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Psychology 1001 > 14a - Stress, Coping, and Health > Flashcards

14a - Stress, Coping, and Health Flashcards

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1
Q

What is stress?

A

A state brought on by a situation that threatens, or appears to threaten, one’s sense of well-being and ability to cope.

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2
Q

What two main factors affects the severity of stress?

A
  1. Perception of situation (appraisal)
  2. Ability to cope
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3
Q

What is a stressor?

A

Anything that triggers a stress response.

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4
Q

What are the two types of stressors?

A
  1. Acute stressor
  2. Chronic stressor
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5
Q

What is an acute stressor?

A

Short-term stress (psych test).

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6
Q

What is a chronic stressor?

A

Long-term pain (unemployment).

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7
Q

What type of stress is beneficial?

A

Short-term stress

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8
Q

Why may acute stress be beneficial?

A

It is often adaptive - mobilizes resources to overcome a threatening event.

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9
Q

What physical health problems can chronic stress cause? (3)

A
  • Cardiovascular disease
  • Hypertension
  • Diabetes
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10
Q

What mental health problems can chronic stress cause? (3)

A
  • Depression
  • PTSD
  • Substance abuse
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11
Q

What feelings can stress manifest as? (4)

A

Feeling…
- Frustrated
- Pressured
- Conflicted
- Endangered

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12
Q

When could a feeling of frustration arise from stress?

A

When goals are blocked.

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13
Q

When could a feeling of pressure arise from stress?

A

From the perception of having to live up to some expectation - set by either yourself or others.

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14
Q

When could a feeling of confliction arise from stress?

A

When goals or impulses appear to clash which means we often have to make a decision by weighing alternatives.

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15
Q

When could a feeling of endangerment arise from stress?

A

In life-threatening situations.

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16
Q

Give examples of acute and chronic stressors that may cause feelings of frustration.

A

Acute: Stuck in traffic when late for work
Chronic: Stuck in a job, passed over for a promotion

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17
Q

Give examples of stressors that may cause feelings of pressure (from yourself and others).

A
  • A term paper due next week (others)
  • Not knowing what to wear to a school social (yourself)
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18
Q

What are the three types of conflict?

A
  • Approach-Approach
  • Avoidance-Avoidance
  • Approach-Avoidance
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19
Q

What is approach-approach conflict?

A

You must choose between 2 desirable options.

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20
Q

What is avoidance-avoidance conflict?

A

You have to choose between two aversive options.

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21
Q

What is approach-avoidance conflict?

A

When a choice comes with desirable and undesirable consequences.

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22
Q

Give an example of an approach-approach conflict.

A

You are choosing who to date between two good people.

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23
Q

Give an example of an approach-avoidance conflict.

A

One of the people you might decide to date has an awful friend group. (Often leads to protracted agonizing decision process)

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24
Q

Give an example of an avoidance-avoidance conflict.

A

You are choosing to study math or physics. (Often leads to procrastination)

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25
Q

What is a life change?

A

Major shifts in circumstance that require “adjustments”.

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26
Q

What is the SRRS?

A

Social Readjustment Rating Scale

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27
Q

How many items on the SRRS?

A

43

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28
Q

What are the units on the SRRS called?

A

Life change units

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29
Q

What are life change units based on?

A

Based on rankings of perceived stressfulness.

30
Q

Are all items on the SRRS negative?

A

No - for example there is marriage, vacation, and outstanding personal achievement.

31
Q

What is the highest scoring item on the SRRS?

A

Death of a spouse (100)

32
Q

What can SRRS scores predict?

A

Stress-based illness - scores of people the year before they became ill were significantly higher than people who didn’t become sick (respiratory illness, cancers, etc).

33
Q

What are the scores you can receive on the SRRS?

A

Little stress: <150
Mild stress: 150-199
Moderate stress: 200-299
Major stress: >300

34
Q

What are some criticisms of the SRRS? (2)

A
  • Has more negative than positive events
  • Doesn’t include stress from non-life-changing events… e.g. not getting married or not getting a promotion
35
Q

What are daily hassles?

A

Everyday annoyances or common experiences that may frequently produce stress, also called “micro-stressors”.

36
Q

Give some examples of daily hassles.

