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Updated: May 11, 2026
08:25
Collecting Saliva and Measuring Salivary Cortisol and Alpha-amylase in Frail Community Residing Older Adults via Family Caregivers
Published on: December 18, 2013
Friendship network position and salivary cortisol levels
Olga Kornienko1, Katherine H Clemans, Dorothée Out
1T Denny Sanford School of Social and Family Dynamics, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287-3701, USA. olga.kornienko@asu.edu
Social Neuroscience
|May 21, 2013
Summary
Friendship network position impacts stress. Lower gregariousness and higher popularity among nursing students correlated with elevated cortisol levels, indicating a link between social standing and the stress response.
Area of Science:
- Social psychology
- Psychoneuroendocrinology
- Network science
Background:
- Social network analysis (SNA) is crucial for understanding social dynamics.
- Cortisol levels reflect hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis activity and stress response.
- Individual differences in biological sensitivity to context are influenced by social factors.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between friendship network position and cortisol levels in first-year nursing students.
- To explore how popularity, gregariousness, and interconnectedness relate to physiological stress markers.
Main Methods:
- Social network analysis using directed friendship nominations.
- Salivary cortisol assays to measure HPA axis activity.
- Online questionnaires and in-person sociometric assessments with 74 nursing students.
Main Results:
- Lower gregariousness (fewer outgoing ties) was associated with higher cortisol levels.
- Higher popularity (more incoming ties) was associated with higher cortisol levels.
- Friendship network status significantly correlates with HPA axis activity.
Conclusions:
- Social network position, specifically popularity and gregariousness, is linked to physiological stress.
- Findings contribute to understanding the social determinants of biological sensitivity and individual stress responses.
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