Heart rate variability : A possible measure of subjective wellbeing?

Abstract: Wellbeing and subjective wellbeing (SWB) has become some the most important goals of our time, both individually and societally. Thus, there is a need for reliable ways to measure SWB, as concerns regarding many current measures have been raised. Due to the interwoven nature of physiology and psychology, heart rate variability (HRV) has the potential to assess psychological processes in a physiological manner. HRV is an attractive measure since it is inexpensive, easy and non-invasive. Hence, the aim is to, from a cognitive neuroscientific standpoint, investigate whether HRV could serve as an objective measure to assess SWB. Most studies demonstrate associations between HRV and SWB, in particular between high frequency (HF)-HRV and positive affect (PA). However, the one study fully matching the theoretical framework only showed an inverse correlation between HRV and negative affect (NA). Plausibly implying that HRV does not serve as a reliable measure of SWB, but may be able to indicate inverse associations with NA, and possibly index certain aspect of SWB such as deactivated PA. The study of the relationship between HRV and SWB is still in its infancy and results are inconsistent. The lack of common standards regarding measurements, implementation details, and variable values, make results difficult to compare and generalize. Further standardizations and research are much needed before accurate conclusions can be drawn.