Relations between heart rate and precursors: A replication and extension of prior research

Abstract

Previous research on the relation between heart rate patterns and severe behavior has yielded mixed findings. Specifically, some studies have identified distinct heart rate patterns surrounding challenging behavior, whereas others have found it to be an unreliable predictor. Notably, the relation between heart rate and precursors remains largely unexplored. It remains unclear whether changes in heart rate surrounding severe behavior are due to physical exertion or physiological arousal. The purpose of the current study was to (a) replicate Fritz et al. (2013) to identify precursors to aggression, (b) replicate and extend the methodology of McCabe and Greer (2023) by comparing heart rate surrounding precursors to differing levels of motor activity, and (c) examine the relations between heart rate and precursors to aggression during a precursor functional analysis. Results were idiosyncratic across participants when analyzing heart rate before and after precursors.