, evidence suggests that inhibitory processes give these systems the flexibility that is necessary for efficient functioning in the face of changing environmental demands. The process of sensitization can be conceived as a breakdown of inhibitory neural processes that can lead to maladaptive, perseverative behavior. In this paper we describe a model of inhibition and sensitization from a dynamical systems perspective. We show that inhibition is important for adaptive behavior across a number of levels of system functioning. Using our work on attention, emotion, and anxiety disorders we show the importance of both central - for example gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA)-ergic - and peripheral - for example heart rate variability (HRV) - inhibitory processes and how they may be linked by a network of neural structures that guide the organism from one state of relative stability to another. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Presents a study which investigated the context of two studies on memory bias in generalized anxiety disorder (GAD). Methodology; Results; Discussion.

Details a study conducted to bridge the attentional and physiological underpinnings of generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) by examining phasic heart period responses to cued threat and nonthreat stimuli. Cardiac-autonomic underpinnings of GAD appearing to rigidly maintain precognitive defensive responses against threat.

Caffeine substantially affects cardiovascular functioning, yet wide variability exists in caffeine control procedures in cardiovascular reactivity research. This study was conducted in order to identify a minimal abstention duration in habitual coffee consumers whereby cardiovascular reactivity is unconfounded by caffeine; Six hours (caffeine's average half-life) was hypothesized. Thirty-nine subjects (mean age: 20.9; 20 women) completed a repeated measures study involving hand cold pressor (CP) and memory tasks. Caffeinated and decaffeinated coffee were administered. The following cardiovascular indices were acquired during pre-task, task, and post-task epochs prior to coffee intake, 30 min-, and six hours post-intake: Heart rate (HR), high-frequency heart rate variability (HF-HRV), root mean squared successive differences (RMSSD), systolic and diastolic blood pressures (SBP, DBP), mean arterial pressure (MAP), pre-ejection period (PEP), left ventricular ejection time (LVET), systemic vascular resistance (SVR), systemic vascular resistance index (SVRI). Results support the adequacy of a six-hour abstention in controlling for caffeine-elicited cardiovascular changes. The current study offers a suggested guideline for caffeine abstention duration in cardiovascular research in psychophysiology. Consistent practice in caffeine abstention protocols would promote validity and reliability across such studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Many blood pressure (BP) methods common in psychosomatic research have salient limitations, including subject discomfort, sampling limits, and measurement validity concerns. This study examines the utility of the Vasotrac APM 205 BP monitor, which works via continuous nonocclusive compression and decompression of the radial artery, primarily in regard to its intrusiveness.Method: Perceptions of the device were rated by 62 university students (31 female, 31 male) in a study involving continuous BP monitoring during an affect induction and film viewing. The rating scale included items assessing how comfortable and distracting the device was, and various sensation descriptors that were combined to yield compression and pain indices.Results: Comfort, distractibility, and compression ratings clustered around the neutral midpoint of the 11-point scale (overall M=4.7), and pain trended toward the not at all anchor (M=2.2).Conclusions: Responses indicate the Vasotrac is nonintrusive during extended wear. Its sampling rate far exceeds that of ausculatory and oscillometric methods, and so it may offer further reliability and validity benefits for BP measurement. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

I was greatly honored to present my mentor Julian Thayer with SPR's highest award for Distinguished Contributions to Psychophysiology at the Society's annual meeting in Quebec City in 2018. This project not only produced Julian's first publication but also set the future course for a major theme in his research: response patterning in emotion, using multiple psychophysiological indices and laboratory-based emotion inductions (Thayer & Levenson, [16]). In this tribute to Julian, I've attempted to summarize the themes and highlights of Julian's contributions to psychophysiology, which span nearly four decades. [Extracted from the article]

