Beneficial Effects of Self-Affirmation on Heart Rate Variability, Respiratory Sinus Arrhythmia, and Emotion

Affirmation of personal values and characteristics (e.g., relations with friends and family, romantic values, sense of humor) has been shown to have positive effects, including but not limited to buffering against stress, coping with threatening situations, and promoting healthy behaviors. However, the immediate emotional and cardiovascular responses impacted by self (or value) affirmation have not been fully explored. Therefore, the present study aims to provide more insight into the immediate effects of self-affirmation on emotion and cardiovascular reactivity. One hundred and twenty-five UWM students completed this study (MAge = 22.90, SDAge = 6.09). The researchers used a within-subject design, in which each participant went through both the control and self-affirmation conditions (order of presentation was counterbalanced). In the self-affirmation condition, participants were asked to write about their top-ranked personal value, whereas a writing exercise unrelated to personal values was used in the control condition. After each writing exercise, the International Affective Picture System (IAPS) was used to induce positive and negative affect. Cardiovascular measures and self-reported emotional responses were collected throughout the experiment. Results showed that compared to their state during the control task, when self-affirmed, participants showed greater high-frequency heart rate variability (HF-HRV), F(1, 123) = 34.80, p .001, and higher levels of respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA), F(1, 122) = 14.82, p .001, reflecting more parasympathetic activity. After self-affirmation, participants reported more positive affect, F(1, 123) = 11.67, p = .001, and higher levels of self-worth, F(1, 124) = 14.04, p .001. These findings suggest that the act of focusing on a core personal value has beneficial effects on physiological and psychological well-being. These results may provide more insight into the role of cardiovascular reactivity in self-affirmation and emotion

Effects of Self-Affirmation on Physiological Arousal and Psychological Well-Being

Self-affirmation is an act that involves focusing on important aspects of self, such as personal values and characteristics. The positive effects of self-affirmation have been well documented in past studies. However, less research has focused on cardiovascular responses and emotion which are affected by self-affirmation. Therefore, the present study aims to address the relationship among these variables. UWM students (N = 66, MAge = 22.55, SDAge = 5.18) were recruited for this study. A within-subject design, where each participant went through both the control and self-affirmation conditions (order of presentation was counter balanced) was used, in which the participants were asked to write about their top-ranked personal value. The Positive and Negative Affect Schedules (PANAS) and a self-worth questionnaire were administered after each task. In addition, participants’ physiological reactivity was measured throughout the experiment. To examine the effects of self-affirmation, repeated-measures t tests were conducted. Results showed that when self-affirmed, participants showed more positive affect, t(65) = 2.53, p = .014, higher level of self-worth, t(65) = 3.45, p = .001, and greater high frequency heart rate variability (HF-HRV), t(52) = 3.21, p = .002, reflecting more parasympathetic activity, compared to their state during the control task. These findings suggest the beneficial effects of self-affirmation on cardiovascular reactivity as well as psychological well-being and may be applicable beyond the college population