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How do you experience the world around you? Do sounds, emotions, and sensations affect you more strongly than others? In their latest study, Christienne Damatac and Corina Greven from the Department of Cognitive Neuroscience explore how being more sensitive to the environment is linked to mental and physical health. Their findings reveal that individuals with higher sensitivity report more mental and physical health complaints. However, both positive and negative environments influence these associations, highlighting the importance of supportive surroundings.
Understanding Sensory Processing Sensitivity
Sensory processing sensitivity (SPS) is a normally distributed personality trait describing how deeply individuals process sensory and emotional information. Around 20-30% of people are considered “highly sensitive.” This trait is characterised by heightened awareness of environmental subtleties, increased emotional reactivity and empathy, and a greater tendency for overstimulation. A deeper understanding of high sensitivity can help individuals harness their strengths while mitigating potential challenges.
Study Insights: Sensitivity, Health, and the Environment
This study is among the first to use data from the Nijmegen-based Healthy Brain Study, a large deep-phenotyping database of individuals in their thirties. Funded by a Reinier Post Foundation pre-seed subsidy, the research analysed questionnaire data from 252 participants, covering sensitivity, mental and physical health, well-being, neurodevelopmental traits, environment, and personality.
Key findings include:
- Higher sensitivity was linked to increased burnout, anxiety symptoms, and physical health complaints, even after controlling for the established risk factor Neuroticism.
- Sensitivity was not associated with higher ADHD or autism traits, but there were some correlations at the subscale level.
- Environment matters: In negative environments, higher sensitivity was linked to more autistic traits. In contrast, in positive environments with strong social support, it was linked to higher life satisfaction.
These findings suggest that high sensitivity can lead to different outcomes depending on the environment. Supportive surroundings help highly sensitive individuals flourish, whereas negative environments may impact them more strongly than the general population.
Future Applications and Radboudumc Initiatives
High sensitivity could serve as a transdiagnostic marker for identifying individuals at risk of mental and physical health challenges. By fostering positive environments and providing early interventions, we may reduce burnout and improve well-being.
Within Radboudumc, several initiatives support high sensitivity and neurodiversity:
- The high sensitivity working group develops structured approaches to help highly sensitive employees use their strengths constructively. This includes information and -launching later this year- coaching.
- The recently launched neurodiversity network SUNNI (Samen Uniek: Network voor Neurodiversiteit) connects neurodiverse employees and facilitates knowledge exchange between employees and researchers. The first gathering will take place in February.
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