Trait self-focused attention, task difficulty, and effort-related cardiovascular reactivity

• Published in: International journal of psychophysiology 2011-03, Vol.79 (3), p.335-340
• Main Authors: Silvia, Paul J., Jones, Hannah C., Kelly, Casey S., Zibaie, Alireza
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adult; Attention - physiology; Behavioral psychophysiology; Biological and medical sciences; Blood Pressure - physiology; Cardiovascular Physiological Phenomena; Cardiovascular reactivity; Cognition - physiology; Data Interpretation, Statistical; Effort; Female; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Heart Rate - physiology; Humans; Male; Motivation; Motivational intensity; Private self-consciousness; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychology. Psychophysiology; Psychomotor Performance - physiology; Reaction Time - physiology; Receptors, Adrenergic, beta - physiology; Regression Analysis; Self Concept; Self-focused attention; Young Adult
• ISSN: 0167-8760; 1872-7697
• DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2010.11.009

Using motivational intensity theory as a framework, the present experiment examined how individual differences in self-focused attention interact with task difficulty to predict effort, assessed via cardiovascular reactivity. Participants (n=50) worked on a cognitive task fixed at an easy, medium, or hard level of difficulty, and individual differences in private self-consciousness and self-reflection were measured. Regression models indicated that trait self-focus interacted with task difficulty to predict cardiovascular reactivity, particularly systolic blood pressure (SBP) reactivity. Participants low and high in trait self-focus showed similar SBP reactivity in the easy and medium conditions, but they diverged in the hard condition: High trait focus was associated with higher SBP reactivity, indicating greater effort, whereas low trait self-focus was associated with low SBP reactivity, indicating disengagement. The findings thus support the motivational intensity approach to effort and its interpretation of self-focus's role in effort mobilization. ► Individual differences in self-focused attention interacted with task difficulty to predict effort-related cardiovascular responses, quantified as systolic reactivity. ►Overall, systolic reactivity increased then declined as task difficulty increased, replicating past work on motivational intensity. ►People high in trait self-focus evidenced high reactivity in the most difficult condition but people low in trait self-focus disengaged. ►The findings extend recent applications of motivational intensity theory to self-focused attention, a pivotal variable in the psychology of self-regulation.