The moderating effect of personal mastery and the relations between stress and Plasminogen Activator Inhibitor-1 (PAI-1) antigen.
OBJECTIVE
This study tested whether feelings of personal control over one's life circumstances (i.e., personal mastery) would attenuate the relations between stress (i.e., negative life events and caregiving distress) and Plasminogen Activator Inhibitor (PAI)-1 antigen, an inhibitor of fibrinolysis implicated in the development of cardiovascular disease.


METHODS
Seventy-one spousal dementia caregivers were assessed for plasma levels of PAI-1 antigen, negative life events, caregiver distress, and feelings of personal mastery. Regression analysis was used to determine if personal mastery moderated the relations between stress (i.e., life stress and caregiving distress) and PAI-1 antigen levels.


METHODS
Plasminogen activator inhibitor (PAI)-1 antigen in plasma.


RESULTS
After controlling for other factors associated with PAI-1 antigen levels, negative life events were positively associated with plasma PAI-1 antigen concentrations in participants low in personal mastery (beta = .31; p = .050) but not in individuals high in personal mastery (beta = .22; p = .184). The moderating effect of mastery on the relations between caregiving distress and PAI-1 antigen did not reach statistical significance (p = .091).


CONCLUSIONS
These data suggest that mastery may protect individuals from some of the alterations in hemostatic factors that have been linked to cardiovascular risk.
Mausbach
Brent T
BT
Department of Psychiatry, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093-0680, USA. bmausbach@ucsd.edu
von Känel
Roland
R
Patterson
Thomas L
TL
Dimsdale
Joel E
JE
Depp
Colin A
CA
Aschbacher
Kirstin
K
Mills
Paul J
PJ
Ancoli-Israel
Sonia
S
Grant
Igor
I
D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000368:Aged; D000941:Antigens / Q000276:immunology*; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000235:genetics* / Q000276:immunology*; D017028:Caregivers / Q000523:psychology; D003863:Depression / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008016:Life Change Events; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D017395:Plasminogen Activator Inhibitor 1 / Q000235:genetics* / Q000276:immunology*; D020377:Self Efficacy; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
D000941:Antigens; D017395:Plasminogen Activator Inhibitor 1; C051321:SERPINE1 protein, human