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Hostility, Psychophysiological Responses

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  • First Online:
Encyclopedia of Behavioral Medicine

  • 66 Accesses

Synonyms

Aggression; Anger; Antagonism; Cynical distrust; Cynical hostility; Cynicism

Definition

Hostility has distinct cognitive components, affective or emotional components, and behavioral features. This multidimensional construct most commonly is defined by a mistrustful and suspicious attitude, cynical perceptions of others and their motives, and a negative interactional style characterized by anger, resentment, contempt, antagonism, and suspiciousness. Behavioral expressions of hostility typically include verbally and/or physically aggressive actions. The physiological consequences of hostility and its components contribute to over-activation of neurochemical and biological pathways, consistent with the stress response system, which may contribute to atherogenesis and alterations in glucose metabolism and other bodily systems and which are harmful to cardiovascular health.

Description

A wealth of research has investigated physiologic responses related to hostility (Everson-Rose...

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References and Further Reading

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Medicine and Program in Health Disparities Research, University of Minnesota Medical School, Minneapolis, MN, USA

    Susan A. Everson-Rose, Priya Balaji & Xiaohui Yu

Authors
  1. Susan A. Everson-Rose
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  2. Priya Balaji
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  3. Xiaohui Yu
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Susan A. Everson-Rose .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of Miami School of Medicine, Miami, Florida, USA

    Marc Gellman

Section Editor information

  1. University of Minnesota Medical School, Duluth, MN, USA

    Mustafa al’Absi

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Everson-Rose, S.A., Balaji, P., Yu, X. (2018). Hostility, Psychophysiological Responses. In: Gellman, M. (eds) Encyclopedia of Behavioral Medicine. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-6439-6_257-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-6439-6_257-2

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4614-6439-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4614-6439-6

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