Gender Differences in Stress Responses during a Virtual Reality Trier Social Stress Test

Abstract

The Trier Social Stress Test (TSST) is commonly used to induce stress in laboratories by instructing participants to deliver a speech and to solve arithmetic tasks in front of a committee. Its implementation in virtual reality (VR) enables an investigation of stress responses under highly standardized controllable conditions. The aim of this study was to compare stress responses among men and women in a VR version of the TSST (VR-TSST). To this end, 16 women taking oral contraceptives and 16 men underwent the VR-TSST in a modified version including a competitor. Stress ratings, heart rate, electrodermal reactivity, and salivary cortisol responses were analyzed. The VR-TSST induced endocrine, peripher-physiological and self-reported stress responses, indicated by a significant increase in heart rate, electrodermal activity and stress ratings as well as a small but significant cortisol response. Significant gender differences were found only for stress ratings. In conclusion, these findings confirm earlier results that VR is suitable to induce social stress both in males and females.