Threat-related motivational disengagement: Integrating blunted cardiovascular reactivity to stress into the biopsychosocial model of challenge and threat. Issue 4 (3rd July 2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Hase, Adrian; aan het Rot, Marije; de Miranda Azevedo, Ricardo; Freeman, Paul
• Is Part Of: Anxiety, stress, and coping. Volume 33:Issue 4(2020)
• Page Start: 355
• Page End: 369
• Publication Date: 2020-07-03
• Subjects: Cardiovascular responses -- demand-resource evaluations -- task engagement -- motivational disengagement -- clinical depression; Anxiety -- Periodicals; Anxiety -- Research -- Periodicals; Anxiety -- periodicals; Stress -- periodicals; Adaptation, Psychological -- periodicals; 616.8522
• DOI: 10.1080/10615806.2020.1755819
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1061-5806

Abstract

ABSTRACT: Background: The biopsychosocial model of challenge and threat specifies a challenge-threat continuum where favorable demand-resource evaluations, efficient cardiovascular responses, and superior performance characterize challenge; and maladaptive outcomes like clinical depression characterize threat states. The model also specifies task engagement, operationalized as heart rate and ventricular contractility increases, as a prerequisite for challenge and threat states. The blunted cardiovascular reactivity to stress literature describes reductions of these increases and associates them with problems like clinical depression. Objectives: To determine whether blunted cardiovascular reactivity to stress has implications for challenge and threat theory. Methods: We review and synthesize the literatures on blunted cardiovascular reactivity to stress and the biopsychosocial model. Results: Blunted cardiovascular reactivity appears not to reflect a physiological inability to respond to stress. Rather, it reflects a contextually dependent motivational dysregulation and reduced reactivity to stress consistent with deficient task engagement in the biopsychosocial model. Conclusion: We argue that blunted cardiovascular reactivity represents deficient task engagement, and more generally, motivational disengagement due to threat states. Our biopsychosocial model-based approach conceptualizes this motivational disengagement as a tendency to avoid motivated performance situations. This tendency may represent a defense mechanism against subsequent threat and might explain associations with disorders like clinical depression.