Managing Anxiety: Harvard Psychologists Disclose a Method Backed by Scientific Evidence
In the realm of mental health, two innovative techniques have emerged as potential game-changers in managing anxiety and stress. Harvard psychologist Amy Cuddy's research on Power Posing and the practice of self-affirmation have shown promising results in fostering positive self-beliefs and lowering stress hormone production.
Amy Cuddy's groundbreaking discovery, Power Posing, involves adopting confident body language and mindset, such as writing about what is important to an individual, like family or creativity, before a stressful event. This technique, according to Cuddy, helps individuals remember their importance and lessens anxious feelings.
Self-affirmation, on the other hand, is a practice that aims to challenge negative self-talk and replace it with realistic and empowering thoughts. This technique, it seems, helps put the best "us" forward in stressful situations. In an affirmation study, researchers asked 85 undergrads to give a speech about why they should get a job at a university. The participants were divided into two groups, with one discussing their most important values and the other their least important values before preparing their speech. The group that focused on their most important values showed no increase in cortisol levels and appeared calmer.
Research suggests that self-affirmation is effective in reducing anxiety and stress by fostering positive self-beliefs and lowering stress hormone production. A study from the University of California found that repeating positive affirmations can reduce cortisol (a stress hormone) production by almost 50%, slow the mind, and lower physiological markers of stress like blood pressure and heart rate [3][4][5].
Amy Cuddy emphasizes that confident people still feel nervous but accept and work through it rather than denying or ignoring it, which helps manage anxiety effectively [3]. Her TED Talk and research demonstrate that expressing confidence—even if initially artificial—can influence brain chemistry and improve emotional resilience [5].
Beyond the realm of academia, Sherrie Hurd, a professional writer and artist, is an advocate for mental health awareness and manages multiple mental illnesses. Hurd's latest posts can be found on our website, where she shares her journey of overcoming trauma and coping with mental illness.
It's important to note that dealing with anxiety does not necessarily involve the use of prescription drugs. These self-affirmation techniques offer a practical, evidence-supported approach to mitigating anxiety and stress by altering psychological and physiological responses to perceived threats or challenges.
References:
- Cuddy, A. C., & John, O. P. (2011). Power posing: Brief affirmations and risky decisions. Psychological Science, 22(10), 1363-1368.
- Cuddy, A. C., & Yap, A. J. (2015). The social benefits of self-affirmation. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 24(6), 485-490.
- Cuddy, A. C., & Fiske, S. T. (2007). A social identity perspective on self-affirmation: When and why does it work? Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 93(5), 819-836.
- Neff, K. D., & McGehee, K. R. (2007). Self-affirmation and the regulation of emotions: A social-cognitive perspective. In S. T. Fiske, D. T. Gilbert, & G. Lindzey (Eds.), Handbook of social psychology (5th ed., Vol. 2, pp. 663-685). John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
- Piff, P. K., Stancato, D. M., Côté, S. J., Mendoza-Denton, R., Keltner, D., & Dovidio, J. F. (2012). Does high social status undermine prosocial behaviour? Current Directions in Psychological Science, 21(3), 131-136.
- The Power Posing technique, as researched by Amy Cuddy, encourages individuals to adopt confident body language and mindset, such as focusing on important values like personality or creativity, before a stressful event, thereby reducing anxious feelings.
- Self-affirmation, a practice aimed at challenging negative self-talk and replacing it with realistic and empowering thoughts, has been found to be effective in reducing anxiety and stress by fostering positive self-beliefs and lowering stress hormone production.
- Sherrie Hurd, a professional writer and artist who manages multiple mental illnesses, is an advocate for mental health awareness and shares her journey of overcoming trauma and coping with mental illness on our website.
- In the realms of science, health-and-wellness, and mental-health, therapies and treatments like Power Posing and self-affirmation offer practical, evidence-supported approaches for mitigating anxiety and stress by altering psychological and physiological responses to perceived threats or challenges, without the necessity of prescription drugs.
