Why the study?
Does cardiovascular monitoring detect physical arousal during emotional stress better than clinical observation in psychotherapy patients?
Does cardiovascular monitoring detect physical arousal during emotional stress better than clinical observation in psychotherapy patients?
Cardiovascular monitoring during psychotherapy reveals concealed physical arousal, such as tachycardia and hypertension, that is often missed by clinical observation alone.
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May warrant objective monitoring to capture arousal in psychotherapy; hypothesis-generating and should not yet change practice.
Physical responses to emotional tension of 97 patients were monitored by cardiovascular techniques while patients were in psychotherapy. Heart rates and blood pressures were measured, results of electrocardiograms analyzed, and voice transmission and videotapes studied. Evidence of arousal as measured by tachycardia, hypertension, and arrhythmias was more frequent than could be observed clinically. Depressed patients showed almost as much physical tension as those who were obviously angry or anxious. Variations that were difficult to see clinically were easily detected by monitoring.
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Forbes et al. (1978) studied this question.
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