Self-efficacy as a component of active coping: effects on cardiovascular reactivity.
Active coping remains a poorly understood construct in cardiovascular reactivity testing. We have shown that active coping comprises two independent effects: the enhanced control and the effort of exercising control. The present study tested the proposition that, with effort left unconstrained, increased self-efficacy will increase cardiovascular response. Forty women were assigned to low or high self-efficacy conditions; self-efficacy was manipulated using false feedback. Subjects then engaged in a video game shape-matching task, while blood pressure and heart rate were monitored. SBP and DBP changes were smaller in the low self-efficacy group, as predicted: 17.9 versus 25.2 mmHG for SBP (p < 0.05); and 8.7 versus 13.0 mmHG for DBP (p = 0.07). Heart rate was similar for the two conditions. We conclude that self-efficacy for a task may be an integral part of the active coping process, indirectly affecting the blood pressure response by acting on the effort involved in the coping response.
Gerin
W
W
Cornell University Medical College, New York Hospital, NY 10021, USA. wgerin@med.cornell.edu
Litt
M D
MD
Deich
J
J
Pickering
T G
TG
D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001143:Arousal; D001794:Blood Pressure; D005260:Female; D006339:Heart Rate; D006801:Humans; D007389:Internal-External Control; D009042:Motivation; D010364:Pattern Recognition, Visual; D010555:Personality Inventory; D011340:Problem Solving; D011597:Psychomotor Performance; D012649:Self Concept