Stress and Health Psychology: Chapter 3 Stressors, GAS, and Health, Psychology Stress Management & Health: Chapters 3.3–3.4

What is stress?

The interpretation of specific events (stressors) as threatening or challenging; the physical and psychological reaction to stress.

What is a stressor?

A trigger or stimulus that induces stress.

What is acute stress?

A short-term state of arousal in response to a perceived threat or challenge that has a definite endpoint.

What is chronic stress?

A continuous state of arousal in which demands are perceived as greater than the inner and outer resources available for dealing with them.

What are hassles?

Small problems of daily living that accumulate and sometimes become a major source of stress.

What is frustration in the context of stress?

Unpleasant tension, anxiety, and heightened sympathetic activity resulting from a blocked goal.

What is an approach-approach conflict?

A forced choice between two desirable options.

What is an avoidance-avoidance conflict?

A forced choice between two undesirable options.

What is an approach-avoidance conflict?

A forced choice with both good and bad elements.

What are some examples of life changes that can cause stress?

Marriage, pregnancy, divorce, illness, death, changes in environment, holidays.

What are job stressors?

Work-related stress factors including job performance, keeping/changing jobs, unemployment, and lack of control.

What are cataclysmic events?

Stressful occurrences that occur suddenly and generally affect many people simultaneously, such as COVID-19 or 9/11.

What is acculturative stress?

The stress resulting from the many changes and pressures of adapting to a new culture, also known as 'culture shock.'

What is burnout?

A state of psychological and physical exhaustion resulting from chronic exposure to high levels of stress and little personal control.

What are the stages of General Adaptation Syndrome?

1. Alarm phase, 2. Resistance phase, 3. Exhaustion phase.

What occurs during the alarm phase of stress response?

The sympathetic nervous system is activated, increasing heart rate and blood pressure.

What happens during the resistance phase of stress response?

The body attempts to resist or adapt to the stressor, with higher than normal physiological arousal.

What occurs during the exhaustion phase of stress response?

The body's reserves are depleted, leading to increased susceptibility to serious illnesses.

What is psychoneuroimmunology?

An interdisciplinary field that studies the effects of psychological factors on the immune system.

What are some health risks associated with stress?

Increased risk of cancer, periodontal disease, common cold, bursitis, colitis, rheumatoid arthritis, and Alzheimer's.

How does stress affect cognitive functioning in the short term?

Stress can prevent the retrieval of existing memories and the laying down of new memories.

What is eustress?

Pleasant, desirable stress that motivates us to persevere and accomplish challenging goals.

What serious health conditions are associated with stress?

Ulcers, chronic pain, cancer, cardiovascular disorders, and PTSD.

What is stress described as in our lives?

A normal and necessary part of our lives.

What is the goal of stress management?

To manage stress, not eliminate it.

What are the three steps in the cognitive appraisal process?

1. Primary appraisal: Is this stress problematic? 2. Secondary appraisal: What resources are available to manage the stress? 3. Management: Choose a coping method.

What is coping in the context of stress?

The ways in which we try to change circumstances to make them less threatening.

What is problem-focused coping?

Strategies used to deal directly with a stressor to decrease or eliminate it.

What is emotion-focused coping?

Strategies used to relieve or regulate the emotional impact of a stressful situation.

What are defense mechanisms according to Freud?

Strategies the ego uses to protect itself from anxiety, which can be beneficial or destructive.

Name three defense mechanisms.

Projection, repression, and denial.

What triggers the strongest stress responses?

Uncontrollable threats.

What is an internal locus of control?

The belief that we control our own fate.

What is an external locus of control?

The belief that chance or outside forces determine our fate.

What does positive affect refer to?

The experience or expression of positive feelings, including happiness and joy.

What is optimism in the context of personality and coping?

A tendency to expect the best and see the best in all things.

What is Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR)?

A stress-reduction strategy that develops a state of consciousness attending to ongoing events in a non-judgmental way.

How does social support help fight illness?

By calming the cardiovascular system and fostering stronger immune functioning.

What is the role of aerobic exercise in stress management?

It increases heart and lung functioning.

What does health psychology study?

How biological, psychological, and social factors interact in health, illness, and health-related behaviors.

What is a primary goal of health psychologists?

To help individuals reduce unhealthy behaviors and psychological distress.

What is 'karoshi'?

A Japanese term meaning 'death from overwork.'

What is technostress?

Anxiety or mental pressure from overexposure to technology.