The relationship between cortisol awakening response and trait resilience in two patient cohorts and one population-based cohort.

OBJECTIVES: We examined (1) the proportion of cortisol awakening non-responders, (2) the association between cortisol awakening response (CAR) and trait resilience, and (3) the association between CAR increase and trait resilience in two patient cohorts (depression and myocardial infarction [CVD]) and one population-based cohort. METHODS: Eight hundred and eighty study participants delivered CAR scores (response and increase) based on three self-collected saliva samples and a trait resilience score. Descriptive data of CAR non-responders were reported and calculated. Associations between CAR response/increase and trait resilience, sociodemographic and compliance variables were evaluated using multiple logistic and multiple linear regression analyses stratified by cohort. RESULTS: The proportion of CAR non-responders was high in all cohorts (57% depression cohort, 53.4% CVD cohort, 51.6% control cohort). In the depression cohort age was associated with CAR response and increase. In the CVD cohort salivary collection on a weekday was associated with CAR response and awakening time with CAR increase. In the control cohort age was associated with CAR response and sex with CAR increase. CONCLUSIONS: We observed many CAR non-responders and significant associations between CAR response and CAR increase with single sociodemographic and compliance variables. We did not find significant relationships between CAR response or increase and trait resilience.

Associations Between Outcome Resilience and Sociodemographic Factors, Childhood Trauma, Personality Dimensions and Self-Rated Health in Middle-Aged Adults.

BACKGROUND: We examined how sociodemographic factors, childhood trauma, personality dimensions, and self-rated health were associated with outcome resilience and how different stressors influenced depressive symptoms. METHODS: An outcome resilience score for 213 adults was derived by means of a residualization approach. Associations between outcome resilience and sociodemographic and personality factors were evaluated using linear regression. In addition, associations between log-transformed depressive symptoms and the stressors were analyzed using multiple linear regression. A Pearson correlation coefficient between self-rated health and outcome resilience was also computed. RESULTS: Higher neuroticism was negatively and higher conscientiousness was positively associated with outcome resilience. Better self-rated health was associated with higher outcome resilience. Somatic disease events and onset of chronic mental disorders were associated with more depressive symptoms. CONCLUSIONS: Outcome resilience was significantly related to neuroticism, conscientiousness, and self-rated health. Strong associations between depressive symptoms and the stressors somatic disease event, and chronic mental disorder were observed.

Effects of age on trait resilience in a population-based cohort and two patient cohorts.

OBJECTIVE: We examined (i) the mean-level stability and change of trait resilience with age in three cohorts from a single study (population-based controls, depression patients, cardiovascular disease (CVD) patients), (ii) associations of sociodemographic, personality, and other factors (sex, education, Big Five, childhood trauma, depressive symptoms) with trait resilience, and (iii) the intra-individual stability across repeated trait resilience self-assessments. METHODS: 1544 participants from the BiDirect Study completed the Resilienzskala-11 (RS-11; German short version of the resilience scale 25) up to three times over about four years. The repeated-measures data were analyzed using linear mixed models, stratified by cohort. Outcome was the RS-11 score, the underlying time variable was age. All factors mentioned above were considered as fixed main effects. Bland-Altman plots assessed intra-individual stability of RS-11 scores. RESULTS: (i) In the population-based control cohort, there was no association between age and trait resilience (est.: -0.01; 95%-CI: -0.06, 0.04). There were modest positive associations in the patient cohorts (depression: est.: 0.08; 95%-CI: -0.01, 0.16; CVD: est.: 0.15; 95%-CI: 0.03, 0.26). (ii) For all cohorts, female sex, high education, extraversion, openness, agreeableness, and conscientiousness (Big Five) were associated positively with trait resilience. Childhood trauma, depressive symptoms, and neuroticism were associated negatively with trait resilience. (iii) In all cohorts, the level of intra-individual stability was moderate. CONCLUSION: We found that trait resilience was rather stable across decades of age in all cohorts, albeit intra-individual self-assessments agreed only moderately. We confirmed previous findings regarding negative and positive associations of personality and sociodemographic factors with trait resilience.