ch 14 - stress and health

stressor

internal/external specific event or pressure that:

• puts demands on a person

• OR

• threaten their well-being

stress

physical and psychological response to stressors

health psychology

psyc subfield concerned with how psychological factors influence physical illness, health maintenance

provide examples of internal and external stressors

internal: physical pain, illness, self-degradation

external: work, school stress

holmes and rahe discovered that major life changes from positive and negative events […] and that […] causes illness

• they discovered this through […]

1. major life changes from pos/neg events can cause stress

2. increased stress causes illness

3. discovered these through testing readjustment amount needed after life changes

CUSS (acronym and measurement)

college undergraduate stress scale

• assesses college student life events

[…] produce less psychological distress and fewer physical symptoms

[…] can sometimes counteract the effects of negative events

[positive events], [happiness]

chronic stressors (def, relationship it is linked to, examples)

sources of stress that are continuous or repeating, can differ based on rural vs city locations

• linked to social relationships

ex/ bullying, strained relationships, money troubles, overworking

environmental psychoogy

study of environmental effects on behaviour and health

perceived control and how it influences stress response

control over stressful event can add to/reduce stress response

• lack of control may add to stress

• perceived control may cause more effective coping

the threat of death or injury can cause significant and lasting physical and psychological ________

stress reactions

name 2 physical stress reactions

1. fight or flight response

2. general adaptation syndrome (GAS)

fight or flight response (def + hormonal release pathway)

emotional & physiological response increasing readiness for action in an emergency

pathway

• hypothalamus activates anterior pituitary → AP releases ACTH (adrenocorticotropic hormone) → ACTH activates adrenal glands → glands release catecholamines and cortisol → energize fight-or-flight response

general adaptation syndrome (GAS) (def, stages)

nonspecific physiological response; does not vary across stressors

1. alarm phase - mobilizes bodily resources (draws energy from fat and muscles) to respond to threat

2. resistance phase - adaption to arousal state, shuts down unnecessary processes to cope with stressor

3. exhaustion phase - bodily resistance collapses; damage leads to infection, aging, organ damage, death

selye’s three phases of stress response (def, graph with x and y axis and line showing stress resistance across 3 phases)

stress resistance builds over time but only lasts for so long before exhaustion kicks in

explain the relationship between cell division and stress

constant cell division facilitated by telomeres and telomerase - telomeres shorten with every cell division

• telomeres = caps at chromosomes’ ends preventing them from sticking to one another

• telomerase = enzyme rebuilding telomeres

those exposed to chronic stress have shorter telomeres and lowered telomerase activity - cortisol reduces telomerase activity

• lack of telomerase prevents cell division, causing aging + cell death

name a hormone that floods brain when exposed to stressors, weakening the immune system and it's immune response

glucocorticoids

define the following:

• lymphocytes

• psychoneuroimmunology

• lymphocytes = white blood cells producing antibodies (T cells, B cells) that fight infection

• psychoneuroimmunology = study of immune system responding to psychological variables

explain the relationship between the cardiovascular + circulatory system and stress

• atherosclerosis

• blood vessel damage: BP goes up, stays up due to stress activated arousal - gradually damages blood vessels that accumulate plaque

• atherosclerosis: gradual narrowing of arteries during plaque buildup

type A behaviour pattern

tendency towards easily aroused hostility, impatience, time urgency

• higher hostility linked to higher risk of heart attack

of 2280 men studied over 3 years, ___ suffered coronary heart disease incidents.

• many of these occurrences involved those scoring above the ____th percentile in hostility

[45] [80th percentile]

physiological responses to stress are intertwined with ______ responses, beginning in the ____

[psychological] [mind]

2-step process of stress interpretation (also differentiate btwn challenge vs threat)

1. primary appraisal: interpretation of stimulus as stressful or not

2. secondary appraisal: determining whether stressor is something that can be handled or not (challenge or threat)

   1. challenge = positive appraisal, you feel confident you can control it

   2. threat = negative appraisal, feels like you might not overcome

burnout

state of physical, emotional, mental exhaustion from long-term involvement in emotionally demanding situations

• lowered performance and motivation

self-reported happiness and stress go [up/down] as incomes increase

• only up to [$_____]

[down / $75,000]

[true/false] those with more money are at risk for earlier death

[false - those with LESS money have earlier death]

stress management

techniques counteracting physical and pyschological stress

• manages body and mind

• manages the situation

mind management (3 R’s)

• repression

• rationalization

• reframing

repressive coping

avoiding situations reminding you of a stressor - maintaining artificially positive viewpoint

• putting unpleasant thoughts/emotions out of mind

rational coping (def, 3 step process)

facing stressor, working to overcome it. prolonged exposure

1. acceptance: accept that stressor exists

2. exposure: attending to/seeking out stressor

3. understanding: finding meaning stressors hold in one’s life

reframing, SIT

finding new way to think about stressor that reduces a threat

SIT: stress inoculation training

• reframing technique that develops positive ways to think about situations

ex/ writing about deepest thoughts and feelings

body management (4 techniques list)

