Brainscape's Knowledge GenomeTM

Browse over 1 million classes created by top students, professors, publishers, and experts.


See full index

Psych 202 > Chapter 13: Stress and Health > Flashcards

Chapter 13: Stress and Health Flashcards

You may prefer our related Brainscape-certified flashcards:
Psychology 101 flashcards GRE® Psychology flashcards
1
Q

stressors

A

a phenomenon in which some factor (or factors) in the environment causes a person to feel threatened or challenged in some way

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

stress

A

the physical and psychological response to internal or external stressors

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

health psychology

A

the subfield of psychology concerned with how psychological factors influence the causes and treatment of physical illnesses and the maintenance of health

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

chronic stressors

A

sources of stress that occur continuously or repeatedly

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

environmental psychology

A

the scientific study of environmental effects on behavior and health

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

fight or flight response

A

an emotional and psychological reaction to an emergency that increases readiness for action

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

Adrenocorticotropic (ACTH)

A

hormone released by the pituitary gland that stimulates the adrenal glands atop the kidneys

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

HPA (hypothalamic pituitary adrenocortical) axis

A

brain activation in response to threat and its pathway from the brain to the body

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

Catehcolamines

A

epinephrine and norepinephrine released by adrenal glands
- increases sympathetic nervous system activity
- decreases parasympathetic nervous system activity

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

cortisol

A

hormone that increases the concentration of glucose in the blood to make fuel available to the muscles and is released by adrenal glands

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

general adaptation syndrome

A

a three stage physiological stress response that appears to regardless of the stressor that is encountered
- discovered by Hans Selye

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

stages of GAS

A
  1. alarm phase
  2. resistance phase
  3. exhaustion phase
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

alarm phase

A

body rapidly mobilizes when confronted with stressor
- fight or flight
- release of stress hormones

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

resistance phase

A

body tries to adapt and cope with the stressor by shutting down unnecessary processes such as digestion, growth, and sex drive

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
15
Q

exhaustion phase

A

body’s resistance collapses creating damage that can include susceptibility to infection, tumor growth, irreversible organ damage, or death

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
16
Q

telomere

A

caps at the tips of chromosomes

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
17
Q

length of telomeres in people with chronic stress

A

shorter telomere length due to cortisol

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
18
Q

immune system

A

a complex response system that protects the body from bacteria, viruses, and other foreign substance

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
19
Q

glucocorticoids

A

hormones that flood the brain and wear down the immune system

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
20
Q

atherosclerosis

A

when damaged vessels accumulate plaque which increases the likelihood of coronary heart disease (CHD)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
21
Q

Type A

A

a tendency toward easily aroused hostility, impatience, a sense of time urgency, and competitive achievement strivings

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
22
Q

Type B

A

less-driven behavior pattern

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
23
Q

primary appraisal

A

The interpretation of a stimulus as being stressful or not

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
24
Q

secondary appraisal

A

determining whether the stressor is something you can handle

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
25
Q

threat

A

a stressor you believe you might not be able to overcome

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
26
Q

challenge

A

a stress you feel fairly confident you can control

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
27
Q

burnout

A

a state of physical, emotional, and mental exhaustion resulting from long term involvement in an emotionally demanding situation and accompanied by lower performance and motivation

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
28
Q

repressive coping

A

avoiding feelings, thoughts, or situations that are reminders of a stressor and maintaining an artificially positive viewpoint

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
29
Q

rational coping

A

facing the stressor and working to overcome it

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
30
Q

three steps of rational coping

A
  1. acceptance
  2. exposure
  3. understanding
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
31
Q

reframing

A

finding a new or creative way to think about a stressor that reduces its threat

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
32
Q

meditation

A

the practice of intentional contemplation

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
33
Q

relaxation therapy

A

a technique for reducing tension by consciously relaxing muscles of the body

34
Q

relaxation response

A

a condition of reduced muscle tension, cortical activity, heart rate, breathing rate, and blood pressure

35
Q

biofeedback

A

the use of an external monitoring device to obtain information about a bodily function and then to possibly gain control over that function

36
Q

aerobic exercise

A

exercise that increases heart rate and oxygen intake for a sustained period

37
Q

social support

A

aid gained through interacting with others

38
Q

religiosity

A

affiliation with or engagement in the practices of a particular religion

39
Q

spirituality

A

having a belief in and engagement with some higher power, not necessarily linked to any particular religion

40
Q

sickness response

A

a coordinated, adaptive set of reactions to illness organized by the brain

41
Q

psychosomatic illness

A

an interaction between mind and body that can produce illness

42
Q

somatic symptom disorders

A

the set of psychological disorders in which a person with at least one bodily symptom displays significant health-related anxiety, expresses disproportionate concerns about their symptoms, and devotes excessive time and energy to their symptoms or health concerns

43
Q

sick role

A

a socially recognized set of rights and obligations linked with illness

44
Q

malingering

A

intentional production of false or grossly exaggerated physical or psychological symptoms

45
Q

what are the two kinds of psychological factors that influence personal health

A

health-relevant personality traits and health behavior

46
Q

which personality traits are factors in wellness?

