title: Life satisfaction moderates the impact of socioeconomic status on diurnal cortisol slope.
abstract: The association between SES and health is well established; however, only a handful of studies have investigated the relationship between SES and daily cortisol parameters. Further, within this small literature, virtually no studies have looked at psychological factors that might mitigate this relationship. In this study, we tested whether life satisfaction--the overall subjective affective assessment of one's own life--acts as a protective factor against cortisol dysregulation driven by low-SES. Among a large sample (N=1325) of individuals from the Midlife in the United States (MIDUS) survey, we found that low-SES individuals with high levels of life satisfaction had a cortisol circadian profile similar to those of high-SES individuals. In contrast, low-SES individuals reporting low life satisfaction experienced attenuated morning cortisol concentrations and a flatter ("less healthy") diurnal cortisol slope. Although more studies are needed to investigate the constellation of psychological resources and processes through which life satisfaction exerts its effects, the current work shows that the general affective evaluation of one's own life acts as a buffer against the detrimental effect of low-SES on health-related physiological processes.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Wayne State University, 5057 Woodward Avenue, Detroit, MI 48202, United States. Electronic address: sam.zilioli@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Samuele
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Zilioli
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Wayne State University, 5057 Woodward Avenue, Detroit, MI 48202, United States.
authors.forename: Ledina
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Imami
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Wayne State University, 5057 Woodward Avenue, Detroit, MI 48202, United States.
authors.forename: Richard B
authors.initials: RB
authors.lastname: Slatcher
mesh_terms: D000339:Affect; D002940:Circadian Rhythm / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D006854:Hydrocortisone / Q000378:metabolism*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D010549:Personal Satisfaction; D012463:Saliva / Q000378:metabolism; D012494:Sampling Studies; D057566:Self Report; D012923:Social Class; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology
chemical_list: D006854:Hydrocortisone
keywords: Diurnal cortisol; Life satisfaction; Psychological well-being; SES