Health Psych Final Exam

health

complete state of physical, mental, and social well being

health psychology

a field of study that focuses on the role of psychology in maintaining health, as well as preventing and treating illness

intersectionality

how different systems of oppression may interact and mutually reinforce each other

health disparities

inequitable and related to the historical and current unequal distribution of social, political, economic, and environmental resources

biomedical model

reduces illness to low-level processes such as disordered cells and chemical imbalances, fails to recognize social and psychological influences on health

biopsychosocial model

health and illness are consequences of the interplay of biopsychosocial factors, emphasizes that many processes interact to influence health and illness

epidemiology

study of the frequency, distribution, and causes of infectious and noninfectious disease in a population

morbidity

number of cases of a disease that exist at some given point in time

mortality

numbers of deaths due to particular causes

prevalence rates

proportion of the population that has a particular disease at a particular time

incidence rates

the frequency of new cases of the disease during a year

correlation coefficient

the statistical measure of the association between variables, represented with a lower case r; positive indicate change in same direction, negative show change in opposite direction

experimental design

independent variable is manipulated (seen as the cause), dependent variable influenced by the cause

randomized control trials

where one group gets an experimental drug or intervention treatment and a second unknowingly gets a placebo (the control group)

cross-sectional design

studies sample a large number of people

prospective designs

following disease-free participants over a period to determine whether certain variables predict disease

retrospective design

study participants past history (studying participants with a disease and tracing their histories of health behavior to determine cause)

nervous system

made up of central nervous system and peripheral nervous system

central nervous system

made up of brain and spinal cord: carries voluntary nerve impulses to skeletal muscles and skin; carries involuntary impulses to muscles and glands

peripheral nervous system

made up of somatic nervous system and autonomic nervous system

somatic nervous system

controls voluntary movement

autonomic nervous system

controls organs that operate involuntary; made up of sympathetic nervous system and parasympathetic nervous system

sympathetic nervous system

mobilizes the body for action

parasympathetic nervous system

maintains and restores equilibrium

hindbrain

medulla, pons, cerebellum

medulla

regulates heart rate, blood pressure, and respiration

pons

helps control respiration

cerebellum

coordinates voluntary muscle movement and the maintenance of balance and equilibrium, and muscle tone and posture

midbrain

responsible for the coordination of visual and auditory reflexes

forebrain

thalamus, hypothalamus, cerebral cortex

limbic system

plays an important role in stress and emotional responses

amygdala

detection of threat

hippocampus

detection of emotionally charged memories

hypothalamus

areas in this are related to emotional functioning

disorders of the nervous system

epilepsy, cerebral palsy, parkinsons, multiple sclerosis, Huntington’s, polio, paraplegia, quadriplegia, dementia

endocrine system

made up of ductless glands that secrete hormones into the blood, stimulating changes in target organs, regulated by the hypothalamus and pituitary gland

pituitary gland

consists of the posterior pituitary lobe and the anterior pituitary lobe

disorders of the endocrine system

diabetes (body becomes incapable of manufacturing or properly using insulin) forms are type 1 (autoimmune) and type 2 (disease of lifestyle)

left atrium and left ventricle of heart

take in oxygenated blood from the lungs and pump it out into the aorta

right atrium and right ventricle

pump blood back to the lungs via the pulmonary artery

cardiac cycle

regular rhythmic phases of contraction and relaxation; phases are systole (heart beating) and diastole (heart resting)

atherosclerosis

arteries are narrowed by plaques formed from the deposits of cholesterol and other substances

angina pectoris

heart has insufficient supply of oxygen or inadequate removal of carbon dioxide and other waste

myocardial infarction (MI)

clot in a coronary vessel blocks the flow of blood to the heart

ischemia

characterized by lack of blood flow and oxygen to heart muscle

congestive heart failure

heart’s delivery of oxygen-rich blood is inadequate

arrhythmia

irregular beatings of the heart leading to loss of consciousness and sudden death

blood pressure

force that blood exerts against blood vessel walls, highest during systole, lowest during diastole

plasma

contains plasma proteins, and plasma electrolytes, and the substances transported by the blood

cells

white blood cells, lymphocytes, red blood cells, and platelets (block small holes that develop in blood vessels and play important role in blood clotting)

respiratory system

brings in oxygen through inspiration (lungs expand) and eliminates carbon dioxide through expiration (reduces lung volume)

digestive system

Food moves from stomach → small intestine → large intestine → rectum, with each organ taking on a specific part of digestion: chemical breakdown, nutrient absorption, water recovery, and waste removal.

