Positive affect and functional somatic symptoms in young adults

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Psychiatry
• Epidemiology

Background:

• Functional Somatic Symptoms (FSS) are physical symptoms without a clear pathological cause.
• High negative affect (NA) is a known risk factor for FSS.
• The role of Positive Affect (PA) in FSS development remains underexplored.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the association between PA and current/future FSS.
• To examine potential interactions between PA and NA, and PA and sex in relation to FSS.

Main Methods:

• Utilized data from the Dutch Tracking Adolescents' Individual Lives Survey (TRAILS) cohort (N=1247).
• Measured PA using the PANAS schedule and FSS via the Adult Self Report (ASR) questionnaire.
• Employed Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and regression analyses with bootstrapping.

Main Results:

• PA showed a significant negative association with current FSS, even after adjusting for covariates (B=-0.004).
• This association was not significant longitudinally.
• PA was significantly related to "General Physical Symptoms" but not "Gastrointestinal Symptoms" cross-sectionally.

Conclusions:

• Elevated PA is associated with lower levels of current FSS, but the effect size is modest.
• The longitudinal impact of PA on FSS requires further investigation.
• Understanding individual differences in affect is crucial for FSS research.