Some Psychological Factors in Coronary Heart Disease

It was postulated that the efficiency of cardiovascular and coronary adaptation to ac-tivity is a function of adequate arousal of the autonomic nervous system. It was hypothesized, therefore, that individuals who habitually exercise more intel-lectual control will be more prone to disturbance of cardiocoronary homeostasis and eventually to possible ischemic phenomena. Evidence is presented in a pilot study that coronary heart disease patients show a greater degree of rational control than those of a matched comparison group. The coronary patients were more inhibited, both in their behavior, as measured by standard psychological tests, and in their cerebral cortical functioning, as measured by alpha wave frequency, critical frequency of flicker, and reaction time. Evidence is also presented which suggests that at least some of the coronary patients aie temperamentally unsuited to the inhibited behavior which they exhibit. Ar is GENERALLY accepted that such fac-tors as family history of coronary heart disease, high blood cholesterol, and body mass are related to coronary heart disease. A review of the relevant literature does not reveal correspondingly clear-cut per-sonality or social factors.46 ' n The evi-dence suggests that psychological factors are in some way related to the causation of the disease, but the nature of the rela-tionships has not yet been established. In a previous communication9 it was hypothesized that coronary heart disease is related to psychological pressures Head at the Annual Meetinir of the Cardiac Society of Australia and New Zealand, on May 5, 1961, in Perth. The elaboration of the psycho-logical variables, the psychological testing and the statistical analysis were performed by Gavin Sinclair and presented as a thesis for the degree of Bachelor of Arts with Honours in Psychology, at the University of Western Austral'a. Received for publication May II, 1962. which, imposed on man by the Western way of life, determine his mode of ac-tivity. As a premise, Mine assumed that be-cause cardiovascular and coronary adap-tation to activity is governed by the auto-nomic nervous system, such adaptation is more prompt and efficient when the stim-ulus to activity has an emotional charge capable of arousing the autonomic nerv-ous system. He postulated then that