ArticleHealth psychology : official journal of the Division of Health Psychology, American Psychological Association2012
Does the perception that stress affects health matter? The association with health and mortality.
Article in Health psychology : official journal of the Division of Health Psychology, American Psychological Association, 2012. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 110 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
110 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- The efficacy of stress reappraisal interventions on stress responsivity: A meta-analysis and systematic review of existing evidence.PloS one · 2019Pooled it
- Psychosocial versus physiological stress - Meta-analyses on deactivations and activations of the neural correlates of stress reactions.NeuroImage · 2015Pooled it
- Effects of Wearable Fitness Trackers and Activity Adequacy Mindsets on Affect, Behavior, and Health: Longitudinal Randomized Controlled Trial.Journal of medical Internet research · 2023Trial
- Effects of Sodium Benzoate, a D-Amino Acid Oxidase Inhibitor, on Perceived Stress and Cognitive Function Among Patients With Late-Life Depression: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Sertraline- and Placebo-Controlled Trial.The international journal of neuropsychopharmacology · 2022Trial
- Effectiveness of Natural Frequency TechnologyBrain and behavior · 2020Trial
- Mindfulness meditation training alters stress-related amygdala resting state functional connectivity: a randomized controlled trial.Social cognitive and affective neuroscience · 2015Trial
- Perceived Stress and Depressive Symptoms in Urban Chinese Women: The Buffering and Exacerbating Roles of Marital Quality.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- The Role of Discrimination in Social Safety and its Interplay with Adolescents' Mental Health and Substance Use: A Network Perspective.Journal of youth and adolescence · 2026Article
- Associations Between 24-Hour Physical Behavior, Self-Perceived Stress, and Coping Self-Efficacy in Everyday Life: Ambulatory Assessment Study.JMIR mHealth and uHealth · 2026Article
- Chain-mediated effects of multiple factors in physical activity on self-rated health among sedentary college students.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- Stress Appraisal, Stress Mindset, and Perceived Pain During a Cold Pressor Test.International journal of behavioral medicine · 2026Article
- Decomposing the Association Between Neighborhood Homicide Rates and Stress-Related Health Outcomes Among Black Men in Chicago.AJPM focus · 2026Article
- How can i think of stroke when i don't even have money to eat?: barriers to primary stroke prevention among Nigerian suburban community-dwelling adults.BMC public health · 2026Article
- Molecular pathways linking chronic psychological stress to accelerated aging: mechanisms and interventions.Frontiers in aging · 2026Review
- Temporal dynamics of physical activity intentions and attitudes under goal conflict and time pressure in university students.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Heart Rate Variability Patterns Reflect Yoga Intervention in Chronically Stressed Pregnant Women: A Quasi-Randomized Controlled Trial.Bioengineering (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Psychological stress and social support are associated with opposing single-cell pro-inflammatory gene regulatory mechanisms in adults.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2025Article
- Feasibility of Measuring Hair Glucocorticoids as a Potential Biomarker for Chronic Stress in Older Adults With Intellectual Disabilities.Journal of intellectual disability research : JIDR · 2025Article
- Association Between Stress Mindset, Work-Related Stress and Burnout in Nursing Professionals: Empirical Research Quantitative.Nursing open · 2025Article
- Psychometric Evaluation of the Beliefs About Stress Scale in the German General Population.International journal of methods in psychiatric research · 2025Article
50 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors.
Funding
Abstract
objectiveThis study sought to examine the relationship among the amount of stress, the perception that stress affects health, and health and mortality outcomes in a nationally representative sample of U.S. adults.
methodsData from the 1998 National Health Interview Survey were linked to prospective National Death Index mortality data through 2006. Separate logistic regression models were used to examine the factors associated with current health status and psychological distress. Cox proportional hazard models were used to determine the impact of perceiving that stress affects health on all-cause mortality. Each model specifically examined the interaction between the amount of stress and the perception that stress affects health, controlling for sociodemographic, health behavior, and access to health care factors.
results33.7% of nearly 186 million (unweighted n = 28,753) U.S. adults perceived that stress affected their health a lot or to some extent. Both higher levels of reported stress and the perception that stress affects health were independently associated with an increased likelihood of worse health and mental health outcomes. The amount of stress and the perception that stress affects health interacted such that those who reported a lot of stress and that stress impacted their health a lot had a 43% increased risk of premature death (HR = 1.43, 95% CI [1.2, 1.7]).
conclusionsHigh amounts of stress and the perception that stress impacts health are each associated with poor health and mental health. Individuals who perceived that stress affects their health and reported a large amount of stress had an increased risk of premature death.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.