Psychoneuroendocrinology of stress and emotions: Issues for future research

Abstract

It is stated that much psychoneuroendocrinological research is carried out that lacks a theoretical framework and therefore adds little to our current knowledge. Therefore, five research issues have been presented which need further exploration: (1) the temporal relation between subjective and biological stress responses; (2) the question of the psycho-biological specificity; (3) the relationship between endocrine responses to acute and to chronic stressors; (4) the relationship between endocrine activity and susceptibility to disease, and (5) the mediating and moderating effects of personal factors (coping, personality, and task performance) on psychobiological responses. It is argued that the study of these issues will increase our understanding of the stress phenomenon.