1. meditation

2. relaxation

3. biofeedback

4. aerobic exercise

meditation (def + effect produced)

practice of intentional contemplation, clearing the mind of thoughts, breathing

• transformed consciousness

• rests and revitalizes

• lengthened telomeres

relaxation (def + effect produced)

• EMG

• relaxation therapy + response

picturing peace

• EMG = electromyography, measuring subtle activity of muscles

• relaxation therapy = reduces tension by consciously relaxing muscles of the body

  • relaxation response = reduced muscle tension, cortical activity, heart rate, breathing rate, blood pressure

biofeedback

using external monitoring device to obtain info about bodily function, gain control over it. gives access to visual/audial feedback showing levels of psychophysiological functions

• ex/ EEG neurofeedback (brainwave abnormalities)

aerobic exercise (def + effect produced)

exercise increasing heart rate and oxygen intake for sustained period

• may increase serotonin, endorphins, fights depression

• maintains physical health

situation management (def + 3 technique list)

changing your life to reduce stress

• social support

• religious practice

• humour

social support (def, male vs female differences)

interacting with others to gain aid, reducing stress and depression

• males: more prone to fight or flight response

• females: more prone to tend-and-befriend (seek social support)

(situation management → social support)

explain why women seek out social support (tend and befriend) more often than men

females have higher estrogen → estrogen causes oxytocin to seek social responses, nurture others, create cooperative groups

religious practice (defs below + effect produced)

• religiosity

• spirituality

• religiosity = engagement with practices of particular religion

• spirituality = having belief in, engagement with some higher power, not necessarily linked to religion

effects

• lower heart disease rates

• decreased chronic pain

• improved psychological health

What did Benson et al. (2006) find when testing whether prayer affected recovery after cardiac bypass surgery?

Researchers found that prayer did not reduce complications after surgery. Surprisingly, patients who knew they were being prayed for and were prayed for experienced significantly more complications than the other groups.

humour (effects produced)

• reduces pain and stress sensitivity

• reduces time needed to calm down after stressful event

• SHORT TERM STRESS ALLEVIATION, NO HEALTH/LONGEVITY EFFECTS

procrastinating

causes stress in the long run. effective time management reduces procrastination

sickness response (prompted by + immune response)

adaptive reactions to illness - can be prompted by stress without an actual infection

• leukocytes activated by immune response

• cytokines released: proteins activating vagus nerve/”sickness” message

Do people who report many physical symptoms have more health problems?

People differ in how they notice and report bodily symptoms; some may be more sensitive to physical changes rather than actually having more illness.

What did fMRI research show about people reporting higher pain levels?

Brain regions associated with pain processing were more active, suggesting that people can accurately experience and report pain.

sick role

recognized set of rights/obligations linked with illness, providing exemptions

malingering

feigning medical symptoms to achieve something you want

patient-practitioner compliance deteriorates if treatment is […]

• frequent (ex/ eye drops)

• inconvenient

• painful (injections)

• treatments increases over time

What did the antacid intake scatterplot study (Roth & Caron, 1978) show about patients’ self-reports?

Patients often exaggerated/overestimated their antacid intake. Bottle counts (actual intake) showed that many patients reported taking more antacid than they actually did.

effect of placebos on hormonal release / brain

placebos can trigger release of endorphins, lower brain activation of pain-related areas

• ex/ electric shock/heat

• placebo cream

placebos work because patients believe in the […]

nature of medicine

2 kinds of psychological factors influencing personal health

• health-relevant personality traits

• health behaviour

explain how optimism (personality) can affect health

maintains psychological health by predicting positive health outcomes (ex/ cardiovascular health)

healthier than pessimism

[true/false] a person’s level of optimism or pessimism tends to be unstable over time

[false] a person’s optimism/pessimism tends to be stable over time

hardiness (3 C’s characteristics, how it affects stress handling)

1) commitment

2) control

3) acceptance of challenge

stress handling

“thick-skinned” and able to handle stress better

list 3 health-promoting behaviours

• healthy eating

• safe sex

• not smoking

self regulation (def)

involving in engaging in health-promoting behaviours. exercise of voluntary control over oneself to align oneself with preferred standards; willpower

• delayed gratification

eating wisely (why it fails, how it can be reworked)

(self regulation) process of conscious self-regulation can be undermined by stress

• rework the process by: increasing activity rather than reducing food intake

how can self-regulation be made more effective?

by focusing more on what to do rather than on what not to do

reason why avoiding sexual risks is difficult (self-regulation)

b/c one has the illusion that they have unique invulnerability

• combined with impulsive emotions

smoking causes _____% of lung cancers

80%