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Respiratory responses during affective picture viewing.
Patrick Gomez1, Werner A Stahel, Brigitta Danuser
1Institute for Hygiene and Applied Physiology, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Clausiusstrasse 25, 8092 Zurich, Switzerland. patrick.gomez@hospvd.ch
Biological Psychology
|August 6, 2004
Summary
This study reveals how breathing patterns change with emotions. Increased arousal shortens breaths and increases ventilation, while pleasantness affects inspiratory time and breathing style.
Area of Science:
- Psychophysiology
- Affective Science
- Respiratory Physiology
Background:
- Physiological responses covary with emotional judgments of valence and arousal.
- Respiratory measures have not been extensively investigated in relation to affective dimensions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the links between affective valence, arousal, and respiratory measures.
- To examine how respiration, skin conductance level (SCL), and heart rate (HR) relate to emotional judgments.
Main Methods:
- Thirty subjects viewed eight picture series varying in affective valence and arousal.
- Measured respiration (inspiratory time, mean inspiratory flow, thoracic breathing, total breath duration, minute ventilation), SCL, HR, and affective judgments.
Main Results:
- Pleasantness correlated with longer inspiratory time, decreased mean inspiratory flow, and increased thoracic breathing.
- Arousal correlated with shortened inspiratory time and total breath duration, and increased mean inspiratory flow, minute ventilation, thoracic breathing, and SCL.
Conclusions:
- Arousal significantly impacts respiratory responding, supporting its role in energy mobilization for action.
- Affective valence also modulates respiratory responses, potentially reflecting an attention bias toward negative stimuli.