title: Psychological hardiness predicts cardiovascular health.
abstract: Many, but not all people experience diminished health, performance and well-being as a function of exposure to stress. However, the underlying neurophysiological processes which characterize hardy or resilient people are not well understood. This study examines psychological hardiness and several indicators of cardiovascular health, including body mass index (BMI) and blood cholesterol markers in a sample of 338 middle-aged adults enrolled in a national security education program. Hierarchical regression analyses reveal that after controlling for the influence of age and sex, high hardiness is related to higher HDL - high density lipoprotein and less body fat (BMI). Lower hardiness is associated with greater total cholesterol to HDL ratio, a cardiovascular disease risk factor. These results suggest that psychological hardiness confers resilience in part through an influence on cholesterol production and metabolism.
authors.affiliation: a Center for Technology & National Security Policy , National Defense University , Fort Lesley J. McNair, 300 5th Ave., SW, Washington , DC 20319 , USA.|b Department of Psychosocial Science , University of Bergen , Bergen , Norway.
authors.forename: Paul T
authors.initials: PT
authors.lastname: Bartone
authors.affiliation: a Center for Technology & National Security Policy , National Defense University , Fort Lesley J. McNair, 300 5th Ave., SW, Washington , DC 20319 , USA.
authors.forename: James J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Valdes
authors.affiliation: c Norwegian Police University College , Stavern , Norway.|d Centre for Research and Education in Forensic Psychiatry , Haukeland University Hospital , Bergen , Norway.
authors.forename: Asle
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sandvik
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D015992:Body Mass Index; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000517:prevention & control* / Q000523:psychology*; D002784:Cholesterol / Q000097:blood; D005260:Female; D005544:Forecasting; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012044:Regression Analysis; D055500:Resilience, Psychological; D012307:Risk Factors
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D002784:Cholesterol
keywords: Stress; cardiovascular health; cholesterol; hardiness; resilience