Aos 1 - How Does The Nervous System Enable Psychological Functioning?

Front 1

Problem-focused coping

Back 1

Strategies to fix the source of the stress.

Front 2

Emotion-focused coping

Back 2

Strategies to deal with emotional responses to stress.

Front 3

Context-specific effectiveness

Back 3

When there is a match between the coping strategy and the stressful situation.

Front 4

Coping flexibility

Back 4

The ability to modify your coping strategies according to different stressful situations.

Front 5

Approach coping strategies

Back 5

Behaviours that attempt to decrease the stress (healthy response, e.g. venting).

Front 6

Avoidance coping strategies

Back 6

Avoiding dealing with the stressor to prevent psychological harm (unhealthy response, e.g. denial).

Front 7

Stress

Back 7

A state of physiological or psychological tension.

Front 8

Acute stress

Back 8

High impact stress that lasts for a short period of time.

Front 9

Chronic stress

Back 9

Long-term stress.

Front 10

Daily pressures

Back 10

Little problems that occur in everyday life that make us upset or angry.

Front 11

Life events

Back 11

Events that involve a change that forces us to adapt to new circumstances.

Front 12

Acculturative stress

Back 12

Experienced when people are adapting to living in a new culture.

Front 13

Major stressors

Back 13

An event that is extremely stressful for everyone who experienced it (directly or indirectly).

Front 14

Catastrophes

Back 14

Unpredictable events that cause widespread damage and/or suffering.

Front 15

Psychological reactions to stress

Back 15

Changes to eating habits, aggression and decreased concentration.

Front 16

Physiological reactions to stress

Back 16

Skin rashes, headaches and heart palpitations.

Front 17

Stress and illness

Back 17

Long-term and/or severe stress makes people more susceptible to illness, it does not cause illness.

Front 18

Cortisol

Back 18

A hormone that is used to energise the body in response to a stressor. Cortisol is only released if a stressor persists. Prolonged release of cortisol causes immune system impairment.

Front 19

Alarm reaction (Shock)

Back 19

When the individual first becomes aware of the stressor. The body acts as if it is injured. Hard to deal with the stress.

Front 20

Alarm reaction (countershock)

Back 20

Resistance to the stressor is increased. Adrenalin is released. Fight-flight response activated.

Front 21

Resistance

Back 21

Above normal resistance to the stressor. Cortisol is released and individual appears normal.

Front 22

Exhaustion

Back 22

Immune system is weak. Prolonged adrenaline has negative effects on the body as it becomes susceptible to illness.

Front 23

Exercise

Back 23

Releases endorphins that reduce feelings of stress, as well as using stress hormones such as adrenaline.

Front 24

Primary appraisal

Back 24

Assess the situation and decide if it is irrelevant, benign-positive or stressful. If stressful, is it harm/loss (distress), threat (distress) or challenge (eustress).

Front 25

Secondary appraisal

Back 25

If stressful, assess resources. Internal (coping strategies) and external (support networks, money).

Front 26

Conscious responses

Back 26

A reaction that involves awareness (voluntary). It is initiated by the somatic nervous system.

Front 27

Unconscious responses

Back 27

Reactions that do not involve awareness (involuntary). They are initiated by the autonomic nervous system.

Front 28

The spinal reflex

Back 28

An involuntary and unconscious response to a certain stimulus. Initiated by the spinal cord and does not require input from the brain.

Front 29

Stages of the spinal reflex

Back 29

Receptor site, sensory neuron sends information to spinal cord, interneurons receive and transmits to motor neurons, motor neuron travels to effector site (muscle), response occurs.

Front 30

Neural communication

Back 30

The transmission of neural information between neurons.

Front 31

Excitatory effects

Back 31

Caused by excitatory neurotransmitters that cause a neuron to fire and stimulate a response.

Front 32

Inhibitory effects

Back 32

Caused by inhibitory neurotransmitters that stop a neuron from firing and inhibit responses.

Front 33

Glutamate

Back 33

Produces excitatory effects. Essential for memory formation and learning.

Front 34

GABA

Back 34

Produces inhibitory effects. Essential for motor control, vision and decreasing anxiety.

Front 35

Dopamine (in Parkinson's)

Back 35

Dopamine from the substantia nigra carries messages on how the body's movements are controlled.

Front 36

Parkinson's disease

Back 36

Progressive degeneration of the nervous system characterised by tremor and muscle rigidity.

Front 37

Lock-and-key process

Back 37

Each neurotransmitter (the 'key') binds to specific to each receptor site (the 'lock') on the dendrite of the post-synaptic neuron to stimulate a response (excitatory or inhibitory).

Front 38

L-Dopa

Back 38

Temporary because reduced levels of GABA also impact. Mimics dopamine or coverts other neurotransmitters into dopamine.

Front 39

Function of adrenaline and noradrenaline as hormones

Back 39

Circulate in the bloodstream to activate various organs such as the heart, lungs, liver and kidneys, resulting in the bodily changes of the FF response.