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Social cognition and cortisol in the general population: A systematic review and meta‐analysis

Ji, D; Flouri, E; Papachristou, E; (2021) Social cognition and cortisol in the general population: A systematic review and meta‐analysis. Stress & Health , 37 (3) pp. 415-430. 10.1002/smi.3013. Green open access

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Abstract

This systematic review examines the evidence on the association between social cognition and cortisol in the general population. Literature was searched in six databases. Of the 401 studies identified, meta‐analyses were conducted on 46 effect sizes (Pearson's correlation coefficients) from 19 studies, supplemented by a narrative review. Pooled estimates suggest that better emotion control is associated with increased cortisol concentrations [r = 0.083, 95% CI (0.033, 0.132)]. Emotion recognition or empathy were not significantly associated with cortisol concentration [r = 0.072, 95% CI (‐0.020, 0.165) and r = 0.004, 95% CI (‐0.061, 0.068) respectively]. Subgroup analyses showed that the association between emotion control and cortisol concentration is significant in males, for morning cortisol, when the cortisol data are transformed to correct for skewed distributions, and when participants are instructed to avoid food and drink intake for at least one hour before sample collection. There was no evidence for an association between social cognition with diurnal cortisol slope or cortisol awakening response. More validation work with greater standardization of methodological procedures is required.

Type: Article
Title: Social cognition and cortisol in the general population: A systematic review and meta‐analysis
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.1002/smi.3013
Publisher version: https://doi.org/10.1002/smi.3013
Language: English
Additional information: This version is the author accepted manuscript. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher’s terms and conditions.
Keywords: Social cognition, cortisol, emotion control, empathy, emotion recognition, general population
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Education
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Education > UCL Institute of Education
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Education > UCL Institute of Education > IOE - Education, Practice and Society
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Education > UCL Institute of Education > IOE - Psychology and Human Development
URI: https://discovery-pp.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10117748
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