Influence of examination stress and psychoemotional characteristics on the blood pressure and heart rate regulation in female students

During the semester and immediately before an examination, changes in the heart rate variability, blood pressure, and state anxiety induced by examination stress, as well as the dependence of these changes on the probabilistic prediction and actual examination mark, were investigated. Before an examination, most students exhibited an increase in state anxiety, diastolic blood pressure, and heart rate; the last of these is connected with an increase in the LF/HF ratio. The behavior of the cardiovascular system of the students (who were females) under psychoemotional stress varied considerably depending on how well they were prepared for the examination and on the subjective prediction of success. The importance of the type of heart rate regulation during the semester for the progress of examination stress was established.     

Effect of Psychophysiological Potential on Adaptation to Educational Activity

The significance of specific and nonspecific psychophysiological mechanisms that determine adaptation processes in students during the process of learning (1–3 years) was examined. The activity of the autonomic cardiorhythm vegetative regulating system, lateral brain organization, cognitive and psychoemotional sphere and personality at rest, during a moderate mental load, and before and after examinations were determined. The specificity of psychoautonomic mechanisms of educational activity in students of various grades was found.     

The psychophysiological condition of first year students with different levels of physical activity

The psychophysiological condition of (male) first year students who participate in sport or don't participate in sport during studies was studied. R. M. Bayevsky's method was used to establish the level of stress on regulatory mechanisms. The functional level of the nervous system, stability of neural responses, and the level of functional abilities of the developed functional system were evaluated using the variation chronoreflexometric method. It was established that an improvement of mental capacity indicators (increase of memory capacity, reduction of the amount of mistakes made, growth of the level of functional abilities and reduction of the latency period of the visual-motor response) was accompanied by a growth of stress on the body's regulatory systems which was more pronounced with regard to those test participants whose level of physical activity was low. This fact is proof that physical activity reduces the body's "adaptation price" to the changing conditions of the environment. The optimal realisation of a person's adaptive systemic reactions is provided for by the dynamic interaction of the functional systems, which form a complex correlation in the body's somatovegetative, motor and psychoemotional spheres of activity.     

Psychophysiological monitoring under conditions of real and simulated microgravity.

Dynamics of indices characterizing the process of adaptation of operators to complicated conditions of vital activity was studied with psychophysiological monitoring. This technique is based on the complex analysis of subjective and objective estimations of the current psychoemotional state and physiological and biochemical indices. We analyzed the data obtained during the examination of three healthy volunteers, who participated in the HUBES experiment (135-day isolation in the ground-based model of the orbital station "Mir"), and during a biorhythmological study conducted by six Russian cosmonauts of the main expeditions on the station "Mir." It was shown that psychophysiological monitoring is an informative method for studying different parameters of the operator's state and regulatory processes, the dynamics of biological rhythms, and individual characteristics of adaptation. By means of the analysis of a population of the variation in the characteristics of the parameters under study the experimental period of isolation was divided into three stages. The first and third stages were characterized by a relatively high variability, which was minimized at the second stage. The phasic character of the adaptation processes with a phase duration of about 60 days was revealed and a correlation was shown between the dynamics of parameters obtained by means of psychophysiological monitoring and specific features of the system regulation in different phases of the space flight and its simulation. It is suggested that the phases of the minimal variability of the studied characteristics are related to the periods of the minimal reliability of an operator's work. [Translated from Fiziologiya Cheloveka, vol. 25, no. 5, 1999 Sep-Oct, p. 86-91]     

Psychophysiological condition of first-year students with different levels of physical activity

The psychophysiological condition of first-year students (males) going or not going in for sport in the course of training was investigated. Baevskii’s method was used to determine the level of stress of regulatory mechanisms. The functional level of the nervous system, the stability of neural responses, and the level of functional abilities of the developed functional system were evaluated using the variation chronoreflexometric method. It was established that an improvement in the mental capacity parameters (increased mental capacity, reduction in the number of errors, an increase in the level of functional abilities, and shortening of the latent period of visuomotor response) was accompanied by an increase of stress of the body regulatory systems, which was more marked in individuals with a low level of physical activity. This fact indicates that physical activity reduces the cost of the adaptation of the body to permanently changing environmental conditions. The optimal human adaptive systemic reactions are ensured by the dynamic interaction of the functional systems forming complex correlations in the somatic, autonomic, motor, and psychoemotional spheres of the body’s activity.     

