Chapter 13 Flashcards
stressors
specific events or chronic pressures that place demands on a person or threaten the person’s well-being.
stress
the physical and psychological response to internal or external stressors
health psychology
the subfield of psychology concerned with the ways psychological factors influence the causes and treatment of physical illness and the maintenance of health.
Adding up the stress ratings of each life change experienced
is a significant indicator of a person’s likelihood of future illness.
positive events
often require readjustment and preparedness that many people find extremely stressful.
chronic stressors
sources of stress that occur continuously or repeatedly. Strained relationships, discrimination, bullying, overwork, money troubles can accumulate to produce distress and illness. People who report being affected by daily hassles also report more psychological symptoms and physical symptoms and these effects often have a greater and longer-lasting impact than major life events.
social relationships
many chronic stressors are linked to these. Being outside the in-group can be stressful. Being actively targeted by members of the in group can be even more stressful, especially if this happens repeatedly over time.
city life
noise, traffic, crowding, pollution, and the threat of violence provide particularly insistent sources of chronic stress.
rural areas
isolation and lack of access to amenities such as health care also causes chronic stress.
environmental psychology
the scientific study of environmental effects on behavior and health.
stressors challenge you to do something
to take action to eliminate or overcome the stressor. Events are most stressful when there is nothing to do and no way to deal with the challenge. Expecting that you will have control over what happens to you is associated with greater effectiveness in dealing with stress.
learned helplessness
the belief that one has no control over one’s situation based on past experience. Proposed to be a major contributor to the development of depression in humans who have experienced repeated stressful events.
after 9/11 attacks
people living within 1.5 miles of the World Trade Center during 9/11 were found to have less gray matter in the amygdala, hippocampus, insula, anterior cingulate, and medial prefrontal cortex relative to those living more than 200 miles away. Suggests that the stress may have reduced the size of these parts of the brain that play an important role in emotion, memory, and decision making. Children who watched more TV coverage had higher symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder.
fight-or-flight response
an emotional and physiological reaction to an emergency that increases readiness for action.
HPA (hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical) axis
Brain activation in response to a threat occurs in the hypothalamus, initiating a cascade of bodily responses including stimulation of the pituitary gland, which causes the stimulation of the adrenal glands.
Adrenal glands (threat)
release hormones, including catecholamines (epinephrine and norepinephrine), which increase sympathetic nervous system activation (and therefore increase heart rate, blood pressure, and respiration rate) and decrease parasympathetic activation. Increase respiration and blood pressure make more oxygen available to muscles to energize attack or to initiate escape. Also release cortisol, a hormone that increases the concentration of glucose in the blood to make fuel available to the muscles.
General adaptation syndrome (GAS)
developed by Hans Selye; a three-stage physiological stress response that appears regardless of the stressor that is encountered.
Alarm phase (1st stage of GAS)
equivalent to the fight-or-flight response; the body rapidly mobilizes its resources to respond to the threat.
Resistance phase (2nd stage of GAS)
the body tries to adapt and cope with its stressor by shutting down unnecessary processes such as digestion, growth, and the sex drive.
Exhaustion phase (3rd stage of GAS)
the body’s resistance collapses, creating damage that can include susceptibility to infection, tumor growth, aging, irreversible organ damage, or death.
Exposure to chronic stress
experience actual wear and tear on their bodies and increased aging. Shorter telomere lengths.
Cells in our body our constantly dividing
our chromosomes are repeatedly copied so that our genetic info is carried into the new cells. Facilitated by telomeres.
telomeres
caps at the ends of each chromosome that protect the ends of chromosomes and prevent them from sticking to each other. Becomes slightly shorter each time a cell divides. When they become too short and can no longer divide, the development of tumors and a range of other diseases can occur.
shortened telomeres
can be caused by increased cortisol. Negative effects in the form of accelerated aging and increased risk of diseases including cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and depression. Prevented by exercise and meditation.
immune system
a complex response system that protects the body from bacteria, viruses, and other foreign substances. Responsive to psychological influences: stressors can cause hormones called glucocorticoids to flood the brain, wearing down the immune system and making it less able to fight invaders.
People who perceive themselves as low in social status
more prone to suffer from respiratory infections, for example, than those who do not bear this social burden. Same for low-status male monkeys.
Chronic stress is a major contributor to coronary heart disease
prolonged stress-activated arousal of the sympathetic nervous system raises blood pressure and gradually damages the blood vessels. The damaged vessels accumulate plaque, and the more plaque, the greater the likelihood of coronary heart disease.
Type A behavior pattern
a tendency toward easily aroused hostility, impatience, a sense of time urgency, and competitive achievement strivings.
Type B
less driven behavior pattern.
Primary appraisal
the interpretation of a stimulus as stressful or not.
