O2 consumption,heart rate and subjective ratings under conditions of relaxation and active coping

Oxygen consumption, respiratory rate, minute volume, heart rate (HR) and subjective ratings from 12 graduate students were monitored under conditions of relaxation and active coping. The controlled, within-Ss, cross-over design consisted of the two experimental conditions alternating between three control periods. The relaxation condition consisted of an autogenic procedure which the Ss had practiced daily for more than a week. The active-coping condition involved avoidance of an aversive noise during a reaction-time task. In terms of O₂ consumption, there was a slight (3%) but nonsignificant decrease during relaxation. There was a trend for HR to increase during active coping, although this finding was attenuated by the presence of a subset of Ss who responded with a marked and unexpected decrease in HR under this condition. Subjective ratings obtained at 1-min intervals throughout the experiment indicated that the Ss achieved significant levels of subjective relaxation during the procedure. The results of the study failed to support the presence of a hypometabolic state during relaxation as proposed by Benson.