This study examined the impact of a workplace-based psychophysiological intervention on blood pressure (BP), emotional health, and workplace-related measures in hypertensive employees of a global IT company. Thirty-eight employees with hypertension were randomly assigned to a treatment or control group. The treatment group participated in a 2-week program, which included instruction in positive emotion refocusing and emotional restructuring techniques intended to reduce sympathetic nervous system arousal, stress and negative affect, increase positive affect, and improve performance. Learning and practice of the techniques was enhanced by heart rate variability feedback, which helped participants learn to self-generate physiological coherence, a beneficial physiological mode associated with increased heart rhythm coherence, physiological entrainment, parasympathetic activity, and vascular resonance. BP, emotional health, and workplace-related measures were assessed before and three months after the program. Following the intervention, the treatment group exhibited a mean adjusted reduction of 10.6 mm Hg in systolic BP and of 6.3 mm Hg in diastolic BP. The reduction in systolic BP was significant in relation to the control group. The treatment group also demonstrated improvements in emotional health, including significant reductions in stress symptoms, depression, and global psychological distress and significant increases in peacefulness and positive outlook. Further, the trained employees demonstrated significant increases in the work-related scales of workplace satisfaction and value of contribution. This study suggests that a brief psychophysiological intervention employed in a workplace setting can reduce high blood pressure and depression and improve employee emotional health and aspects of workplace effectiveness. Implications are that such interventions may produce a healthier and more productive workforce, enhancing performance and reducing losses to the organization due to cognitive decline, illness, and premature mortality.Keywords: Heart rate variability, hypertension, positive emotion, stress managementMain topics: Psychophysiological Methods for Therapeutic Management, Cardiovascular Psychophysiology E-mail this Page \f0 Back to Top{} \f0 Home - Research - Education - Join or Give - Store - News/Press\ phone (831) 338-8500 - fax (831) 338-8504 - e-mail usf0 f5 Institute of HeartMathf5 14700 West Park Avenuef5 Boulder Creek, CA 95006Privacy Policy - © Copyright 2003 Institute of HeartMath. All rights reserved.››