• Some individuals with ASD exhibit chronic autonomic hyperarousal. • This physiological state may be associated with a continuum of social and cognitive function. • Chronic biological threat in ASD is correlated with emotional and behavioral difficulties. Individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) may exhibit chronic autonomic nervous system (ANS) hyperarousal (e.g., lower respiratory sinus arrhythmia and higher heart rate) compared to their typically developing peers, reflecting a chronic biological threat response. The sustained nature of this cardiac threat suggests tonic nervous system perception of threat in safe contexts. Herein, the cardiac literature in adult and child populations with ASD is reviewed and placed within a continuum of functioning in order to inform the relationship between cardiac response and functioning in ASD. Findings from this review support the relationship between chronic autonomic hyperarousal and emotional and behavioral difficulties observed in individuals with ASD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The processing of reaction time (RT) stimulus is modulated by its timing relative to the cardiac cycle. RT stimulus processing is also influenced by task-irrelevant stimuli: a sensory stimulus speeds RT when it accompanies a cue to react in another sensory modality. Different theories have been proposed to explain this accessory stimulus effect (ASE). However, it is unclear whether the ASE interacts with the cardiac timing effect. In the present study, the relationship of the ASE, cardiac timing, and stimulus valence was examined. Fifty-two subjects performed 400 trials of a simple RT task. Images of neutral and fear faces served as visual accessory stimuli; the RT stimulus was a 75 dB tone. Electrocardiography was recorded. Visual and auditory stimuli were presented at either cardiac systole or diastole. The stimulus onset asynchrony between visual and auditory stimuli was either 0 or 75 ms. Repeated measures ANOVAs showed that cardiac timing modulated RT, but only when accessory stimuli were absent. RT was shorter when the accessory stimulus preceded the imperative stimulus with respect to simultaneous presentation. The ASE was not influenced by visual stimulus valence or cardiac timing. Results indicate that the ASE overrides cardiac timing effects, suggesting a dynamic balance between exteroceptive stimuli and interoceptive states, and highlight the importance of embodied information processing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sensorimotor responses vary as a function of the cardiac cycle phase. These effects, known as cardiac cycle time effects, have been explained by the inhibition of cardiac afferent signals on information processing. However, the validity of cardiac cycle time effects is challenged by mixed findings. Factors such as current information processing and affective context may modulate cardiac cycle time effects and account for inconsistencies in the literature. The current study examines the influence of cardiac cycle time and threatening stimuli on two aspects of sensorimotor processing, response speed and inhibition. Thirty‐four participants (Mage = 19.35 years; 29 female) completed an auditory Go/No‐go task in no face, neutral face, and fearful face conditions. Faces were presented at either cardiac diastole or systole. Participants' reaction times (RTs) during Go trials and failures in response inhibition during No‐go trials were recorded. The ex‐Gaussian model was fit to RT data in each condition deriving the parameters, mu (μ) and tau (τ), that indicate response speed and attentional lapses, respectively. Repeated measures ANOVA were used to analyze behavioral data. Results showed that cardiac systole prolonged μ but decreased τ, and that cardiac diastole reduced inhibition errors in the fearful face condition but not in other conditions. These findings indicate that cardiac timing differentially modulates sensory‐perceptual and top‐down attentional processes and cardiac timing interacts with threatening contexts to influence response inhibition. These results highlight the specificity of cardiac cycle time effects on sensorimotor processing. Heart‐brain interactions represent the mind–body relationship‐a central question in psychology. Studies showed inconsistent cardiac timing effects on sensorimotor processing, due to the lack of differentiation of various cognitive aspects. Addressing this gap, we found that the cardiac timing of stimuli interacted with affective contexts to differentially modulate attention and response inhibition. These findings highlight the specificity of heart‐brain interactions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study explored the relationship between time- and frequency-domain indices of cardiac autonomic control and 24 h blood pressure variability (BPV) in a sample of healthy men and women. Vagally mediated cardiac control was inversely related to 24 h BPV, and measures of cardiac autonomic control were better predictors of systolic BPV in men and better predictors of diastolic BPV in women. These findings may help researchers to understand the disparity in cardiovascular disease morbidity and mortality between men and