Changes in parameters of tachography and heart rate variability in students differing in the level of psychoemotional stress and type of temperament during an academic test week

Female students were examined to evaluate the effect of a test week on the parameters of tachography and heart rate variability depending on their initial psychoemotional stress level and type of temperament. A test week was shown to be a rather weak stressor, which virtually did not affect the psychological status of the students. However, their autonomic status clearly changed during the test week. This was caused by activation of the sympathetic autonomic system and was observed in both the students with a favorable psychoemotional state and choleric and sanguine subjects.     

Comprehensive Longitudinal Study of the Physical and Psychophysiological Development of Schoolchildren at the Preadolescent, Early Adolescent, and Late Adolescent Ontogenetic Stages

Results are presented of a 10-year comprehensive study of the changes in somatic, psychophysiological, and autonomic parameters of 132 students of an innovative school (a linguistics-oriented gymnasium) by using computer-aided psychophysiological and functional diagnostics. Certain changes were found in the development of the structural and functional psychosomatic complexes of students at different stages of their ontogenesis.     

Effects of olfactory stimuli on students with different tones of the autonomic nervous system

The effect of olfactory stimuli was determined on students (men and women) with different tones of the autonomic nervous system under moderate psychoemotional stress conditions (before an academic test). It was found that the direction of changes in the heart rate variability values of students after olfactory stimulation is determined by the initial tone of the autonomic nervous system. The conclusion was made that olfactory stimuli may be used for correcting psychoemotional stress in students more efficiently if the tone of the autonomic nervous system is taken into consideration.     

Characteristics of the psychophysiological development of adolescents and adaptation to education at the gymnasium

Experimental data on the characteristics of psychophysiological development and adaptation of adolescents are presented. The effect of specialized curricula on the characteristics of psychophysiological development and adaptation of high school students to education in a gymnasium is discussed.     

Psychophysiological study of the effects of adaptation to tactile interaction with dolphins in six- to seven-year-old children

The possibility of the use of an integrative psychophysiological approach to the investigation of the role of ultraslow information-controlling brain systems in the mechanisms regulating the wakefulness level and the actual development of cognitive functions in six- to seven-year-old children was estimated. For the studied children, with different types of psychological adaptation to an unfamiliar emotional situation (tactile interaction with dolphins), we found the features of the development of (a) corticosubcortical and limbic-reticular mechanisms of regulation of the wakefulness level and (b) suprasegmental mechanisms of autonomic, hemodynamic, and oxygen-dependent energy supply of the wakefulness level. The idea of a correlation between (1) the level of actual emotional and cognitive development and the type of adaptation to psychoemotional stress and (2) age-specific features of the formation of reflex and neurohumoral mechanisms of regulation of the wakefulness level in six- to seven-year-old children is substantiated.     

Use of principles of prenosological diagnosis for assessing the functional state of the body under stress conditions as exemplified by bus drivers

The functional state of the body was assessed in healthy subjects performing their daily work under stress conditions. The study sample comprised bus drivers aged 25–65 years. A prenosological approach was used to assess the borderline between the physiologically normal state and pathological conditions. At the first stage of the study (prenosological screening), the subjects were divided into four groups with different adaptive capacities of the body. At the second stage of the study, a detailed prenosological examination was performed to determine the causes and mechanisms of evolution of prenosological conditions into premorbid conditions and further into adaptation failure, resulting in diseases. It was found that the bus drivers experienced chronic occupational stress leading to the overtension and exhaustion of regulatory mechanisms and to the rapid development of cardiovascular pathology. Long-term mental and psychoemotional tension in drivers associated with occupational stress leads to the activation of suprasegmental structures involved in the control of physiological functions; to a decrease in the functional reserves; and, consequently, to the worsening of the psychophysiological and cardiorespiratory function of the body. As a result of the study, a group of bus drivers with an increased risk of diseases, including cardiovascular, was determined and recommendations on workforce health protection were developed for the managers of the motor transport enterprise.     

