The Effect of Participants' Stress Manipulation on Experimenters’ Mood States

摘要

This study examined whether experimenters’ mood states vary as a function of participants’ mood states. Thirty unacquainted “Experimenter”-“Participant” pairs participated. Participants delivered an unscripted speech in front of an experimenter while being videotaped. The stress levels of experimenters and participants were measured using a questionnaire and salivary cortisol measurements prior to and following the stress induction. A strong negative relationship was found between changes in the stress indices of the experimenters and those of the participants; a smaller increase in stress among participants was associated with a greater increase in stress among experimenters. This result suggests that stress induction can produce negative side effects among experimenters.