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The fear-factor stress test: an ethical, non-invasive laboratory method that produces consistent and sustained cortisol responding in men and women

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Abstract

We describe a method to administer a controlled, effective stressor to humans in the laboratory. The method combines the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST) and the Cold Pressor Test into a single, believable procedure called the Fear-Factor Stress Test (FFST). In the procedure, participants imagine auditioning for the reality television show Fear Factor. They stand before a video recorder and a panel of judges while (a) delivering a motivational speech, (b) performing a verbal arithmetic task, and (c) placing one hand into a bucket of ice water for up to 2 min. We measured subjective anxiety, heart rate, and salivary cortisol in three groups of young adults (n = 30 each, equal numbers of men and women): FFST, TSST, and Control (a placebo version of the FFST). Although the FFST and TSST groups were not distinguishable at the cortisol measure taken 5 min post-manipulation, at 35 min postmanipulation average cortisol levels in the TSST group had returned to baseline, whereas those in the FFST group continued to rise. The proportion of individual cortisol responders (≥ 2 nmol/l increase over baseline) in the TSST and FFST groups did not differ at the 5-min measure, but at the 35-min measure the FFST group contained significantly more responders. The findings indicate that the FFST induces a more robust and sustained cortisol response (which we assume is a marker of an HPA-axis response) than the TSST, and that it does so without increasing participant discomfort or incurring appreciably greater resource and time costs.

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Acknowledgments

This research was supported in part by the South African National Research Foundation (NRF). We thank Marc Dey for his help in formulating the Fear-Factor Stress Test, and Katharine James for her critique of the manuscript.

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The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

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Correspondence to Christopher du Plooy.

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du Plooy, C., Thomas, K.G.F., Henry, M. et al. The fear-factor stress test: an ethical, non-invasive laboratory method that produces consistent and sustained cortisol responding in men and women. Metab Brain Dis 29, 385–394 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11011-014-9484-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11011-014-9484-9

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