Stress and Health Flashcards

Psychosomatic Problems: Physical ailments influenced by psychological factors.
Biopsychosocial Model: An approach that considers biological, psychological, and social factors in understanding health and illness.
Coping Strategies: Methods used to manage stress and difficult emotions.
Attitudes: Evaluative statements or beliefs about people, things, or events.
Personality Factors: Enduring patterns of thoughts, feelings, and behaviors that characterize a person.
Type A Personality: Characterized by competitiveness, impatience, hostility, and a sense of urgency; associated with a higher risk of heart disease.
Type B Personality: Characterized by being easy-going, relaxed, and less competitive.
Health Psychology: A field that studies the relationship between psychological factors and physical health.

Stress: A state of mental or emotional strain or tension resulting from adverse or demanding circumstances.
Types of Stress:
- Eustress: Positive stress that can be motivating.
- Distress: Negative stress that can be harmful.
Types of Stressors:
- Frustration: The feeling of being upset or annoyed as a result of being unable to change or achieve something.
- Conflict: A struggle between opposing forces or desires.
- Change: Events that require adjustments in behavior or routine.
- Pressure: The feeling of being under demand to meet certain expectations or standards.

Hans Selye: Pioneer in stress research.
General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS): A three-stage process that describes the physiological changes the body goes through when under prolonged stress.
- Phase 1: Alarm Reaction: The initial response to a stressor, where the body mobilizes resources.
- Phase 2: Resistance: The body attempts to cope with the stressor.
- Phase 3: Exhaustion: Reserves are depleted, leading to potential health problems.
Diathesis-Stress Model: A psychological theory that explains behavior as both a result of biological and genetic factors ("diathesis") and life experiences ("stressors").

Locus of Control: The extent to which individuals believe they can control events affecting them.

When I am certain that I am right, I can convince others.
It’s probably silly to think that I can change someone’s basic attitudes.
Success in school or work is due mainly to my own efforts and frame of mind.
Whether I make a lot of money in life is mostly a matter of luck.
There’s not much that a disadvantaged person can do to succeed in life unless he or she is educated.
Assuming there are two teams of equal skill, the cheering of the crowd is more important than luck in determining the winner.
Most problems work themselves out.
I sometimes get a feeling of being lucky.
I own a good luck charm.
It’s better to be smart than lucky.

To tally your score, give yourself 1 point for each response that matches the following:
- (1) true, (2) false, (3) true, (4) false, (5) false, (6) true, (7) false, (8) false, (9) false, (10) true
Self-Efficacy: Belief in one's ability to succeed in specific situations or accomplish a task.

Learned Helplessness: A condition in which a person suffers from a sense of powerlessness, arising from a traumatic event or persistent failure to succeed. It is perceived lack of control.

Impulse Control (Emotional Intelligence)
Delayed Gratification: The ability to resist the temptation of an immediate reward and wait for a later reward.
Self-Discipline: The ability to control one’s feelings and overcome one’s weaknesses; the ability to pursue what one thinks is right despite temptations to abandon it.
The Marshmallow Test: A famous experiment illustrating the importance of delayed gratification.