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Cardiac reactivity is associated with changes in negative emotion in 24-month-olds

Kristin A Buss1, H Hill Goldsmith, Richard J Davidson

  • 1Department of Psychological Sciences, 210 McAlester Hall, University of Missouri-Columbia, Columbia, MO 65211, USA. bussk@missouri.edu

Developmental Psychobiology
|February 26, 2005
PubMed

Insights

This study found that heart rate (HR) and respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) reliably reflect negative affect in toddlers. However, pre-ejection period (PEP) did not significantly change with distress, suggesting varied physiological responses in early childhood.

Area of Science:

  • Developmental Psychology
  • Child Physiology
  • Affective Science

Background:

  • Limited research exists on multilevel observation of negative affect in infants and young children.
  • Physiology-affect associations are inconsistently reported in early childhood.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To examine changes in cardiac reactivity (heart rate, respiratory sinus arrhythmia, pre-ejection period) in 24-month-olds during emotion-eliciting tasks.
  • To investigate the systematic relationship between cardiac reactivity and negative affect in toddlers.
  • To explore sex differences in physiology-affect associations.

Main Methods:

  • 24-month-old children participated in four increasingly challenging, emotion-eliciting tasks.
  • Physiological measures included heart rate (HR), respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA), and pre-ejection period (PEP).
  • Negative affect was assessed across tasks, and within-subject analyses were conducted.

Main Results:

  • Heart rate (HR) increased and respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) decreased with increasing distress.
  • No significant changes in pre-ejection period (PEP) were observed.
  • HR was consistently associated with negative affect, while PEP showed only marginal association.
  • Sex differences were noted in the associations between physiology and negative affect.

Conclusions:

  • Cardiac reactivity, specifically HR and RSA, shows systematic associations with negative affect in toddlers.
  • PEP may not be a reliable indicator of negative affect in this age group.
  • Future research should consider sex as a moderating factor in early childhood physiology-affect associations.

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