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Access Type
WSU Access
Date of Award
January 2025
Degree Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Ph.D.
Department
Psychology
First Advisor
Samuele Zilioli
Abstract
Psychological stress is an established precursor to disease risk. One physiological system responsive to stress and associated with disease is the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis whose product hormone is cortisol. However, the relationship between psychological stress and cortisol response is inconsistent despite both resulting from acute stress. This discrepancy may be due in part to limitations in the measurement of cognitive appraisal of stress. The Transactional Model of Stress and Coping (TMSC) posits that perceived threat of the stimulus (i.e., primary appraisal) and personal ability (i.e., secondary appraisal) are dynamic evaluations contingent upon each other to determine psychological stress. In four studies, this dissertation tested whether calculating the full combination of high and low scores of primary and secondary appraisals coincided with distinct patterns of cortisol activity to an acute stressor. A series of two pilot studies were conducted to first test the validity of a cognitive task administrated online. Pilot 1 found no differences in task difficulty or stress appraisal among an easy and two difficult conditions. The results of Pilot 2 indicated that a newly tested, third difficult condition was more difficult than the easy condition. This third condition was used in Study 1 among adults recruited from Prolific. Cognitive appraisal of the stressor was self-reported at three timepoints throughout the cognitive task. Latent profile analysis uncovered three appraisal groups at the mid-task timepoint: a Moderate Primary, High Secondary Appraisal group, a Moderate Primary & Secondary Appraisal group, and a Moderate Primary, Low Secondary Appraisal group. Convergent validity with self-efficacy and tense arousal suggested the groups reflected feeling Unperturbed, Challenged, and Threatened, respectively. The same groups were also found at the pre- and post-task timepoints. Latent transition analysis revealed that participants were more likely to remain in their original appraisal group than transition to another group throughout the cognitive task. Differences in appraisal groups were also tested with education, age, gender, and select psychological variables. Subsequently, Study 2 sought to replicate these appraisal groups and test their association with cortisol activity to the Trier Social Stress Test in a sample of adolescents from Detroit. Cluster analysis at the mid-task timepoint revealed three groups. Two groups – High Primary, High Secondary Appraisal and High Primary, Low Secondary Appraisal – were similar to Study 1, but the Low Primary, Moderate Secondary Appraisal group was unique to Study 2. In contrast to Study 1, participants were more likely to transition to another appraisal group than to remain in their original appraisal group throughout the TSST. The appraisal groups were not associated with cortisol reactivity slopes, peak levels, or recovery slopes to the TSST. In line with the TMSC, these studies provide evidence that stressors evoke multiple appraisals that are being overlooked by current methods of calculating cognitive stress appraisal. Replication with other stressors and larger samples is needed.
Recommended Citation
Rodriguez-Stanley, Jacqueline, "Latent Profiles Of Primary And Secondary Stress Appraisal: Interpreting Cortisol Response To An Acute Laboratory Stressor" (2025). Wayne State University Dissertations. 4290.
https://digitalcommons.wayne.edu/oa_dissertations/4290