How positive emotions build physical health: perceived positive social connections account for the upward spiral between positive emotions and vagal tone.
Psychological Science July 1, 2013 Bethany E Kok, Kimberly A. Coffey, Michael Cohn et al.
A longitudinal field experiment tested whether generating positive emotions through loving-kindness meditation can improve physical health by strengthening perceptions of social connections. Participants randomly assigned to the meditation group showed increased positive emotions compared to a waiting-list control group, an effect that was stronger for those with higher baseline vagal tone, a measure of physical health. Increased positive emotions led to further increases in vagal tone, and this effect was mediated by greater perceptions of social connections. The findings suggest an upward-spiral dynamic in which positive emotions, social connections, and physical health mutually reinforce each other.