Chapter 14: Stress, Lifestyle, and Health

Meyer Friedman

________ and Ray Rosenman came to understand that people who are prone to heart disease tend to think, feel, and act differently than those who are not.

Education

________ shows a positive (but weak) correlation with happiness, but intelligence is not appreciably related to happiness.

Walter Cannon

________ was the first to identify the bodys physiological reactions to stress.

Emotional upset

________ and certain stressful personality traits have been proposed as potential contributors to ill health.

Negative affectivity

________: a tendency to experience distressed emotional states involving anger, contempt, disgust, guilt, fear, and nervousness.

Potential stressors

________ do not always involve major life events.

Asthma

________: a chronic disease in which the airways of the respiratory system becomes obstructed, leading to great difficulty expelling air from the lungs.

Franz Alexander

________ postulated that various diseases are caused by specific unconscious conflicts.

Emotion

________- focused coping is more likely to predominate when faced with stressors that we believe we are powerless to change.

Optimism

________: a generalized tendency to expect that good things will happen; a tendency to view lifes stressors and difficulties as temporary and external to oneself.

Eustress

________: stress that motivates us to do things in our best interests; is associated with positive feelings, optimal health, and performance.

Hypertension

________: high blood pressure, which forces a persons heart to pump harder, thus putting more physical strain on the heart.

Positive psychology

________: an area of study that seeks to identify and promote those qualities that lead to greater fulfillment in our lives.

Life satisfaction

________ usually increases the older people get, but there do not appear to be gender differences in happiness.

Cannon

________ viewed the fight- or- flight response as adaptive because it enables us to adjust internally and externally to changes in our surroundings, which is helpful in species survival.

Job burnout

________ is often precipitated by feelings of having invested considerable energy, effort, and time into ones work while receiving little in return.

unique skills

The good life: achieved through identifying our ________ and abilities and engaging these talents to enrich our lives.

Distress

________: a level of stress that makes one feel burned out, fatigued, exhausted, and their performance begins to decline.

moderate amount of stress

A(n) ________ can be beneficial in challenging situations.

Flow

________ is considered a pleasurable experience, and it typically occurs when people are engaged in challenging activities that require skills and knowledge they know they possess.

broad categories

In general, stressors can be placed into one of two ________: chronic and acute.

Fight or flight response

________: when a person experiences very strong emotions- especially those associated with a perceived threat; the body is rapidly aroused by activation of both the sympathetic nervous system and the endocrine system.

Positive affect

________ also serves as a protective factor against heart disease.

Depersonalization

________: a sense of emotional detachment between the worker and the recipients of his services, often resulting in callous, cynical, or indifferent attitudes toward these individuals.

ACTH

The ________ activates the adrenal glands to secrete a number of hormones into the bloodstream (epinephrine, norepinephrine, cortisol)

Hans Selye

________ discovered the general adaptation syndrome.

Biofeedback

________: a technique that uses electronic equipment to accurately measure a persons neuromuscular and autonomic activity- feedback is provided in the form of visual or auditory signals.

response technique

The relaxation ________ combines relaxation with transcendental meditation, and consists of four components:

hypothalamic pituitary adrenal

Hormones released during ________ (HPA) axis activation can adversely impact immune function.

Daily hassles

________: minor irritations and annoyances that are part of our everyday lives.

Seligman

________ helped establish positive psychology.

average person

The ________ in the world tends to be relatively happy and tends to indicate experiencing more positive feelings than negative feelings.

General adaptation

________ syndrome: the bodys nonspecific physiological response to stress; consists of three stages: alarm reaction, stage of resistance, and stage of exhaustion.

Immunosuppression

________: the decreased effectiveness of the immune system.

Herbert Benson

________, a cardiologist, developed a stress reduction method called the relaxation response technique.

Secondary appraisal

________: triggered by the perception of a threat; judgment of the options available to cope with a stressor, as well as perceptions of how effective such options will be.

negative emotions

When an event that provokes positive or ________ occurs, at first we tend to experience its emotional impact at full intensity.

personal growth

A stressor would likely be appraised as a challenge if one believes that it carries the potential for gain or ________.

Psychoneuroimmunology

________: the field that studies how psychological factors such as stress influence the immune system and immune functioning.

fit individuals

Physically ________ are more resistant to the adverse effects of stress and recover more quickly from stress than less physically ________.

Problem

________- focused coping: one attempts to manage or alter the ________ that is causing one to experience stress; involves identifying the ________, considering possible solutions, weighing the costs and benefits of these solutions, and then selecting an alternative.

Thomas Holmes

________ and Richard Rahe developed the Social Readjustment Rating Scale (SRRS), which provides researchers a simple way of assessing the amount of stress in peoples lives.

Social support

________ appears to work by boosting the immune system, especially among people who are experiencing stress.

Cortisol

________: a stress hormone that helps provide that boost of energy when we first encounter a stressor, preparing us to run away or fight.

Exercise

________ of long and short duration is beneficial for both physical and mental health.

unfavorable cardiovascular disease

Depression, especially if it occurs early in life, may increase the likelihood of living an unhealthy lifestyle, thereby predisposing people to a(n) ________ risk profile.

personal capacity

Perceived control: our beliefs about our ________ to exert influence over and shape outcomes, and it has major implications for our health and happiness.

Happiness

________: an enduring state of mind consisting of joy, contentment, and other positive emotions, plus the sense that ones life has meaning and value.

Happy people

________ tend to have more friends, more high- quality social relationships, and stronger social support networks than less happy people.

Exhaustion

________: a sense that ones emotional resources are drained or that one is at the end of her rope and has nothing more to give at a psychological level.

