Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 19, 2026

A Modified Trier Social Stress Test for Vulnerable Mexican American Adolescents
Published on: July 10, 2017
Sending your teenagers away. Controlled stress decreases neurotic vulnerability
G Andrews1, A C Page, M Neilson
1Clinical Research Unit for Anxiety Disorders, University of New South Wales, Vincent's Hospital, Darlinghurst, Australia.
Objective:
To study the effect of a controlled stressor on the rate of personality maturity.
Design:
Eighteen-month prospective controlled study.
Setting:
General community.
Experimental:
Exposed to the stress of 12 months' intercultural experience.
Control:
Remained in usual environment.
Main Outcome Measure:
A measure of personality vulnerability/maturity derived from a canonical correlational combination of trait anxiety, locus of control, and defense style.
Results:
Exchange students exposed to the stressor made significantly greater gains in personality maturity (0.28 vs 0.03 SD: P < or = .01) than did the control students matched on this measure at baseline.
Conclusion:
Exchange students exposed to the stress of living abroad showed a substantial decrease in vulnerability, which should decrease the risk of future neurotic disorders in this group.
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