women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Autonomic nervous system (ANS) specificity of emotion remains controversial in contemporary emotion research, and has received mixed support over decades of investigation. This study was designed to replicate and extend psychophysiological research, which has used multivariate pattern classification analysis (PCA) in support of ANS specificity. Forty-nine undergraduates (27 women) listened to emotion-inducing music and viewed affective films while a montage of ANS variables, including heart rate variability indices, peripheral vascular activity, systolic time intervals, and electrodermal activity, were recorded. Evidence for ANS discrimination of emotion was found via PCA with 44.6% of overall observations correctly classified into the predicted emotion conditions, using ANS variables (z =16.05, p <.001). Cluster analysis of these data indicated a lack of distinct clusters, which suggests that ANS responses to the stimuli were nomothetic and stimulus-specific rather than idiosyncratic and individual-specific. Collectively these results further confirm and extend support for the notion that basic emotions have distinct ANS signatures. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Vagally mediated heart rate variability (vmHRV) is thought to index top–down control processes in emotion regulation. According to the Generalized Unsafety Theory of Stress (GUTS), resting vmHRV indexes top–down resources that are needed to inhibit subcortical threat circuits, which is important for context‐appropriate affective responding. Although this notion has been supported by studies of affective startle (SR) modification, direct evidence that top–down resources are the linking mechanism between vmHRV and context‐appropriate affective responding has been lacking. To investigate this possible mechanism, college‐aged participants (n = 92) were recruited to complete a picture viewing task and a concurrent working memory (WM) task. Concurrent WM load was manipulated, and the auditory SR stimulus was delivered while viewing affective pictures. Electrocardiography and electromyography were recorded to assess vmHRV and SR eyeblink, respectively. Results showed that WM load attenuated affective SR modification. As expected, the attenuating effects of load on affective SR modification were stronger among low vmHRV relative to high vmHRV individuals, indicating that vmHRV is linked to context‐appropriate affective responding through the mechanism of top–down resources. These results support the GUTS and suggest that atypical affective responding among low vmHRV individuals is attributed to the lack of WM resources. Our findings highlight the relation between vmHRV and top–down resources that have been implicated in emotion regulation and contribute to a better understanding of emotion dysregulation in psychopathology. Low vagally mediated heart rate variability (vmHRV) and altered startle (SR) responding in emotion dysregulation are thought to be linked through deficient top–down control. However, no study has directly addressed this possibility. Addressing this gap, we found that reduced top–down resources interrupted affective SR modification only among individuals with low basal vmHRV. The current study offers evidence that vmHRV indexes the capacity for top–down control processes that are important for context‐appropriate emotion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study employed an ex-Gaussian model of response times (RTs) to elucidate the cognitive processes related to experimentally induced state anxiety (SA) and vagally mediated heart rate variability (vmHRV), an indicator of adaptive responses in both cognitive and affective domains. Participants (n = 110) completed a dual task composed of (i) a flanker attention and (2) working memory load task, while SA was induced by threat of noise. Electrocardiography was measured during the dual task and during four baseline periods in order to calculate vmHRV. RTs on the flanker task were fit to an ex-Gaussian distribution, which estimated three RT parameters: mu (Gaussian mean), sigma (Gaussian SD), and tau (combination of exponential mean and SD). First, findings indicate that threat of noise was associated with reductions in mu and tau, suggesting that SA might improve attention and motor responding. Second, higher resting vmHRV was associated with lower tau (averaged across conditions) and stronger threat-related decreases in tau. Third, intra-individual decreases in vmHRV were accompanied by concomitant decreases in tau. These findings support roles for trait and state vagal control in guiding adaptive anxiety-related (and anxiety-unrelated) attentional responses. Findings are consistent with extant theories that emphasize functional interrelations among emotion, cognition, and vagal function. • High state anxiety elicited decreases in ex-Gaussian RT parameters, mu and tau. • vmHRV was related to the exponential component of the RT distribution (tau). • Individuals with higher resting vmHRV had fewer very long RTs (lower tau). • The effect of anxiety on tau was limited to individuals with higher resting vmHRV. • Within-person decreases in vmHRV were related to concomitant decreases in tau. