Need for Individual Assessment of SS in Psychosomatic Research

Abstract

Ss who differ significantly on relevant psychological variables may be responding to the experimental stimuli with distinctly different emotions. When Ss are presented with stimuli related to their anxieties, defensive reactions may preclude Es' awareness of Ss emotional responses. If endocrines are secreted as a response to emotions and if endocrines are emotion-specific, the internal secretions of different Ss may be markedly different. We suggest that an evaluation of relevant psychological characteristics may clarify Ss' behavioral and endocrinological responses.