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U2 Health Psychology > Lecture 7 Stress > Flashcards

Lecture 7 Stress Flashcards

1
Q

What is Stress?

A

Stress is a negative emotional experience accompanied by predictable biochemical, physiological, cognitive, and behavioural changes that are directed either toward altering the stressful event or accommodating to its effects (Baum, 1990).

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2
Q

Definition of Stressor

A 
chemical or biological agent
environmental condition,
external stimulus or 
event 
that causes stress to an organism (Sato et al., 2006)
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3
Q

Types of Stressors

A

physical
psychological
acute
chronic

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4
Q

explain physical stressors

A

all animals (human and not): e.g., heat, cold, pain, fatigue, injury, hunger, predators.

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5
Q

explain psychological stressors

A

generally only humans: e.g., grades, job security, money, relationships, traffic, noise, crowding, commuting to work

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6
Q

explain acute stressors

A

demand immediate attention
But do not last long
appear suddenly
many physical stressors are acute

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7
Q

explain chronic stressors

A

do not require immediate attention
but last a long time and are constant source of worry
most psychological stressors are chronic

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8
Q

Hassles are minor life events that …

A 
Have cumulative effect
Reduce psychological well-being over short term
Produce physical symptoms in long term
Examples:
Being stuck in traffic
Waiting in line
Doing household chores
Having difficulty making a small decision
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9
Q

who was the discoverer of the “Stress Syndrome”

A

Hans Selye

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10
Q

explain General Adaptation Syndrome that Selye researched

A

Exposed rats to stressors; observed physiological responses
Found: all stressors, regardless of type, produced physiological responses:
Enlarged adrenal cortex
Adrenocortical response to stress (involves cortex)
Shrunken thymus and lymph nodes
Ulceration of the stomach and duodenum
Resembles: Activation of HPA axis

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11
Q

what does General Adaptation Syndrome most closely resemble

A

Activation of HPA axis

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12
Q

explain the General Adaptation Syndrome

A

non-specific response of the body to demand

Three stages:

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13
Q

what are the 3 stages of the General Adaptation syndrome

A

Alarm: organism becomes mobilized to meet demand
Resistance: organism makes efforts to cope
Exhaustion: organism fails to cope; depletes its physiological resources

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14
Q

what does Allostatic Load refer to

A

to fact that physiological systems within the body fluctuate to meet demands from stress  called allostasis

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15
Q

EXPLAIN Allostatic Load

A

Based on Selye’s ideas

Process of achieving stability, or homeostasis, through physiological or behavioral change

Over time, allostatic load builds up
physiological costs of chronic exposure to fluctuating or heightened neural or neuroendocrine responses

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16
Q

what are the Allostatic Load Measurement/biomarkers

A 
Decreases in cell-mediated immunity
Inability to shut off cortisol in response to stress
Lowered heart rate variability
Elevated epinephrine levels
High waist-to-hip ratio
Decreased hippocampal volume
Problems with memory
High plasma fibrinogen
Elevated blood pressure
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17
Q

what are the General Adaptation Syndrome criticisms

A

According to its critics, Selye’s model:
Does not consider psychological appraisal of stress (he tested rats!)
Assumes that responses to stress are uniform, but:
Not all stressors produce same endocrinological responses
How people respond influenced by personality, perception, biological constitution

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18
Q

explain stress appraisal Richard Lazarus & Susan Folkman

A

What matters is not what event occurs, but how we perceive and interpret that event.
appraisal

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19
Q

what are the steps to the The Stress Appraisal Process

A 
primary appraisal
secondary appraisal
stress
coping
repraisal
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20
Q

explain primary appraisal from The Stress Appraisal Process

A 
evaluate:
Is it
Positive, negative, or neutral? 
If negative, is it:
Harmful, threatening or challenging?
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21
Q

explain secondary appraisal from The Stress Appraisal Process

A

evaluate if you have Sufficient coping abilities and resources?

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22
Q

what is Holmes & Rahe: Stressful Life Events (SLE)

A

tries to list what stressful events one will go through in their lifetime

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23
Q

what are the criticism on the stressful life events

A

Fails to consider individual differences in experience and reporting of events
(Primary appraisal)

Does not assess whether resolved or not
(Secondary appraisal)

Does not include ongoing life strain (chronic stress)

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24
Q

what are Contextual Threat Interviews

A

Semi-structured clinical interviews
Major life events and chronic stressors by domain (8)
E.g. school/work,peers, romantic, family,health, body image, money
Blind team assessment of OBJECTIVE impact for the average person in the same context

25
Q

what are the advantages of Contextual Threat Interviews

A

Reduce subjective biases
Assess objective impact
Culturally sensitive by-default

26
Q

what are the disadvantages of Contextual Threat Interviews

A

Labour intensive, training & administering

Expensive & long

27
Q

explain Shelley Taylor et al. (2000): Tend-and-Befriend

A

Proposition: males and females have different stress responses; each adaptive for that sex

