Fight or Flight Response

Question 1

What is the Fight or Flight Response?

Answer 1

• Short term response to stress.
• Body becomes physically aroused to fight an aggressor or flee.
• Short term stressors involve activity of 2 divisions of autonomic nervous system.
  1. Sympathetic nervous system - responsible for raising levels of emotional arousal.
  2. Parasympathetic nervous system - returns body back to normal functioning

Question 2

Response to acute stress - Step 1

Answer 2

• ANS and endocrine system work together.
• Example, how the body responds to stress.
• When a stressor is perceived, ANS becomes activated and changes from normal to resting state to be physiologically aroused.
• Said to be in a sympathetic state.

Question 3

Response to acute stress - Step 2

Answer 3

• Pituitary gland releases ACTH hormone.

Question 4

Response to acute stress - Step 3

Answer 4

• ACTH causes adrenal glands to release adrenaline into bloodstream.
• Causes a series of physical changes in the body such as increased heart rate which creates physiological arousal necessary for the fight or flight response.
• Allows body’s defensive reactions to be maintained in danger.
• Digestion is halted to increase supply of oxygen and glucose to brain and body.
• Changes explain why stress, panic or excitement is experienced as feeling sick or having butterflies.

Question 5

• Response to acute stress - Step 4

Answer 5

• Once danger is over, body calms itself down using parasympathetic branch.
• Branch reverses activities associated with sympathetic branch.
• Parasympathetic system acts as a break and reduces activities of the body that were increased by actions of sympathetic branch. Rest and Digest.

Question 6

Evaluation of research into fight or flight response - biological evidence

Answer 6

• Biological supprt.
• Hans Selye exposed rats to various stressors including cold temperatures, cutting of spinal cords, excessive exercise, high doses of drugs. Found that no matter what was done to rats, response to stress was the same. Study profoundly influenced scientific study of stress.
• Strength - gives empirical evidence for fight or flight response.

Question 7

Evaluation of research into fight or flight response - universal response

Answer 7

• Response is universal for all mammals.
• Anybody who encounters a stressful situation will experience the same physiological symptoms of the response i.e. pupils dilate, increased heart rate regardless of gender.
• Strength - allows us to predict how body will react and attempt to deal with stressful situation.

Question 8

Evaluation of research into fight or flight response - tend and befriend

Answer 8

• Taylor et al suggests that female response to stress is best explained by a pattern of tend and befriend rather than fight or flight.
• Protecting themselves as well as their offspring through nurturing and forming protective unions with fellow females. If females were to flee the scene, it would place their yound at risk. Studies with rats have found that oxytocin prevents flight in response to stress.
• Weakness - assumes male and females have different response to stress and release different hormones.

Question 9

Evaluation of research into fight or flight response - Gender biased research

Answer 9

• Majority of human research into acute stress response has been carried out solely on males.
• Weakness - ignores stress response in females, not giving them an accurate picture.

Question 10

Evaluation of research into fight or flight response - animal research

Answer 10

• Research is conducted on animals.
• Animals and humans are not the same.
• Studies do not follow animal ethical code of conduct.
• Weakness - research can not be applied to humans.

Question 11

Evaluation of research into fight or flight response - oversimplified

Answer 11

• Gray believes initial response to stress is not characterised by fight or flight but by a desire to avoid confrontation. Prior to fleeing, most animals display the freeze response. Response focuses attention and should lead to the organism making the best response for that specific danger.
• Weakness - shows than rather than dealing or running away from stress we freeze to think about what to do next.