Psy 101 Ch 14 Stress

Front 1

Stress

Back 1

Physical and psychological response to internal and external stressors

Front 2

Stressors

Back 2

Specific events or chronic pressures that place demands on a person or threaten the person's well-being

Front 3

Health psychology

Back 3

Subfield of psychology concerned with ways psychological factors influence the causes and treatment of physical illness and the maintenance of health

Front 4

Chronic stressors

Back 4

Sources of stress that occur continuously or repeatedly

Effects can accumulate and be long-lasting

Chronic stressors have been shown to be linked to environments through environmental psychology

Front 5

Perceived control over stressful events

Back 5

Stressors challenge you to do something about it

Having lack of control over the situation can add to the stress

Perceived control over stressful events can be related to more effective coping

Front 6

Stress Reactions

Back 6

Stress can produce changes in every system of the body and mind, stimulating both physical reactions and psychological reactions

Severe stress significantly accelerates the aging process

Stressors can cause hormones (glucocorticoids) to flood the brain wearing down the immune system and making it less able to fight invaders

The heart and circulatory system are also sensitive to stress

Research links intensity, drive, anger and hostility to increased rates of heart disease

The heart and circulatory system are also sensitive to stress

Front 7

Fight-or-flight response

Back 7

Emotional and physiological reaction to an emergency that increases readiness for action

Brain activation in response to threat occurs in the hypothalamus, stimulating the nearby pituitary gland, which in turn releases ACTH, the HPA axis, catecholamines, and cortisol

Front 8

General adaptation Syndrome (GAS)

Back 8

Three-stage physiological stress response that appears, regardless of stressor encountered

Alarm phase: rapid mobilization

Resistance phase: adaptation and coping

Exhaustion phase: collapse

Front 9

Telomeres

Back 9

Caps at the end of each chromosome that protect the ends of chromosomes and prevent them from sticking to each other

Front 10

Telomerase

Back 10

Enzyme that rebuilds telomeres at the tips of chromosomes

Front 11

Immune system

Back 11

Complex response system that protects the body from bacteria, viruses, and other foreign substances

Front 12

Psychoneuroimmunology

Back 12

Study of how the immune system responds to psychological variables

Front 13

Atherosclerosis

Back 13

Gradual narrowing of the arteries that occurs as fatty deposits or plaque, build up on the inner walls of the arteries

Front 14

Type A behavior pattern

Back 14

Tendency toward easily aroused hostility, impatience, a sense of time urgency, and competitive achievement strivings

Front 15

Primary appraisal

Back 15

Interpretation of stimulus as stressful or not

Front 16

Secondary appraisal

Back 16

Determination of whether the stressor is something that can be handled or not

Front 17

Threat

Back 17

Stressor you believe that might not be overcome (negative appraisal)

Front 18

Challenge

Back 18

Stress you feel fairly confident you can control (positive appraisal)

Front 19

Burnout

Back 19

A state of physical, emotional, and mental exhaustion created by long-term involvement in an emotionally demanding situation and accompanied by lowered performance and motivation

Front 20

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)

Back 20

Disorder characterized by chronic physical arousal, recurrent unwanted thoughts or images of the trauma, and avoidance of things that call the traumatic event to mind

Front 21

Stress management: dealing with it

Back 21

A significant part of stress management is control of the mind

Stress often manifests itself through bodily symptoms; bodily techniques such as meditation, relaxation therapy, biofeedback, and aerobic exercise are useful in its management

The value of social support in protecting against stress

Spirituality has been observed to be helpful in a wide range of areas

Humor can help with stress coping

Directing attention toward the body or away from it can influence the symptoms we perceive

Front 22

Repressive coping

Back 22

Avoiding situations or thoughts that are reminders of a stressor and maintaining an artificially positive viewpoint

Front 23

Rational coping

Back 23

Facing a stressor and working to overcome it

Three step process: acceptance, exposure, understanding

Front 24

Reframing

Back 24

Finding a new or creative way to think about a stressor that reduces a threat

Front 25

Stress inoculation training (SIT)

Back 25

Reframing technique that helps people cope with stressful situations by developing positive ways to think about situation

Front 26

Meditation

Back 26

Practice of intentional contemplation

Front 27

Relaxation therapy

Back 27

Technique for reducing tension by consciously relaxing muscles of the body

Front 28

Relaxation response

Back 28

Condition of reduced muscle tension, cortical activity, heart rate, breathing rate, and blood pressure

Front 29

Biofeedback

Back 29

Use of an external monitoring device to obtain information about a bodily function and possibly gain control over that function

Front 30

Aerobic exercise

Back 30

Exercise that increases heart rate and oxygen intake for sustained period

May increase serotonin and endorphins

Keeps the body fit and healthy

Front 31

Social support

Back 31

Aid gained through interacting with others

Can offer help in times of stress

Being in relationships correlates with mental health

Women are more likely to seek support under stress

Front 32

Oxytocin effects

Back 32

Triggers social responses: a tendency to seek out social contacts, nurture others, and create and maintain cooperative groups

lowers stress

boosts the warm fuzzies

Front 33

Sickness response

Back 33

Coordinated, adaptive set of reactions to illness organized by brain; can be prompted through stress without infection

Withdrawal from activity and eating to conserve energy to fight illness

Immune response begins activation of white cells

Release of cytokines

Front 34

Cytokines

Back 34

Proteins that activate vagus nerve and induce "I am sick" message

Front 35

Sick role

Back 35

Socially recognized set of rights and obligations linked to illness; exemptions and obligations

Front 36

Malingering

Back 36

Feigning medical or psychological symptoms to achieve something one wants

Front 37

Optimism

Back 37

Presence of positive future expectancies predict positive health outcomes

Optimism (seeing the sunny side of every situation) is healthier than pessimism (expecting things to go wrong)

Front 38

Hardness

Back 38

Stress-resistant group characteristics include commitment, control, and challenge

Hardy individuals who are thick-skinned (committed, in control, accept challenges) tend to handle stress better and are healthier