stomach

uses gastric acid and secretions to begin breaking food apart

small intestine

releases enzymes that break proteins into amino acids and absorb most nutrients

large intestine

stores leftover material and reabsorbs water, forming solid waste

rectum

when feces enter, it triggers the expulsion of waste from the body

kidneys

regulate bodily fluids, produce urine which maintains water balance, blood pH, and electrolyte balance

ureters

move urine to the bladder

urethra

conducts urine from the bladder out of the body

ovum

produced each month by one ovary, develops into human being if fertilized, flushed out if not

estrogen

develops secondary sex characteristics

progesterone

produced during second half of the menstrual cycle, declines if pregnancy fails to occur

testosterone

produced by the interstitial cells, produces sperm, passes through the uterus and into fallopian tube to fertilize ovum, develops secondary sex characteristics

sex chromosomes determine gender

X chromosome: mother, x or Y chromosome: father

research on genetics

studies of families, twin research, studies of adopted children

immune system

infection-causing microbes can spread via direct, indirect, biological, and mechanical transmission

infection

whether invading microbes produce infection or not depends on number of organisms and their virulence and body’s defensive capacities

immunity

body’s resistance to invading organisms

natural immunity

acquired through disease or passed from the mother to the child at birth and through breastfeeding

artificial immunity

acquired through vaccinations and inoculations

immune system disorders

AIDS, lupus, tonsillitis, infectious mononucleosis, lymphoma, autoimmunity (body attacks its own tissues)

stressor

any type of physically or psychologically challenging event or situation

stress

process by which we perceive and respond to stressors

physiological arousal

heart rate, blood pressure, respiration, galvanic skin response (skins response to electrical current)

biochemical measures

hormones indicated in stress such as norepinephrine, epinephrine, and cortisol via blood and urine tests

fight response

in case of danger, the body and brain can make you want to attack and be aggressive to fight off danger

flight response

the body and brain can make you want to flee the scene to get yourself to safety

freeze response

the body and brain activate the nervous system and freeze the body, unable to fight or flight

fawn response

the body and brain can make you want to avoid/diffuse conflict through people-pleasing behavior

allostatic load

the effects of chronic stress

stress moderators

modify how stress is experienced and the effects it has

coping

managing the internal and external demands of stressful situations using thoughts and behaviors

negative affectivity

marked by anxiety, depression, and hostility, relate to poor health, people do not respond well to treatments

positive emotional states

promotes better mental and physical health, linked to lower stress levels, triggers better immune response, improves coping

psychological control

belief that one can exert control over stressful situations

control-enhancing interventions

use information, relaxation, and cognitive-behavioral techniques to reduce anxiety, improve coping, and promote recovery

self-esteem

associated with lower levels of stress indicators

resilience

helps individuals bounce back and adapt flexibly to stressful situations

problem-focused coping

attempting to do something constructive about stressful conditions

emotion-focused coping

regulating emotions experienced because of the stressful event

proactive coping

anticipating potential stressors and acting in advance

mindfulness-based stress reduction

helps people to manage their reactions to stress and the resulting negative emotions

tangible assistance

provision of material support, services, financial assistance, or goods

informational support

providing support through information

emotional support

reassuring someone that they are important and cared for

invisible support

helping someone without him or her being aware of it

direct effects hypothesis

social support is generally beneficial during non stressful and stressful times

buffering hypothesis

physical and mental health benefits of social support are chiefly evident during periods of high stress

health behaviors

undertaken by people to enhance or maintain their health

health habit

healthy behavior that is firmly established and performed automatically without awareness