Sistema de resposta ao estresse, apego e sociossexualidade: uma análise psicofisiológica das estratégias de história de vida

Abstract

Stress response system is essential to an optimal energetic allocation to the different physiological systems and coordinated behavioral responses during psychosocial and physical challenges. Such allocation is also a central core in Life History Theory, which seeks to explain how and why individuals “decide” to allocate energy and time in somatic or reproductive effort (e.g. mating or parenting effort). Recent theoretical approaches seek to understand how early life experiences can shape the stress response system and their behavioral (e.g: attachment and sociosexuality) and physiological outcomes in adulthood, which are associated with life history strategies. Besides, scholars have hypothesized these components can interact in a functional ways. In study I, it was sought to validate an attachment measure, it was translated and adapted to Brazilian context, showing appropriate indices of reliability. Through study II, distinct physiological reactivity patterns during a psychosocial stressor were found based on basic dimensions of attachment styles and sociosexuality. Erotic videos were presented to participants (study III) and individual differences in cortisol reactivity and habituation response in skin conductance were explained by attachment and sociosexuality. Lastly, study IV showed that differences in marital satisfaction could be explained by attachment-related avoidance and sex specific differences in the overall magnitude of the cortisol response. Thereby, these studies contribute to understanding how early life experiences reflect in different behavioral strategies and physiological profiles underlying the Life History Theory, which could be activated in a context dependent way.