Respiratory Sinus Arrhythmia and Hierarchical Dimensions of Psychopathology

Lower resting respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA), a psychophysiological index of parasympathetic nervous system functioning, has been linked to internalizing, externalizing, and thought disorders. Consistent with the Hierarchical Taxonomy of Psychopathology (HiTOP), these findings suggest lower RSA may be associated with general psychopathology (i.e., p-factor). In a sample of 215 18-36-year-olds oversampled for psychopathology, the present study utilized higher-order mediation modeling to examine associations between RSA and psychopathology at the p-factor and spectra levels, using both categorical (Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-5, SCID-5) and dimensional (Comprehensive Assessment of Traits relevant to Personality Disorders, CAT-PD) measures of psychopathology. Across both the SCID-5 and CAT-PD models, RSA was negatively associated with the p-factor. In the CAT-PD model, RSA was also negatively associated with the internalizing spectrum, independent of the p-factor. These findings suggest that lower parasympathetic nervous system functioning relates to general psychopathology, but it also demonstrates unique associations with internalizing psychopathology.