ORIGINAL ARTICLE Can Hostility Interfere with the Health Benefits of Giving and Receiving Social Support? The Impact of Cynical Hostility on Cardiovascular Reactivity During Social Support Interactions Among Friends Julianne Holt-Lunstad, Ph.D. & Timothy W. Smith, Ph.D. & Bert N. Uchino, Ph.D. Published online: 27 June 2008 # The Society of Behavioral Medicine 2008 Abstract Background Both social support and hostility have been reliably associated with important health outcomes includ- ing coronary heart disease (CHD). One potential pathway by which these variables may influence CHD is via their impact on cardiovascular reactivity (CVR). Although social support has been generally associated with beneficial effects on cardiovascular functioning, the cynicism and mistrust among hostile individuals may prevent them from benefiting from the support process during times of stress. Purpose and Method The present study examined if level of hostility influenced CVR when discussing positive or negative personal experiences with a friend. To test this, healthy males and females and their same-sex friend were recruited (N =216) and randomly assigned to discuss either a positive or negative (stressful) personal experience while cardiovascular measures were recorded. Results and Conclusions Results revealed the greatest systolic blood pressure and diastolic blood pressure reac- tivity among individuals high in hostility when discussing a negative experience. These results suggest that hostility may interfere with the benefits from support transactions during stress. Likewise, this association between hostility and reactivity was apparent for both support recipients and support providers, suggesting that hostility could undermine the health benefits of both aspects of support transactions. Keywords Hostility . Social support . Disclosure . Cardiovascular reactivity . Stress Introduction Both social support and hostility have been reliably associated with various causes of morbidity and mortality, including coronary heart disease (CHD), the number one cause of death for both men and women in the USA and most industrialized countries. Although social support has been generally associated with beneficial effects on cardiovascular func- tioning, the cynicism and mistrust among hostile individuals may prevent such individuals from benefiting from support during times of stress. Unfortunately, this possible interactive effect of social support and hostility has been examined in a preliminary manner with potentially important limitations. For example, most prior research has primarily examined hostility only among males and/or manipulated social support using strangers rather than existing relationships. There is also limited research examining the influence of hostility on social support interactions involving both the seeker/receiver and provider of support. Therefore, the present study examined if level of hostility, among males and females, influenced cardiovascular reactivity when discussing positive or negative (stressful) real-life experiences among friend pairs. Background Numerous studies have garnered support for the role that both hostility and social support play in physical health. ann. behav. med. (2008) 35:319–330 DOI 10.1007/s12160-008-9041-z J. Holt-Lunstad (*) Department of Psychology, Brigham Young University, 1024 SWKT, Provo, UT 84602, USA e-mail: julianne.holt-lunstad@byu.edu T. W. Smith : B. N. Uchino Department of Psychology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA