Use of salivary cortisol as an indicator of biobehavioural reactivity to a brief psychological task

Abstract

Salivary cortisol responses to a ikbrief mental arithmetic stressor were assessed in eight males and 11 females. Results indicated that there were significant elevations in salivary cortisol as a result of the administration of the mental arithmetic stressor, suggesting that this endocrinal index of response to brief psychological stressors may be relatively easy to incorporate into studies of psychophysiological responsivity.