Effect of mood states on cardiovascular responses based on extraversion and neuroticism personality dimensions

Abstract

Introduction: The present research investigated the effects of positive and negative mood states on cardiovascular responses and the moderating role of extraversion and neuroticism in this regard. Method: 654 university female students completed the Persian version of the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire-Revised (EPQ-R ‌ ). On the basis of extreme scores in extraversion and neuroticism dimensions from the main sample, 4 groups (each with 30 samples) selected. All groups experienced positive and negative induced mood in two separate sessions with 2 to 4 weeks interval. The blood pressure and heart rate assessed before and after mood induction. Results: In all subjects, the rate of systolic blood pressure decreased more in positive mood condition than in negative mood condition and the heart rate increased in negative mood condition as compared with positive mood condition. Although the effect of mood variability on the rate of systolic blood pressure and heart rate is considerable, the extraversion and neuroticism dimensions did not moderate this effect. Conclusion: In sum, the findings of present research revealed that the role of induced mood states is important in relation to physical health.