Stress and Coping and Emotions

General Adaptation Syndrome

A three-stage process from Hans Selye's Stress Theory that describes the physiological changes the body undergoes when exposed to stress.

Alarm

The initial fight-or-flight response to a stressor, activating the body's immediate stress response.

Resistance

The stage in which the body adapts to and continues to cope with an ongoing stressor.

Exhaustion

The stage in which the body's resources become depleted due to prolonged or chronic stress.

Emotion-Focused Coping

Coping that addresses and manages the emotional feelings caused by a stressor.

Problem-Focused Coping

Coping that modifies or manages the source of stress through actionable strategies.

Appraisal-Focused Coping

Coping that adjusts thoughts, goals, or values to reframe or reinterpret a stressor.

James-Lange Theory

Emotions arise from physiological arousal. An event triggers a physiological response, which then leads to the experience of emotion.

Cannon-Bard Theory

Emotions and physiological responses occur simultaneously rather than one causing the other. A stimulus triggers both emotional and physiological responses independently.

Schachter-Singer Theory

Also known as the Two-Factor Theory of Emotion; emotions involve both physiological arousal and cognitive interpretation or labeling of that arousal.

Lazarus' Cognitive Appraisal Theory

Emotions result from how a person appraises or evaluates a situation. Cognitive appraisal occurs before the emotional response and influences how the person experiences the event.

Facial Feedback Hypothesis

States that facial expressions can influence emotional experience; feedback from facial muscles can trigger or intensify corresponding emotions.