Peculiarities of the Heart Rate Control during Competitive Entrance Examinations

A study was made of the dynamics of psychophysiological parameters and the activities of the systems regulating the heart rate in prospective post-secondary students taking competitive entrance examinations. The responses of the regulatory systems to examination stress were of two types, sympathetic and parasympathetic, depending on the initial state of the autonomic nervous system and the psychophysiological personality traits.     

Emotion Self-Regulation,Psychophysiological Coherence,and Test Anxiety: Results from an Experiment Using Electrophysiological Measures

This study investigated the effects of a novel, classroom-based emotion self-regulation program (TestEdge) on measures of test anxiety, socioemotional function, test performance, and heart rate variability (HRV) in high school students. The program teaches students how to self-generate a specific psychophysiological state—psychophysiological coherence—which has been shown to improve nervous system function, emotional stability, and cognitive performance. Implemented as part of a larger study investigating the population of tenth grade students in two California high schools (N = 980), the research reported here was conducted as a controlled pre- and post-intervention laboratory experiment, using electrophysiological measures, on a random stratified sample of students from the intervention and control schools (N = 136). The Stroop color-word conflict test was used as the experiment’s stimulus to simulate the stress of taking a high-stakes test, while continuous HRV recordings were gathered. The post-intervention electrophysiological results showed a pattern of improvement across all HRV measures, indicating that students who received the intervention program had learned how to better manage their emotions and to self-activate the psychophysiological coherence state under stressful conditions. Moreover, students with high test anxiety exhibited increased HRV and heart rhythm coherence even during a resting baseline condition (without conscious use of the program’s techniques), suggesting that they had internalized the benefits of the intervention. Consistent with these results, students exhibited reduced test anxiety and reduced negative affect after the intervention. Finally, there is suggestive evidence from a matched-pairs analysis that reduced test anxiety and increased psychophysiological coherence appear to be directly associated with improved test performance—a finding consistent with evidence from the larger study.     

The level of anxiety and state of autonomic regulation depending on the predicted examination grades in students living under unfavorable environmental conditions

The examination situation evokes psychoemotional and autonomic reactions with different degrees of intensity depending on the predicted grades in first-year students living under unfavorable conditions of the middle Ob’ River basin. All the examined students (residents of the middle Ob’ River basin) were found to have a high or super high level of trait and state anxiety. The unfavorable emotional state was accompanied by different degrees of the strengthening of parasympathetic effects on cardiac activity and the tension of regulatory systems that were at a maximum in students who expected a C grade. Irrespective of the predicted result, the highest levels of anxiety and increase in the stress of regulatory systems were observed in female students.     

Principles and methods of occupational psychophysiological selection of deep-water divers]

A complex of methods is suggested for professional psychophysiological selection of deep divers: the count of signals under time deficit conditions, simple and complex coordination of analyzers function, tepping test, the study of attention concentration using the Ivanov-Smolensky tables and finding of numbers with switching. This complex together with assessment of number range by deviation method allows making correct prediction during selection of specialists with high probability equal to 0.9. The efficiency of professional selection increases due to the reliable correlation between the results of psychophysiological research and predisposition to development of decompressive disease.     

Modern probabilistic and statistical approaches to search for nucleotide sequence options associated with integrated diseases

Complex diseases are a major important problem for modern medicine. These diseases arise under the influence of specific environmental and clinical-demographic factors, so-called risk factors, in combination with factors of genetic heredity. The contribution of genetic factors to the development of complex diseases is on average about 50%. The cause of complex diseases can be a lot of variants of the nucleotide sequence. In addition to common variants of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), rare variants also play a role in the development of complex diseases. This review presents modern probabilistic and statistical approaches to the search for gene variants and their combinations associated with complex diseases with an emphasis on methods for finding rare and unique variants. A comparative analysis of these approaches is performed, and a number of problems requiring resolution are formulated.     

