Psychological Correlates of Cortisol Excretion in Normal Individuals Under Stress

Cortisol excretion is a potential biological link between psychosocial stimuli and illness, but recent studies of normal individuals in everyday settings generally have failed to demonstrate significant correlations between cortisol excretion and perceived stress, emotion, and personality. Psychological correlates of salivary cortisol excretion were investigated in military recruits during basic training to determine whether different results would be obtained when normal individuals were under stress. Negative mood, particularly depressed mood, predicted higher cortisol excretion. Although personality and perceived stress did not significantly predict cortisol excretion, a trend toward higher cortisol excretion in recruits who felt highly pressured replicated a similar finding reported in another study. The major conclusion is that cortisol excretion is related to negative affect in normals facing situations which demand substantial psychological and behavioral adaptation. Further study is needed to determine the direction of casuality for this association and to further explore the role of personality and perceived stress in relation to emotion and cortisol excretion.