1. Sample characteristics (N = 109)
Elevated Goal-Striving and Manic Tendencies Predict Systemic Inflammation
1 Iris Ka-Yi Chat, 1 Robin Nusslock, PhD, 2 Daniel P. Moriarity, 2 Madison K. Titone, 2 Tommy H. Ng, 2Naoise MacGiollabhui, 1Gregory E. Miller, PhD, 2 Lauren B. Alloy, PhD
1 Northwestern University, 2 Temple University
BACKGROUND
RESULTS
Bipolar spectrum disorders (BSDs) are associated with elevated sensitivity to reward1 and setting highly ambitious goals1,2
BSDs have been shown to be associated with higher inflammation3
Elevated goal striving tendencies predicted inflammation (higher IL-6/IL-10 ratio)
Manic tendency was associated with all five goal-striving domains
Higher manic tendency was associated with greater inflammation, indirectly through goal striving tendencies
Fame (z = 1.68, p < 0.05 ), wealth (z = 1.86, p < 0.05), and family (z = 2.43, p < 0.01) goal-striving tendencies are more strongly associated with inflammation as compared to the association between friends and inflammation
OBJECTIVE
To examine the relationship between elevated goal-striving tendency, manic tendency, and systemic inflammation
Relationships between manic tendency, goal striving tendencies, and systemic inflammation
METHODS **
*** ** **
***
Goal-Striving tendency: Willingly Approached Set of Statistically Unlikely Pursuits (WASSUP) scale4 – Five domains
Fame, wealth, political influence, family, and friends
Manic tendency: Hypomanic Personality Scale (HPS)5
Manic symptoms: Altman Self-Rating Mania scale (ASRM)6
Serum inflammatory markers:
Collected through an antecubital blood draw
Assayed in duplicate using Meso Scale Discovery Human Pro-inflammatory 7-Plex Base Kits
Inflammatory regulation was modeled by calculating pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokine balance, specifically IL-6:IL-10 ratio
HPS
HPS
HPS
HPS
HPS * * *
Wealth
Fame
Friends
Family
Political Influence
Ratio:
IL-6/IL-10
Wealth
Fame
Ratio:
IL-6/IL-10
Ratio:
IL-6/IL-10
Family
Ratio:
IL-6/IL-10
Friends
Political Influence
Ratio:
IL-6/IL-10
* p < 0.05 ** p < 0.01 *** p < 0.001
Manic tendencies relate to inflammation indirectly through goal striving tendencies
Popular Fame
Wealth
Family
r = 0.26*
r = 0.27*
r = 0.33*
Ratio
IL-6: IL-10
Ratio
IL-6: IL-10
Ratio
IL-6: IL-10
r = 0.44***
r = 0.34**
r = 0.35**
Manic tendency
Manic tendency
Manic tendency
Baseline
6th year Follow up
Blood Draw
ASRM
Study timeline
WASSUP
HPS
Adjusted for sex, BMI, manic symptoms at the baseline and follow-up visit
Note: For friends and political influence domains, the association with manic tendency is significant while the association with ratio IL-6:IL-10 is non-significant
* p < 0.05 ** p < 0.01 *** p < 0.001
CONCLUSIONS
Sample characteristics (N = 109)
This is the first study to demonstrate that elevated goal striving is associated with systemic inflammation
We propose that elevated goal striving tendencies generate stress-induced inflammatory dysregulation and pro-inflammatory behaviors (e.g., drug and alcohol use)
Higher manic tendency is associated with systemic inflammation indirectly through elevated goal striving
Future research should more deeply examine the proposed mechanism
Variable
Percent (N)
Mean +/- SD
Range
Age (years)
/-2.14
Sex
Female
51.4 (56)
Male
48.6 (53)
Race
White
63.3 (69)
Black
23.9 (26)
Asian
9.2 (10)
Latino
0.9 (1)
Biracial
2.8 (3)
REFERENCES
1 Alloy, L. B., Bender, R. E., Whitehouse, W. G., Wagner, C. A., Liu, R. T., Grant, D. A., ... & Abramson, L. Y. (2012). High Behavioral Approach System (BAS) sensitivity, reward responsiveness, and goal-striving predict first onset of bipolar spectrum disorders: a prospective behavioral high-risk design. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 121,
2 Gruber, J., & Johnson, S. L. (2009). Positive emotional traits and ambitious goals among people at risk for mania: the need for specificity. International Journal of Cognitive Therapy, 2, 176–187.
3 Goldstein, B. I., Kemp, D. E., Soczynska, J. K., & McIntyre, R. S. (2009). Inflammation and the phenomenology, pathophysiology, comorbidity, and treatment of bipolar disorder: a systematic review of the literature. The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, 70,
4 Johnson, S. L., & Carver, C. S. (2006). Extreme Goal Setting and Vulnerability to Mania Among Undiagnosed Young Adults. Cognitive Therapy and Research, 30, 377–395.
5 Eckblad, M., & Chapman, L. J. (1986). Development and validation of a scale for hypomanic personality. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 95,
6 Altman, E., Hedeker, D., Peterson, J. L., & Davis, J. M. (2001). A comparative evaluation of three self-rating scales for acute mania. Biological psychiatry, 50,
The authors thank the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) for funding this research through a grant R01MH (Principal Investigator: Lauren Alloy, Ph.D.).