The influence of examination stress on psychophysiological characteristics and heart rate in students

With the aim to assess the influence of pre-examination psychoemotional stress on the level of centralization of the heart rate control, mathematical analysis of ECG of students was performed in normal condition (a common day of academic semester), before, and after an examination. The ECG was recorded and processed with the help of IBM-486 PC. R-R cardiointevalograms were processed by the method of variational pulsometry after Baevsky. Common quantitative heart rate indices were studied. The level of anxiety of students was assessed by Spilberger, and subjective estimations of general condition, activity and mood were obtained from the respective questionnaire. Three types of heart rate reactions on the examination stress were revealed. The reactions depended on the individual typological characteristics and the state of autonomic nervous system.     

Comparative characteristics of psychoemotional patterns in Albino and Wistar rats

Analysis of psychoemotional behavioral component in Albino and Wistar rats during solving a cognitive task showed that intra-population differences were determined by the relationship between passive and active forms of unconditioned reactions. Quick-learning rats from both populations were characterized by the dominance of active forms of psychoemotional reactions over the course of training. The learning process in slow-learning rats was accompanied mainly by passive emotional manifestations, whereas active reactions dominated at the stage of habit realization. Passive forms of manifestations prevailed over active forms over the course of training in both Albino and Wistar rats which failed to solve the task. The interpopulational psychoemotional differences were quantitative and depended only on the learning styles. Wistar strain was characterized by a decreased percent of animals which were able to solve a cognitive task (40% versus 80% in Albino rats), affective flatness and decreased tolerance to information loadings.     

Effect of chronic stress during prepubertal period of life on development of inherited arterial hypertension

The immediate and long-lasting effects of environmental stress during prepubertal life on arterial blood pressure (AP) were studied in rats with inherited stress-induced arterial hypertension (ISIAH) and normotensive Wistar rats. Two models of chronic stress (the 21st-32nd postnatal days) were used: repeated handling and unpredictable stress of daily exposures to a variety of mild physical or psychoemotional stressors. Chronic prepubertal stress did not affect the basal or stress-induced AP levels in young or adult Wistar rats. In ISIAH rats, chronic stress during the early phase of hypertension development did not accelerate its formation and did not augment its manifestation in adults. Moreover, the basal AP was decreased in young and adult ISIAH rats exposed to prepubertal stress as compared to the age-matched controls. AP elevation under acute stress conditions was lower in young ISIAH rats exposed to unpredictable stress. No long-lasting effect of prepubertal stress on acute stress-induced AP elevation in adults was found. The conclusion was drawn that moderate physical and psychoemotional training at prehypertensive stage can positively affect the development of inherited arterial hypertension.     

Study of the preference of high probability of attaining the goal or its subjective value

The authors used testimonies of students on the dominant motives of joining a higher education institution as the behavioral model that prefers a high probability of the attainment of a goal or its subjective value. They compared the features of the motivation sphere related to the choice of profession with the psychophysiological data of 38 students of a sports higher education institution. The motivation of this choice was determined using a test questionnaire that permitted the authors to measure the subjective value (importance) and accessibility (probability of attainment) of the selected profession. The psychophysiological features were evaluated on two levels, i.e., formal dynamic (temperamental characteristics) and physiological (frequency and amplitude characteristics of EEG). The athlete students’ motivating factor of the choice of profession was shown to form under the influence of individual and typological features, which manifest themselves in psychomotor activity and total ergicity (working capacity), while accessibility experiences a negative influence of the temperamental characteristics in the intellectual sphere, as well as the total ergicity level. The background EEG was more activated in those who chose sports as their profession because of deeming it more valuable. In students who were attracted by the accessibility of this field, a lower cerebral activation level was observed, especially in the frontal zones of the left hemisphere.