2026 term test 2

stress response

Physiological, cognitive, emotional, and behavioural reactions when we are faced with heavy demands.

stress

An experience that is produced through a person-situation relationship that is perceived as taxing or exceeding the person's resources

stressors

External events, forces, and situations that have the potential to be interpreted as stressful

types of cognitive appraisal

primary appraisal, secondary appraisal

harm/loss appraisal

psychological damage has already been done and the loss is irrevocable

threat appraisal

An individual anticipates harm might occur or is likely to occur

challenge appraisal

Although there are obstacles in the way, they can be overcome

chronic stress

Stressors that occur over a long period of time.

Acute stress

Stressors that occur within a short period of time, and with a sudden onset.

Expected stressors

Stressors that an athlete plans or prepare for

Unexpected stressors

Stressors that are not anticipated and cannot be prepared for.

Competitive stressors

Stressors that are experienced prior to, during, or immediately following competition.

Non-competitive stressors

Stressors that are related to sport but are not directly part of an actual competitive performance.

organizational stressors

Environmental demands associated primarily and directly with the organization within which an individual is operating

challenge response to stress

Increased heart rate with efficient blood flow (vasodilation), moderate cortisol, improved cognitive functioning, and a positive emotional state.

threat response to stress

Increased heart rate with inefficient blood flow (vasoconstriction), higher cortisol levels, impaired cognitive functioning, and a negative emotional state.

physiological responses to stress

challenge, threat

primary appraisal

An evaluation of what is at stake for a person in a situation. Relevance to goals.

Secondary appraisal

An evaluation of what can be done in the situation, which depends on an individual’s available resources, level or perceived control, and expectations regarding what is likely to occur in the future.

categories of stressors

acute/chronic, expected/unexpected, competitive/non-competitive

coping

Cognitive and behavioural efforts to manage specific external/internal demands that are appraised as taxing or exceeding the resources of the person

Management skills

Behaviours that are routine but still help the individual avoid problems and help prevent stress from happening in the first place.

Problem-focused coping

Coping efforts that help people change the actual situation.

Emotion-focused coping

Coping efforts to change the way a situation is attended to or interpreted–to deal with the emotions that arise during the situation.

Avoidance coping

Coping efforts in which athletes attempt to remove themselves from the stressful situation

Task-oriented coping

Coping strategies aimed at dealing directly with the source of stress and its resulting thoughts and emotions.

Disengagement-oriented coping

Coping strategies to disengage from the process of trying to make progress on a personal goal.

Distraction-oriented coping

Coping strategies to focus on internal and external stimuli that are unrelated to the stressful situation.

emotion regulation strategies

situation selection, situation modification, attentional displacement, rumination, cognitive avoidance

situation selection

Individual takes actions to increase the likelihood of being in situations that will promote emotions they would like to experience

situation modification

Individual tries to influence the situation directly.

attentional deployment

Individual regulates their emotions by directing his attention toward (or away from) a situation

rumination

Directing attention toward the situation (amplifying emotion)

cognitive avoidance

Directing attention away from the situation (down regulate emotion)

cognitive change

Individual changing the emotional significant of the event by changing how one thinking about the event

response modulation

Individuals physiological, experiential or behavioural responses to try to regulate emotions.

anxiety

a negative emotion experienced when faced with a real or imagined threat

arousal

physiological and psychological activation (autonomic NS)

state anxiety

temporary; fluctuates by situation (moment-to-moment)

trait anxiety

stable personality tendency to perceive threats

cognitive anxiety

mental component - worry, self-doubt, poor focus

somatic anxiety

physical symptoms - heart rate, tension, butterflies

social anxiety

fear of negative evaluation by others

social physique anxiety

Concern about how one’s body is judged

how experts interpret anxiety

facilitative

how novices inerpret anxiety

debilitative

drive theory

as arousal increases, performance increases

inverted-U Hypothesis

optimal performance at moderate arousal, but varies by athlete and skill level

IZOF Model

each athlete has a personal zone of optimal state anxiety

Cusp catastrophe model

interaction between cognitive state anxiety and physiological arousal

aggression

behaviour (not emotion) intended to harm psychologically or physically another person

moral justification

Reframing harmful behaviour as serving a moral or socially acceptable purpose.

Euphemistic labelling

Using softer or sanitized language to make harmful acts sound acceptable.

Advantageous comparison

Comparing one’s behaviour to something worse to make it seem acceptable.

displacement of responsibility

Attributing blame to authority figures who ordered or encouraged the behaviour.

diffusion of responsibility

Minimizing individual accountability by spreading responsibility across a group.

distortion or minimization of consequences

Downplaying or ignoring the harm caused to the victim.

dehumanization

Viewing opponents as less human or less deserving of moral concern.

attribution of blame

Seeing oneself as the victim and shifting blame onto the target of the aggression.