Chapter 11

Question 1

Health Psychology

Answer 1

1) an interdisciplinary field that examines the ways in which health and illness interact with psychology, biology , and society
2) applies psychological principles to promote health and well-being
3) biopsychosocial model–health influenced by psychological factors (thoughts, feelings, beliefs, etc.) social factors (environments, cultural influences, family relationships, social support) biological characters (genetic predispositions, germ exposure, etc.)

Question 2

Leading causes of mortality

Answer 2

1) heart disease
2) cancer
3) stroke
4) lung disease
5) unintentional injuries
6) all reducible though lifestyle and behavioral changes
7) black males have lower avg age of death than white males and males have lower than females

Question 3

Obesity

Answer 3

1) a major health problem that can result from combination of overeating and genetic predisposition
2) no precise def, but >20% overweight is considered obese
3) Body Mass Index–ratio of height to weight
4) heredibility of body weight is 60 to 80 %
5) reduced through diet and exercise

Question 4

Dieting

Answer 4

1) most diets fail because the body’s natural defense against weight loss. “set Point”
2) body responds to weight loss by slowing down metabolism and using less energy
3) “yo-yo” dieters tend to become heavier over time

Question 5

Eating disorders

Answer 5

1) anorexia nervosa–an eating disorder characterized by excessive fear of becoming fat, and, as a result, refusing to eat, very difficult to treat, 15-20% die
2) bulimia nervosa–an eating disorder characterized by cycles of dieting, binge eating, and purging, tend to be average weight or slightly overweight, serious health consequences

Question 6

Smoking

Answer 6

1) most smokers start in childhood or adolescence due to powerful social influences (parents and friends) social stigma

Question 7

Exercise

Answer 7

1) improves mental health by relieving stress and improving mood

Question 8

Stress

Answer 8

1) a pattern of behavioral, psychological, and physiological responses to events
2) distress–caused by negative life events
3) eustress–caused by positive life events
4) major life stressors–changes or disruptions that strain central areas of one’s life
significant life changes (divorce, death)
catastrophes
5) daily-hassles–daily annoyances that cause stress in people’s lives, can add up to be equivalent or greater than major stressors, traffic, etc.

Question 9

HPA (hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal) Axis

Answer 9

stressful event—interpreted by brain regions—hypothalamus—chemical messages to—pituitary gland—releases hormones to—adrenal glands—release cotrisol

Question 10

Fight-or-Flight Response to stress

Answer 10

1) Walter Cannon
2) person’s physiological preparedness to dealing with threats
3) increased heart rate, blood to muscles and brain, deeper respiration, dilation of pupils, increase in glucose released from liver
4) women absent from study

Question 11

Tend-and-Befriend Response to stress

Answer 11

1) Shelley Taylor
2) tendency to care for offspring (tend) and make alliances for strength (befriend)
3) oxytocin key role in bonding, high in women not men
4) typical female response to stress

Question 12

General Adaptation Syndrome (GAD)

Answer 12

1) consistent pattern of response to chronic stress that consists of three parts: alarm, resistance, and exhaustion.
2) alarm–emergency response, low stress resistance
3) resistance–defenses maximized, high stress resistance,
4) exhaustion–defenses fail, sharp decline in stress resistance

Question 13

Impact of stress on immune system

Answer 13

1) alters effects of the immune system
2) short-term stress—boost in immune system
3) long-term stress–weakening of the immune system
3) Cohen 1991 people given cold virus. Those with high stress levels developed worse symptoms than those with low stress levels
4) persistent stress—unhealthy behaviors (direct link to heart disease) or release of hormones–immune suppression, heart disease, sympathetic nervous system effects (headaches, high blood pressure)

Question 14

coping

Answer 14

1) two part appraisal process: primary appraisal–decide whether stimulus is stressful or not, secondary appraisal–evaluate response option and choose coping method
2) anticipatory coping–choosing secondary appraisals in advance of the actual stressful event
3) Emotion-focused coping–prevent emotional response to a stressor (avoid)
4) problem-focused coping–directly confront or minimize stressor (alleviate)
5) positive reappraisals–cognitively focus on the good things in a situation
6) downward comparison–compare yourself to someone worse off
7) creation of positive events–giving ppositive meaning to ordinary events
8) people with hardiness (control, commitment, challenge) or resilience cope well

Question 15

Positive psychology

Answer 15

1) scientific study of virtues that help people thrive (happiness, hope, faith, etc) Martin Seligman
2) focused on overall well-being–success involves relationships and accomplishment and happiness
3) subjective-well being varies across cultures

Question 16

Positive Emotions

Answer 16

1) higher levels of hope and curiosity correlate with lower levels of stress and better immune system functioning
2) Broaden-and-Build theory–positive emotions cause people to consider novel (unique) solutions to their problems

Question 17

Buffering Hypothesis/ Social interaction and health

Answer 17

1) emotional support helps people cope with emotional stress

2) social interaction is beneficial for coping and health

Question 18

Trust, Spirituality, and Health

Answer 18

1) trust increased with oxytocin, correlates to longer lives
2) religious beliefs can buffer against stress and improve health by lowering engagement in unhealthy behaviors and providing a support group