chapter 14 - stress, coping, and health

Question 1

define stress

Answer 1

a state brought on by situations that threatens or appears to threaten our sense of well-being or challenges our ability to cope

Question 2

define a stressor

Answer 2

a situation or circumstance that triggers a stress response

Question 3

define an acute stressor

Answer 3

acute stressors are stressful situations that is short-term and has a definitive endpoint (e.g. final exam period)

Question 4

define a chronic stressor

Answer 4

a stressor that is long term, lacks a definitive endpoint (e.g. living in poverty)

Question 5

what are the two factors that stress is typically caused/mediated by?

Answer 5

threat perception and appraisal of ability to cope (how well we think we can handle a situation)

Question 6

what are the ways in which you can experience stress?

Answer 6

1. feeling frustrated
2. feeling conflicted
3. feeling pressured
4. feeling endangered
   cepf

Question 7

define frustration

Answer 7

the feeling experienced when we are thwarted in pursuit of a goal

Question 8

define pressure

Answer 8

the expectation or demand to act in a certain way

Question 9

what is pressure to conform vs pressure to perform?

Answer 9

conform: to act in a way which is expected
perform: to do well and succeed

Question 10

define conflict

Answer 10

when two or more goals or impulses are incompatible

Question 11

what is approach-approach conflict?

Answer 11

when you have to choose between two equally desirable options (e.g. 2 good job offers)

Question 12

what is approach-avoidance conflict?

Answer 12

when one choice has both pros and cons (e.g. good job offer but you need to relocate)

Question 13

what is avoidance-avoidance conflict?

Answer 13

when you have to choose between two equally undesirable options (e.g. bad job offer or unemployment)

Question 14

describe daily hassles (micro-stressors)

Answer 14

everyday annoyances that can contribute to high stress levels (with the cumulative effect)

Question 15

what is the Daily Hassles Scale?

Answer 15

it measures how many daily hassles a person has experienced in the last month and asks them to rate how stressful each of them felt

Question 16

what is the relationship between change and illness?

Answer 16

the more life changes a person experiences the higher their risk of illness

Question 17

what are some of the most common stressors in adulthood?

Answer 17

death of spouse, divorce, jail terms

Question 18

what are some of the most common stressors as university students?

Answer 18

death of a loved one, exams, grad school, being the victim of a crime

Question 19

what are some of the most common stressors in childhood?

Answer 19

tests, homework, being left out, being bullied (physical illness is less important from 5-12)

Question 20

define post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)

Answer 20

an anxiety disorder that develops in response to trauma
- can involve lingering, persistent, and frightening thoughts, memories, dreams of the event

Question 21

what are chronic negative situations?

Answer 21

living in a war zone, poverty, chronic illness, negative home life, etc.

Question 22

what is the stereotype threat?

Answer 22

a person of a minority group having vigilance when interacting with majority groups

Question 23

what is the role of the sympathetic nervous system?

Answer 23

it controls the body’s fight-or-flight response and stimulates organs

Question 24

describe the HPA pathway of the flight-or-flight response

Answer 24

• hypothalamus
• pituitary gland (releases ACTH)
• adrenal cortex (releases cortisol)
• increases blood sugar, metabolism -> increased energy

Question 25

describe the SNS pathway of the flight-or-flight response

Answer 25

- sympathetic nervous system - stimulates the adrenal medulla (releases norepinephrine and epinephrine) - causes a rise in heart rate, blood pressure, respiration, muscle tension - > increased energy

Question 26

what are the three stages of the general adaptation syndrome by Selye?

Answer 26

1. alarm (fight-or-flight activates) 2. resistance (body attempts to stabilize itself, becomes vulnerable to illness) 3. exhaustion (depleted of energy)

Question 27

what is primary appraisal?

Answer 27

analyzing a stressor to determine the severity of it

Question 28

what is secondary appraisal?

Answer 28

analyzing personal resources and our ability to deal with a stressor

Question 29

what are the four factors that influence our individual responses to stress

Answer 29

1. autonomic reactivity (how easily autonomic nervous system is activated) 2. explanatory style (the manner in which we explain events - optimistic or pessimistic) 3. personality type 4. social support

Question 30

what is an optimistic brand of pessimism?

Answer 30

expecting things to go wrong but hoping they won't

Question 31

what is a defensive pessimist?

Answer 31

anticipate negative outcomes to protect themselves but holds out hope that things will go right

Question 32

what is a hardy-stress resistant personality?

Answer 32

a person who welcomes change, willingness to commit and take control of life

Question 33

what are the different personality types?

Answer 33

type a: competitiveness, impatience, anger, hostility (coronary-prone personality) type b: less aggressive and hostile than type a type c: has difficulty expressing and acknowledging negative feelings type d: worry, gloominess, social inhibition

Question 34

what is opening-up meditation?

Answer 34

clearing the mind, seeking new experiences, envisioning oneself in another body

Question 35

what is concentrative meditation?

Answer 35

concentrating on a mantra (word, object, phrase, idea)

Question 36

what is lashing out?

Answer 36

hurting someone intentionally, harms social network

Question 37

what is a repressive coping style?

Answer 37

denying negative emotions and trying to push them out of awareness, masking stress without doing anything to fix it

Question 38

what is problem-focused coping?

Answer 38

dealing directly with the stressor, changing it in some way (e.g. studying when stressed out about an exam)

Question 39

what is emotion-focused coping?

Answer 39

changing feelings about a stressor (e.g. focusing on the positives, altering mindset) (aka. cognitive reappraisal)

Question 40

what are psychosomatic and psychosocial disorders?

Answer 40

they are caused by an interaction between psychological factors (stress) and biological factors (e.g. asthma, ulcers, heart disease, migraines)

Question 41

what is psychoneuroimmunology?

Answer 41

it studies the links between stress, the immune system and health

Question 42

what are lymphocytes?

Answer 42

white blood cells that destroy foreign invaders, part of the immune system

Question 43

what is the function of norepinephrine?

Answer 43

it increases lymphocyte activity in low stress, but lowers it in prolonged stress

Question 44

what is the function of cortisol?

Answer 44

lowers immune system functioning in high stress situations, but increases it in low stress situations

Question 45

what do cytokines do?

Answer 45

in low/early stress, fights infection in high stress, causes inflammation, heart disease, stroke

Question 46

what is distress vs eustress?

Answer 46

distress: caused by unpleasant situations eustress: the optimal level of stress to benefit health

Question 47

what is inoculation?

Answer 47

exposure to low stress to improve later performance in more stressful situations (e.g. military training)