Chapter 13: Stress, Health, and Coping

Vocabulary flashcards covering stress definitions, the cognitive appraisal model, physiological impacts on the immune system, psychological factors, and coping strategies based on Chapter 13.

Stress

A negative emotional state occurring in response to events that are perceived as taxing or exceeding a person's resources or ability to cope, representing the body's reaction to any demand.

Cognitive Appraisal Model

A model of stress that emphasizes the role of an individual's evaluation of events and situations, as well as the resources available to deal with them.

Primary Appraisal

The initial evaluation of how harmful, threatening, or difficult an event or situation may be.

Secondary Appraisal

The evaluation of the coping resources and options available to successfully deal with a stressful situation.

Health Psychology

The branch of psychology that studies how biological, behavioral, and social factors influence health, illness, medical treatment, and health-related behaviors.

Biopsychosocial Model

The belief that physical health and illness are determined by the complex interaction of biological, psychological, and social factors.

Stressors

Events or situations that are perceived as harmful, threatening, or challenging.

Eustress

Positive stress that motivates and focuses energy, is perceived as within one's control, and accompanies events such as starting a new job, planning a wedding, or going on a trip.

Distress

Negative stress that feels overwhelming, depletes energy, decreases performance, and is perceived as outside one's ability to cope, such as financial difficulties or toxic environments.

Traumatic Events

Events or situations that are negative, severe, unexpected, and far beyond normal expectations for everyday life, potentially causing PTSD, intrusive thoughts, sleep issues, anxiety, and irritability.

Mark Seery Resilience Study

A multi-year, longitudinal study measuring lifetime health outcomes and negative events, which established that high levels of lifetime stress relate to poor health outcomes.

Daily Hassles

Everyday minor events that annoy and upset people, which serve as a better predictor of physical illness and symptoms than the number of major life events experienced.

Gender Differences in Daily Hassles

The finding that women are more likely to report daily stressors associated with friends and family, whereas men are more likely to feel hassled by stressors that are school- or work-related.

Burnout

An unhealthy condition caused by chronic, prolonged work stress characterized by exhaustion, cynicism, and a sense of failure or inadequacy.

Work Stress

Stress originating from occupational pressures, including job security, working conditions, high demands, and tight deadlines.

Sense of Personal Control (Rodin and Langer Study)

A study on nursing home residents showing that participants given control over choices remained active, alert, and social, whereas those with little to no control suffered poor health outcomes.

Fight-or-Flight Response

A physiological response designed to rapidly prepare individuals to either fight or take flight from an immediate environmental threat.

Immune System

The body system that produces specialized white blood cells to protect the body against viruses, bacteria, and tumor cells.

Marucha et al. Dental Student Study (1998)

A research study examining wound healing on the roof of dental students' mouths, finding that wounds inflicted $3$ days before a major exam took about $3$ extra days to heal, healing $40\%$ slower than those inflicted during summer vacation.

Sheldon Cohen Cold Virus Studies (1991, 1993)

Studies showing an almost direct relationship between psychological stress and rate of infection; healthy volunteers subjected to higher psychological stress showed significantly higher rates of respiratory infection after viral exposure.

Type A Behavior Pattern

A behavioral and emotional style characterized by a sense of time urgency, hostility, and competitiveness, which is linked to an increased risk of heart health issues.

Type B Behavior Pattern

A behavioral pattern characterized by a laid-back, easygoing, and relaxed approach to life.

Social Support

Resources provided by other people in times of need that benefit health by modifying the appraisal of a stressor's significance, decreasing physical reactions, and lessening negative emotions.

Social Isolation

The state of having minimal contact with others and feeling lonely, which is linked to poorer health outcomes.

Coping

Ways in which individuals try to change circumstances, or their interpretation of circumstances, to make them more favorable and less threatening.

Problem-Focused Coping

A coping strategy aimed directly at changing or managing an undesirable stressor by confronting the situation directly and engaging in problem-solving.

Emotion-Focused Coping

A coping strategy aimed at relieving or regulating the emotional impact of a stressor, such as shifting attention away from the problem to feel better without changing the stressor itself.