Neuroscientists at New York University found that stress, even in small measures, can make it difficult for people to control their emotions.
Therapists often use cognitive restructuring techniques to help patients alter their emotional response and thoughts toward certain things and objects. In a new study, neuroscientists at New York University looked at how these techniques held up in the face of real life incidences, including stressful situations. They found that stress, even in small amounts can make it difficult for people to control their emotions.
"We have long suspected that stress can impair our ability to control our emotions, but this is the first study to document how even mild stress can undercut therapies designed to keep our emotions in check," said Elizabeth Phelps, a professor in NYU and the study's senior author, in a press statement. "In other words, what you learn in the clinic may not be as relevant in the real world when you're stressed.
For the study, researchers developed a two-day experiment. On the first day, all participants were subjected to the emotion of fear. They were shown pictures of snakes and spiders, accompanied with sudden, small doses of shock. The emotion levels were recorded. They were then taught cognitive strategies to help them control their emotions.
The next day the participants were divided into two groups - "the stress group" and "the control group." Researchers immersed participants of the first group's hands in ice-cold for three minutes. This method is generally used to create a mild stress response in psychological studies. Participants from the second group had their hands immersed in mildly warm water.
All participants were again exposed to pictures that invoked a sense of fear in them. Researchers found that participants belonging to the controlled group were able to implement the cognitive strategies taught to them earlier to control their fear. The "stress group" on the other hand, was not able to implement the cognitive strategies and showed no signs of emotion control.
"The use of cognitive techniques to control fear has previously been shown to rely on regions of the prefrontal cortex that are known to be functionally impaired by mild stress," Phelps observed. "These findings are consistent with the suggestion that the effect of mild stress on the prefrontal cortex may result in a diminished ability to use previously learned techniques to control fear."
"Our results suggest that even mild stress, such as that encountered in daily life, may impair the ability to use cognitive techniques known to control fear and anxiety," added Candace Raio, a doctoral student in NYU's Department of Psychology and the study's lead author. "However, with practice or after longer intervals of cognitive training, these strategies may become more habitual and less sensitive to the effects of stress."
