Respiratory sinus arrhythmia as an index of emotional response in young adults.

The relationship between respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) and valence and arousal remains unclear. In the present study, the associations between emotion responses and tonic or task-related changes in RSA were assessed. Specifically, the sensitivities of changes in interbeat interval, RSA, and skin conductance to the valence and arousal values of emotional stimuli were examined. This study also explored the association between tonic RSA and subjective, expressive, and physiological emotional responses. Response measures were collected from 56 adults during baseline and film-viewing periods. Tonic RSA was not significantly related to any of the response measures. Increased skin conductance and decreased RSA were associated with arousal independent of valence. Interbeat interval was related to affective valence and not arousal. These findings suggest that RSA may be a useful adjunct to skin conductance measures in assessing emotional arousal.