Stress Sensitization and Biological Stress Responsivity: A Developmental Approach to the Impact of Stress Across Gender

The stress sensitization model proposes that distal and proximal environmental stressors interact to explain psychological and behavioral phenotypes. As suggested by this framework, the impact of proximal stressors, such as recent life stress, are more deleterious among those that have experienced distal life stressors, such as childhood abuse, due to the increased stress responsivity of those with distal stress exposure. The current research examines whether the proposed increase in stress response is explained by objective variation in stress response. Specifically, this research examines whether the interaction between distal and proximal stress to explain antisocial outcomes is mediated by biological measures of stress responsivity during a social stress test in a sample of undergraduate students. Further, previous literature suggests that the salience of proximal life stressors is greater among females than among males. As such, the current research examines this mediation process across gender.