Abstract
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death in the United States, with persistent racial–ethnic disparities disproportionately burdening Black communities. This cross-sectional study examined the relationships between general stress, racism-related stress, coping, and cardiovascular functioning in a sample of 38 Black emerging adult women (ages 18-29), a period before the typical onset of clinical CVD. Participants completed measures of perceived stress, racism-related stress, and coping. Cardiovascular functioning was assessed via estimated cardiorespiratory fitness (VO₂ max) and carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity (cfPWV), a gold-standard measure of arterial stiffness. Results indicated that participants exhibited superior vascular health, with cfPWV values significantly lower than the U.S. and worldwide age-specific means. Participants reported moderate general stress, primarily from feeling “Pushed,” and indicated that their most frequent and stressful racism-related experiences were collective and vicarious. Spirituality was the most endorsed coping strategy, whereas Disengagement was the least used. Regression analyses revealed no significant direct relationships between psychosocial stressors and cardiovascular functioning. This null finding, interpreted through a life-course perspective, suggests that the physiological wear and tear of chronic stress is not yet detectable in this young, resilient cohort and provides a critical empirical baseline consistent with models such as the Weathering Hypothesis. The substantial proportion of variance explained in some models (R² = .21 for arterial stiffness) alongside an ambiguous finding for Interconnectedness coping indicates underlying complex, likely indirect pathways. Future research requires longitudinal designs and larger samples to test sophisticated models, as well as the inclusion of Black men to elucidate how psychosocial stressors translate into the cardiovascular health inequities observed later in life.