TY - JOUR
T1 - Psychometric and neurobiological assessment of reslience in a non-clinical sample of adults
AU - Petros, Natalia
AU - Opacka-Juffry, Jolanta
AU - Huber, Jorg
PY - 2013/4/1
Y1 - 2013/4/1
N2 - Resilient individuals are capable of adjusting and coping successfully in the face of adversity. Efforts to assess resilience and its biomarkers have focused on individuals with a history of trauma and related disorders. OBJECTIVE: To psychologically assess resilience in a non-clinical community population through questionnaires, and analyse the associations between the psychological parameters and salivary cortisol and dehydroepiandrosterone sulphate (DHEA-S) as putative biomarkers of resilience. An opportunistic sample (n=196) completed a cross-sectional survey assessing resilience, self-reported depressive symptoms and anxiety, and possible correlates. A sub-sample (n=32) selected in order to maximise variation of mental health, provided saliva samples for enzyme-linked immunoassay (ELISA) detection of cortisol and DHEA-S. RESULTS: Resilience correlated negatively with depressive symptoms, trait anxiety and early life stress, and positively with self-efficacy, optimism, social support and wellbeing (all r>0.40; all p-values ≤0.001 except for early life stress: r=-0.20; p≤0.05). Resilience and DHEA-S concentrations correlated significantly (r=0.35; p≤0.05); this relationship remained stable after adjustment for demographics. Gender differences were observed for DHEA-S and cortisol (p≤0.05). Resilience is associated with positive aspects of psychological health and salivary DHEA-S, suggesting the latter can be treated as a biomarker of resilience in a non-clinical sample of adults.
AB - Resilient individuals are capable of adjusting and coping successfully in the face of adversity. Efforts to assess resilience and its biomarkers have focused on individuals with a history of trauma and related disorders. OBJECTIVE: To psychologically assess resilience in a non-clinical community population through questionnaires, and analyse the associations between the psychological parameters and salivary cortisol and dehydroepiandrosterone sulphate (DHEA-S) as putative biomarkers of resilience. An opportunistic sample (n=196) completed a cross-sectional survey assessing resilience, self-reported depressive symptoms and anxiety, and possible correlates. A sub-sample (n=32) selected in order to maximise variation of mental health, provided saliva samples for enzyme-linked immunoassay (ELISA) detection of cortisol and DHEA-S. RESULTS: Resilience correlated negatively with depressive symptoms, trait anxiety and early life stress, and positively with self-efficacy, optimism, social support and wellbeing (all r>0.40; all p-values ≤0.001 except for early life stress: r=-0.20; p≤0.05). Resilience and DHEA-S concentrations correlated significantly (r=0.35; p≤0.05); this relationship remained stable after adjustment for demographics. Gender differences were observed for DHEA-S and cortisol (p≤0.05). Resilience is associated with positive aspects of psychological health and salivary DHEA-S, suggesting the latter can be treated as a biomarker of resilience in a non-clinical sample of adults.
U2 - 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2013.03.022
DO - 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2013.03.022
M3 - Article
SN - 0306-4530
VL - 38
SP - 2099
EP - 2108
JO - Psychoneuroendocrinology
JF - Psychoneuroendocrinology
IS - 10
ER -