My research primarily addresses the influence of individual differences such as personality, cognition, and emotion on the physiological effects of stressors.

I am particularly interested in understanding why higher dispositional optimism predicts lower immune function in situations that involve difficult tasks, stressors, or goals. Potential causes of this effect include self-regulatory pathways such as engagement and persistence. As a consequence, my students and I are currently working on the questions of how optimism and related personality factors (e.g., conscientiousness) affect the way that people approach and pursue their goals, what the costs and benefits of goal pursuit are, and especially how self-regulation affects cardiovascular, neuroendocrine, and immune function.

My students and I are also actively pursuing a line of research on repetitive thought, including worry, rumination, and cognitive processing. This research is currently focused on understanding the structure of repetitive thought, the best ways to measure repetitive thought, and its psychological and physiological consequences. I currently have an NIH-funded longitudinal study of the effects of repetitive thought on psychological and physical health and physiology in older adults.

• Segerstrom, S.C. (2006). Breaking Murphy's Law: How optimists get what they want from life and pessimists can too. New York: Guilford.
• Segerstrom, S.C. (2005). Optimism and immunity: Do positive thoughts always lead to positive effects? Brain, Behavior, and Immunity, 19, 195-200.
• Segerstrom, S.C., & Miller, G.E. (2004). Psychological stress and the human immune system: A meta-analytic study of 30 years of inquiry. Psychological Bulletin, 104, 601-630.
• Segerstrom, S.C., & Solberg Nes, L.* (2007). Heart rate variability indexes self-regulatory strength, effort, and fatigue. Psychological Science, 18, 275-281.
• Segerstrom, S.C., Stanton, A.L., Alden, L.E., & Shortridge, B.E.* (2003). A multidimensional structure for repetitive thought: What’s on your mind, and how, and how much? Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 85, 909-921.

* UK graduate or undergraduate honors student.

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