This volume contains contributions presented at the Fourth Internatio nal Workshop on Psychosocial Stress and Coronary Heart Disease (CHD) held in Hoehenried near Munich in July, 1979. The workshop was organized in order to continue and enlarge upon recent discussions concerning empirical evidence and convergence in the field of stress and CHD. Proceedings of the three previous workshops were published in German by Springer-Verlag. The main topic of the 1978 conference was the present state of research in the field of type A behavior and CHD. In addition and in a certain contrast, this present volume concentrates on sociological aspects of stress experience and the development of CHD, especially myocardial infarction. It is thought that a heuristic research device should take into account both situational influences and individual predispositions on a somatic and psychological level. The scope of this book is limited by the research areas represented by the invited participants, and the editors do not claim to give a representative overview, although they include several prominent authorities among the contributors. The final chapter gives a short critical evaluation of the present state of a difficult but promising area of interdisciplinary medical research. For technical reasons discussions held at the workshop could not be included in this volume.
