AP Psychology - Unit 5.1-5.2 Vocabulary

Health psychology

a field that explores how biological, psychological, and social factors influence health and illness

Stressors

physiological and psychological responses to challenges or demands that exceed an individual’s coping abilities, consists of positive stress (eustress) and negative stress (distress)

Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs)

traumatic events occurring before age 18, including abuse, neglect, and household dysfunction

General adaptation syndrome

proposed by Hans Selye, describes the body’s physiological response to stressors through three stages: alarm, resistance, and exhaustion, this model helps explain how individual’s respond to various stressors,, whether physical, psychological, or environmental

Fight-flight-or-freeze response

an automatic, involuntary survival mechanism triggered when the brain perceives danger or extreme stress

Tend and befriend theory

in response to stress, individuals, especially women, are biologically predisposed to seek social connections and support (befriending) and nurture others (tending)

Problem-focused coping

involves actively managing or altering stressful situations through direct actions or problem-solving strategies

Emotion-focused coping

involves regulating emotional responses to stressors, rather than altering the stressors themselves

Positive Psychology

focuses on the study of human strengths and well-being, aiming to understand and promote factors that allow individuals and communities to thrive

Gratitude

involves recognizing and appreciating the positive affects of life and the kindness of others

Subjective well-being

refers to an individual’s overall evaluation of their own life satisfaction, happiness, and sense of well-being

Signature strengths

positive psychology identifies six core virtues that encompass various character strengths

Wisdom

cognitive strengths that involve acquiring and using knowledge

Courage

emotional strengths that involve the exercise of will to accomplish goals in the face of opposition

Humanity

interpersonal strengths that involve tending and befriending others

Justice

civic strengths that underlie healthy community life

Temperance

strengths that protect against excess

Transcendence

strengths that forge connections to the larger universe and provide meaning

Posttraumatic growth

refers to the positive psychological chance experienced as a result of struggling with highly challenging life circumstances