A

optimism and hardiness

47
Q

self regulation

A

the exercise of voluntary control over the self to bring the self into line with preferred standards

48
Q

illusion of unique invulnerability

A

a systematic bias toward believing that they are less likely to fall victim to the problem than are others

49
Q

process of brain activation in response to threats

A

hypothalamus -> pituitary gland -> adrenal gland

50
Q

lyphocytes

A

specialized white bloods cells

51
Q

natural killer cells (NK cells)

A

lymphoid cell found in the immune system

52
Q

ways of measuring immune function

A
  1. blood sample and count white blood cells
  2. add cancer cells to white blood cells to measure NK activity
  3. challenge system and record response
53
Q

grief and the immune system

A

people who were in grief had reduced immune system

54
Q

stress and immune system

A

decreases in immune system occur in people with lots of stress

55
Q

positive/negative experiences and the immune system

A
  • when negative events happened, immune system decreased
  • when positive events happened, immune system increased
56
Q

stress and cancer

A

stress increases spread of cancer

57
Q

stress of caring for someone with a chronic illness and immune system

A
  • stress of caring for someone with a chronic illness delays wound recovery
58
Q

Phony Type B

A

People who appear to be Type B’s on the surface, but underneath they are tense, hostile, and troubled

59
Q

Type D

A

suppresses negative emotion to avoid disapproval

60
Q

evidence for type A personality and impaired health

A
  • not all studies have found a link between type A and heart disease
  • anger and hostility component is the most harmful to health
61
Q

approach approach conflict

A

choosing between two good options

62
Q

approach avoidance conflict

A

choosing between a desirable and undesirable option

63
Q

avoidance avoidance conflict

A

choosing between two undesirable options

64
Q

Holes and Rahe Social Readjustment Rating scale

A

ranks life events and daily hassles
- doesn’t take into account positive or negative
- the higher the score, the greater likelihood of a health crisis

65
Q

hardiness

A

the ability to be more immune to stress
- hardiness can be trained

66
Q

traits of hardiness

A
  • a sense of commitment rather than alienation
  • control rather than powerlessness
  • problems seen as challenges rather than as threats
67
Q

Brady

A
  • being in control is stressful
  • if executive monkey doesn’t respond in time, both monkeys get shocked
  • wrong answer because of experiment design
68
Q

Weiss

A
  • sets up similar experiment as Brady with rats
  • when people have control over environment, it reduces their stress
69
Q

Langer and Rodin

A

nursing home residents were less stressed if they had more control

70
Q

social support and health

A
  • social connections make a big difference in our health
  • heart attack victims have slower recoveries if spouse is not supportive
  • longitudinal study of social connections and mortality
71
Q

loneliness and health

A
  • less likely to survive heart bypass surgery
  • don’t sleep as well
  • decreases in face to face interactions, increases in social media correlate with increased loneliness
  • worldwide doubling of reported loneliness since 2012
72
Q

cognitive appraisal

A

how we evaluate a situation

73
Q

problem focused coping

A

work on solving problems

74
Q

emotion focused coping

A

work on managing emotions

75
Q

coping techniques

A
  • thought suppression (not effective)
  • mediation
  • aerobic exercise
  • thinking positively and optimistically
76
Q

pessimists

A
  • failure seen as global, stable, internal
  • success seen as external, temporary, specific
  • take longer to recover from diseases and illness
  • poor mental health
77
Q

tend-and-befriend

A

women are more likely to support and take care of others during stress

78
Q

macrophage

A

type of white blood cell

79
Q

overactive immune system causes

A

arthritis

80
Q

happiness is unrelated to…

A

age

81
Q

T lymphocytes

A

released to fight off viral infections

Psych 202 (14 decks)

Brainscape helps you reach your goals faster, through stronger study habits.
© 2025 Bold Learning Solutions. Terms and Conditions