A

Traffic, bad weather, unexpected data charges, no parking, tuition hikes, interpersonal problems, etc.

37
Q

What is a better predictor of negative health effects, major life stressors, or daily hassles?

A

Daily hassles

38
Q

What is used to measure a persons daily hassles?

A

Daily Hassle Scale

39
Q

What are the three options for the frequency of experiencing each item on the daily hassles scale?

A

0 - almost never
5 - sometimes
10 - frequently

40
Q

What score is considered ‘very low’ on the daily hassles scale?

A

40 or below

41
Q

What score is considered higher than average on the daily hassles scale?

A

270 or more

42
Q

What are the three levels of response to stress?

A
  1. Psychological
  2. Emotional
  3. Cognitive
43
Q

Changes in _____ often accompany stress.

A

mood

44
Q

What three psychological disorders have been linked?

A

Stress, anxiety, and depression.

45
Q

What are some negative emotions that may accompany stress?

A

Fear, dejection, grief, annoyance, anger, rage, guilt, shame, disgust, or jealousy.

46
Q

Who put forward the cognitive-mediational theory of stress?

A

Richard Lazarus

47
Q

What is the cognitive-mediational theory of stress?

A

How stressful an event is depends on how we appraise the severity of the situation and our ability to manage it.

48
Q

How many stages of appraisal do we go through when assessing a stressful situation?

A

Two

49
Q

What happens during a primary appraisal of a stressful situation?

A

We assess the situation and determine its severity and implications for us.

50
Q

Give an example of a primary appraisal of a situation.

A

I have a test next week worth 25% of
my final grade.

51
Q

What happens during a secondary appraisal of a stressful situation?

A

We consider our ability to cope with the event (evaluate the resources we have).

52
Q

Give an example of a secondary appraisal of a situation.

A

OK, I’ve been attending classes all along. I’ve been reading the text also and making study notes. I got this.

53
Q

What is a major factor in the appraisal process?

A

The control we have over a situation - the more control we have over a stressful event, the less stressed we will be about it.

54
Q

Describe the results of the executive monkey study (1950s).

A

Monkey who controlled the shock showed the most signs of stress (ulcers, weight loss, etc).

55
Q

Are the results of the 1950’s ‘Executive Monkey Study’ representative of what we know to be true?

A

No

56
Q

Describe the results of the 1970s Weiss study exploring control and stress.

A

Rats who could not control the shock were more stressed.

57
Q

What are the four important factors in individual stress responses?

A
  1. Autonomic Nervous System reactivity
  2. Personality
  3. Explanatory style
  4. Social support
58
Q

How does explanatory style effect individual stress response?

A

Our characteristic pattern of explaining events (including potentially stressful ones).

59
Q

What are the two general explanatory styles?

A

Optimistic and pessimistic.

60
Q

What is the optimistic explanatory style?

A

Despite setbacks and losses, things will improve.

61
Q

What is the pessimistic explanatory style?

A

If things can go wrong, they probably will and negative effects will be enduring and global.

62
Q
A
63
Q

Is the executive monkey study representative of what we now know to be true about control and stress?

A

No

64
Q

Describe the results of Weiss’ 1970s study on control and stress.

A

The rats who could not control the shock were stressed.

65
Q

What four factors impact how susceptible people are to stress?

A
  1. Autonomic nervous system
  2. Personality
  3. Explanatory style
  4. Social support
66
Q

What is an explanatory style?

A

Our pattern of explaining events.

67
Q

Describe optimistic explanatory style.

A

Despite setbacks and losses, things will improve.

68
Q

Describe pessimistic explanatory style.

A

If things can go wrong, they will and the negative effects will be enduring and global.

69
Q

Whats the benefits of having an optimistic explanatory style? (2)

A
  1. Less likely to see situations as negatively impacting.
  2. More likely to adopt constructive coping strategies.
70
Q

What are possible effects of social support on individual stress?

A
  1. May be a source of stress (shallow friends, unruly neighbours).
  2. People with strong social support stress less than those who are lonely.
71
Q

Why does social support reduce stress? (4)

A
  1. Increased confidence/self-esteem
  2. Sense of control/optimism
  3. Others may provide positive appraisal of situations
  4. Presence of others reduces arousal
72
Q
A

Psychology 1001 (8 decks)

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