Anxiety and Health Psychology

Question 1

Illness vs Disease

Answer 1

Illness: marked by symptoms (subjective reports)

Disease: signs (objective indications)

Question 2

What are the body systems that respond to psychosocial variables?

Answer 2

Endocrine System
Autonomic Nervous System
Immune System

Question 3

Describe the HPA pathway

Answer 3

Hypothalamus > releasing factor > Anterior Pituitary > ACTH (through blood) > Adrenal Cortex > Cortisol

Question 4

What does prolonged stress trigger?

Answer 4

The production of cortisol, and adrenal hormone

Question 5

What does cortisol do?

Answer 5

It’s a stress hormone that elevates blood sugar, increases metabolism, reduces inflammation and sustains prolonged activity.

Question 6

What are the two branches of the Autonomic Nervous System and what do they do?

Answer 6

sympathetic = fight/flight

parasympathetic = resting/digesting

Question 7

What are the three general categories of immune response?

Answer 7

1) non-specific immune response: white blood cells destroying invaders
2) cellular immunity: Tcells responding to invaders, multiply, kill and remember
3) humoral immunity: Bcells secreting antibodies that destroy invaders

Question 8

What is psychoneuroimmunology?

Answer 8

It is the immune system being affected by learning experiences, emotional states and personal characteristics, and being responsive to stress.

Question 9

What are the three different ways that ‘stress’ is referred to as?

Answer 9

1) a stimulus or property of the external world
2) a response
3) a transaction mediating stimulus and response

Question 10

What was the first formal description and definition of stress?

Answer 10

The General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS) Model

Question 11

What are the phases of GAS?

Answer 11

1) Alarm: Body mobilizes to confront the threat.
2) Resistance: Body copes with the treat by fighting or fleeing
3) Exhaustion: Physiological resources are depleted trying to cope with the threat.