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Research shows that negative or threatening emotional stimuli can foster movement velocity and force. However, less is known about how evaluative threat may influence movement parameters in endurance exercise. Based on social self-preservation theory, the authors predicted that evaluative threat would facilitate effort expenditure in physical exercise. In an exploratory study, 27 young men completed a bogus intelligence test and received either low-intelligence-quotient feedback (evaluative threat) or no feedback (control). Next, they were asked to pedal on a stationary bicycle for 30 min at a constant cadence. After 10 min (calibration period), the cadence display was hidden. Findings show that participants under evaluative threat increased cadence more than control participants during the subsequent 20-min critical period. These findings underline the potential importance of unrelated evaluative threat on physical performance.

RESUMEN

Negative body image, which often results from social-evaluative body image threats, is common in young men and related to many harmful outcomes. Using social self-preservation theory (SSPT), the present study investigated the psychobiological (i.e., shame and cortisol) and behavioral (e.g., submission) response-recovery profile to a social-evaluative body image threat in university men. Participants (N = 69; Mage = 20.80 years, SD = 1.84) were randomly assigned to a high-threat (n = 34) or low-threat condition (n = 35). Men in the high-threat condition reported greater post-threat body shame, had greater post-threat cortisol levels, and exhibited more shame-relevant behaviors than men in the low-threat condition. There were no significant differences between conditions for body shame or cortisol at the final post-threat time point (after resting for 30 min). These findings are consistent with SSPT and suggest that men respond to, and recover from, body image threats relatively efficiently.

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BACKGROUND: Current evidence suggests that exposure to social-evaluative threat (SET) can elicit a physiological stress response, especially cortisol, which is an important regulatory hormone. However, an alternative explanation of these findings is that social-evaluative laboratory tasks are more difficult, or confer greater cognitive load, than non-evaluative tasks. Thus, the current experiment tested whether social-evaluative threat, rather than cognitive load, is truly an "active ingredient" in eliciting a cortisol response to stressors. METHODS: Healthy undergraduate students (N = 142, 65% female) were randomly assigned to one of four speech-stressor conditions in a fully-crossed two (social-evaluative threat [SET] manipulation: non-SET versus SET) by two (cognitive load manipulation: low versus high) stressor manipulation. Social-evaluative threat was manipulated by the presence (SET) or absence (non-SET) of two evaluators, while cognitive load was manipulated by the presence (LOAD) or absence (non-LOAD) of a tone-counting task during the speech stressor. Salivary cortisol and cardiovascular measures were taken before, during, and after the speech stressor. RESULTS: Compared to the non-SET condition, SET condition led to greater cortisol and cardiovascular responses to the speech stressor. There were no main or additive effects of cognitive load on cortisol and cardiovascular responses to the speech stressor. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that social-evaluative threat is a central aspect of stressors that elicits a cortisol response; however we found no evidence that increased difficulty, or cognitive load, contributed to greater cardiovascular or cortisol responses to stressors.

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Framed within social self-preservation theory, the present study investigated men's psychobiological responses to social-evaluative body image threats. University men ( n = 66) were randomly assigned to either a high or low social-evaluative body image threat condition. Participants provided saliva samples (to assess cortisol) and completed measures of state body shame prior to and following their condition, during which anthropometric and strength measures were assessed. Baseline corrected values indicated men in the high social-evaluative body image threat condition had higher body shame and cortisol than men in the low social-evaluative body image threat condition. These findings suggest that social evaluation in the context of situations that threaten body image leads to potentially negative psychobiological responses in college men.

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The present study examined the impact of amount of social-evaluative body image threat on psychobiological responses. Women (N=123) were randomized into an individual-threat, group-threat or no-threat condition. Participants completed a measure of state body shame and provided a sample of saliva (to assess cortisol) at baseline and following their condition. Both threat conditions had higher baseline-adjusted body shame following the threat compared to the no-threat condition; however, no difference on baseline-adjusted body shame between the threat conditions was found. The same pattern of results was found for cortisol - both threat conditions had higher baseline-adjusted response cortisol than the no-threat condition, with no significant differences between the threat groups. Findings suggest that the magnitude of psychobiological responses to a social-evaluative body image threat does not differ with the amount of social-evaluative threat (individual- versus group-threat). These findings provide insight into the context of body image threats of women.

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