28
Q

explain the male response to stress according to tend-and-befriend

A

Males: fight-or-flight, activated by testosterone

29
Q

explain the female response to stress according to tend-and-befriend

A

Females: tend-and-befriend, activated by oxytocin
Tending: Nurturing activities, to protect offspring
Befriending: Seeking social support
befriend component brings social behaviour into stress processes

30
Q

what are the Tend-and-Befriend Evolutionary Arguments

A

male and female stress responses were adaptive for their gender roles at the time:
Men responsible for hunting and protection
Women responsible for foraging and child care
Women’s responses to stress (tend-and-befriend) evolved to protect not only themselves, but their offspring as well

31
Q

what are the Tend-and-Befriend Criticisms

A

Misogynistic, reflects societal sexism
Ignores cultural factors that contribute to gender differences
Men also tend and befriend, women also fight and flee
Determining factor: situation

Reductionistic – reducing reaction to biological mechanism (oxytocin)
Reinforces gender stereotypes

32
Q

What are predictors of stress?

A

Increase likelihood of stress happening

Called: Vulnerabilities

33
Q

What are moderators of stress:

A

Increase or decrease strength of relationship between stressful conditions and outcomes, e.g., getting sick

34
Q

explain Vulnerability Factors of stress

A

Cognitive: self-esteem, locus-of-control, perceived self-competency
Interpersonal: dependency, attachment style, reassurance seeking
Personality: perfectionism, self-criticism, neuroticism

35
Q

Perfectionism associated with:

A

high stress
the practice of fewer wellness-promoting behaviours
an increase in the risk of mortality among older adults

36
Q

Two of the most important factors that moderate the strength of the relationship between stress and negative outcomes are what

A

Coping

Social Support

37
Q

Moderators of the stress experience may have an impact on:

A

Stress itself
The relationship between stress and illness
The relationship between stress and psychological responses
How much a stressful experience affects other aspects of a person’s life

38
Q

define coping

A

Thoughts and behaviours used to manage the external and internal demands of a stressor

39
Q

the Coping definition is: good why

A

Dynamic:
Focuses on ongoing set of responses by which person and environment are involved in reciprocal interaction
Objective:
Includes resources that individual has available to face the situation
Subjective:
Includes beliefs that individual has in their own ability to cope

40
Q

what are Coping Styles

A

General way person tends to cope with stressors
E.g.: Approach- vs. avoidance-oriented
Approaching: confrontative, vigilant
Avoidance: minimizing, e.g. through distraction

41
Q

what are the two main coping styles

A

Approach- vs. avoidance-oriented

42
Q

Benefits and Costs of

Approach coping:

A

may lead to short-term anxiety
but good coping with long-term stressors
works when specific actions can reduce stressor

43
Q

benefits and costs of Avoidant coping

A

benefit when stress is overwhelming (reduces intense emotions)
but does not reduce demands of stressor

44
Q

what are some Coping Strategies

A

Problem-focused coping

Emotion-focused coping

45
Q

what is Problem-focused coping

A

Doing something constructive about negative events to reduce demands
Good when demands of situation relatively manageable

46
Q

what is Emotion-focused coping

A

Attempting to regulate emotions

Helpful when low control over stressor or low available resources

47
Q

Factor Influencing Coping:

A

Optimism vs. Pessimism

48
Q

explain Optimism

A

More problem-focused coping, seeking social support, emphasizing positive aspects of stressful situation

49
Q

explain Pessimism

A

Denial and distancing from event, focusing on stressful feelings
pessimistic explanatory style: interpreting negative events in terms of internal, stable, and global factors
Reduced capacity to cope with stress

50
Q

what are the different forms of Social Support: Buffer of Stress

A

Instrumental support
Informational support
Emotional support

51
Q

define Instrumental support

A

Involves the provision of material support

52
Q

define Informational support

A

The provision of information to a person going through stress by friends, family, and other people in the individual’s social network

53
Q

define Emotional support

A

The assurance that one is a valuable individual who is cared for

54
Q

is there a link between Social Support and Optimism

A

Brissette, Scheier, and Carver (2002)
University students who were optimists coped more effectively with the transition to university
Why?
They were more likely to use seeking social support as a coping strategy

55
Q

what is the link between the Social Support and HPA axis

A

Supportive companion present during a stressful situation
Subdued HPA axis response
Thought to be due to release of oxytocin

56
Q

Effects of Stress on Immune Function

A

lower immune functioning an this leads to chronic diseases

57
Q

what appears to increase immune function during stress

A

regular exercise

58
Q

explain Coping with Stress: Stress Inoculation Training

A

Identify what events cause stress
Teaching variety of techniques to deal with these events
Trying techniques to identify what works best

U2 Health Psychology (20 decks)

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