Stress

a process whereby an individual perceives and responds to events that he appraises as overwhelming or threatening to his well-being

Primary appraisal

involves judgment about the degree of potential harm or threat to well-being that a stressor might entail

Secondary appraisal

triggered by the perception of a threat; judgment of the options available to cope with a stressor, as well as perceptions of how effective such options will be

Eustress

stress that motivates us to do things in our best interests; is associated with positive feelings, optimal health, and performance

Distress

a level of stress that makes one feel burned out, fatigued, exhausted, and their performance begins to decline

Health psychology

a subfield of psychology devoted to understanding the importance of psychological influences on health, illness, and how people respond when they become ill

Fight-or-flight response

when a person experiences very strong emotions-especially those associated with a perceived threat; the body is rapidly aroused by activation of both the sympathetic nervous system and the endocrine system

Alarm reaction

the bodys immediate reaction upon facing a threatening situation or emergency

Stage of resistance

the initial shock of alarm reaction has worn off and the body has adapted to the stressor; the body remains on alert and is prepared to respond as it did during the alarm reaction, but with less intensity

Stage of exhaustion

the person is no longer able to adapt to the stressor; the bodys ability to resist becomes depleted as physical wear takes its toll on the bodys tissues and organs; illness, disease, and other permanent damage to the body-even death-may occur

Sympathetic nervous system

triggers arousal via the release of adrenaline from the adrenal glands; release of these hormones activates the fight-or-flight responses to stress, such as accelerated heart rate and respiration

Hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis

primarily endocrine in nature; becomes especially active and works much more slowly than the sympathetic nervous system; releases corticotrophin-releasing factor, a hormone that causes the pituitary gland to release adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH)

Cortisol

a stress hormone that helps provide that boost of energy when we first encounter a stressor, preparing us to run away or fight

In general, stressors can be placed into one of two broad categories

chronic and acute

Chronic stressors

events that persist over an extended period of time

Acute stressors

brief focal events that sometimes continue to be experienced as overwhelming well after the event has ended

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)

a chronic stress reaction characterized by experiences and behaviors that may include intrusive and painful memories of the stressor event, jumpiness, persistent negative emotional states, detachment from others, angry outbursts, and avoidance of reminders of the event

Daily hassles

minor irritations and annoyances that are part of our everyday lives

Two common denominators in stressful jobs/job strain

heavy workload and uncertainty about and lack of control over certain aspects of a job

Job strain

a work situation that combines excessive job demands and workload with little discretion in decision making or job control

Exhaustion

a sense that ones emotional resources are drained or that one is at the end of her rope and has nothing more to give at a psychological level

Depersonalization

a sense of emotional detachment between the worker and the recipients of his services, often resulting in callous, cynical, or indifferent attitudes toward these individuals

Diminished personal accomplishment

the tendency to evaluate ones work negatively by

Psychophysiological disorders

physical disorders or diseases whose symptoms are brought about or worsened by stress and emotional factors

Immune system

the bodys surveillance system; consists of a variety of structures, cells, and mechanisms that serve to protect the body from invading toxins and microorganisms that can harm or damage the bodys tissues and organs

Immunosuppression

the decreased effectiveness of the immune system

Psychoneuroimmunology

the field that studies how psychological factors such as stress influence the immune system and immune functioning

Hypertension

high blood pressure, which forces a persons heart to pump harder, thus putting more physical strain on the heart

Type A

tend to be intensively driven workaholics who are preoccupied with deadlines and always seem to be in a rush

Type B

more relaxed and laid-back

Negative affectivity

a tendency to experience distressed emotional states involving anger, contempt, disgust, guilt, fear, and nervousness

Asthma

a chronic disease in which the airways of the respiratory system becomes obstructed, leading to great difficulty expelling air from the lungs

Asthma attacks

acute episodes in which an asthma sufferer experiences the full range of symptoms

Headache

a continuous pain anywhere in the head and neck region

Migraine headaches

a type of headache thought to be caused by blood vessel swelling and increased blood flow; characterized by severe pain on one or both sides of the head, an upset stomach, and disturbed vision

Tension headaches

triggered by tightening/tensing of facial and neck muscles; are the most commonly experienced kind of headache

Coping

mental and behavioral efforts that we use to deal with problems relating to stress, including its presumed cause and the unpleasant feelings and emotions it produces

problem-focused coping and emotion-focused coping

Lazarus and Folkman distinguished two fundamental kinds of coping

Problem-focused coping

one attempts to manage or alter the problem that is causing one to experience stress; involves identifying the problem, considering possible solutions, weighing the costs and benefits of these solutions, and then selecting an alternative

Emotion-focused coping

consists of efforts to change or reduce the negative emotions associated with stress

Perceived control

our beliefs about our personal capacity to exert influence over and shape outcomes, and it has major implications for our health and happiness

Social support

the soothing impact of friends, family, and acquaintances; can take many forms

Biofeedback

a technique that uses electronic equipment to accurately measure a persons neuromuscular and autonomic activity-feedback is provided in the form of visual or auditory signals

the pleasant life, the good life, and the meaningful life

Some psychologists have suggested that happiness consists of three distinct elements

The pleasant life

realized through the attainment of day-to-day pleasures that add fun, joy, and excitement to our lives

The good life

achieved through identifying our unique skills and abilities and engaging these talents to enrich our lives

Happiness

an enduring state of mind consisting of joy, contentment, and other positive emotions, plus the sense that ones life has meaning and value

Positive psychology

an area of study that seeks to identify and promote those qualities that lead to greater fulfillment in our lives

Positive affect

pleasurable engagement with the environment

Optimism

a generalized tendency to expect that good things will happen; a tendency to view lifes stressors and difficulties as temporary and external to oneself