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Neurovisceral integration & cognitive-behavioral flexibility link is reviewed. • Repetitive behaviors in ASD are presented as exemplars of inflexibility. • RSA in ASD is reviewed in relation to the neurovisceral integration model. • Transdiagnostic investigation of inflexibility could uncover a biological mechanism. The neurovisceral integration model posits that cognitive-behavioral inflexibility arises from biological inflexibility of feedback loops within the central autonomic network. The parasympathetic nervous system (PNS) is integral in this network. Activity of the PNS, which is normally tonically inhibited, can be indexed through respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA). When the PNS becomes disinhibited, indicating decreased flexibility within the network, RSA is reduced and cognitive-behavioral flexibility is impaired. Using this theoretical framework, cognitive-behavioral inflexibility is discussed from the Research Domain Criteria (RDoC) perspective. Restricted repetitive behaviors in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are proposed as exemplars of cognitive-behavioral inflexibility, and behavioral and RSA literature in ASD are reviewed. RSA differences and their relation to inflexibility in ASD are discussed to support the model and to propose RSA as a biomarker for cognitive-behavioral inflexibility. Considerations for future research are discussed, in addition to implications the model might have on assessment and transdiagnostic treatment practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Peripheral physiological changes can be perceived as feelings via interoception. • Both perceived and unperceived interoceptive information contribute to emotions. • The forebrain can generate physiological feelings without actual peripheral events. • Interacting networks of afferent and efferent signals generate physiological feelings. • Physiological feelings contribute to survival, reproduction and emotion regulation. The role of peripheral physiology in the experience of emotion has been debated since the 19th century following the seminal proposal by William James that somatic responses to stimuli determine subjective emotion. Subsequent views have integrated the forebrain's ability to initiate, represent and simulate such physiological events. Modern affective neuroscience envisions an interacting network of "bottom-up" and "top-down" signaling in which the peripheral (PNS) and central nervous systems both receive and generate the experience of emotion. "Feelings" serves as a term for the perception of these physical changes whether emanating from actual somatic events or from the brain's representation of such. "Interoception" has come to represent the brain's receipt and representation of these actual and "virtual" somatic changes that may or may not enter conscious awareness but, nonetheless, influence feelings. Such information can originate from diverse sources including endocrine, immune and gastrointestinal systems as well as the PNS. We here examine physiological feelings from diverse perspectives including current and historical theories, evolution, neuroanatomy and physiology, development, regulatory processes, pathology and linguistics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Inhibitory control is a cognitive process to suppress prepotent behavioral responses to stimuli. This study aimed to investigate prefrontal functional connectivity during a behavioral inhibition task and its correlation with the subject's performance. Additionally, we identified connections that are specific to the Go/No-Go task. The experiment was performed on 42 normal, healthy adults who underwent a vanilla baseline and a simple and emotional Go/No-Go task. Cerebral hemodynamic responses were measured in the prefrontal cortex using a 16-channel near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) device. Functional connectivity was calculated from NIRS signals and correlated to the Go/No-Go performance. Strong connectivity was found in both the tasks in the right hemisphere, inter-hemispherically, and the left medial prefrontal cortex. Better performance (fewer errors, faster response) is associated with stronger prefrontal connectivity during the simple Go/No-Go in both sexes and the emotional Go/No-Go connectivity in males. However, females express a lower emotional Go/No-Go connectivity while performing better on the task. This study reports a complete prefrontal network during a simple and emotional Go/No-Go and its correlation with the subject's performance in females and males. The results can be applied to examine behavioral inhibitory control deficits in population with neurodevelopmental disorders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]