CHAPTER 3 - stress as a psychobiological process

Question 1

define a ‘stressor’

Answer 1

a stressor is any stimulus that causes stress, that can be physical or psychological

Question 2

internal stressor:

Answer 2

originate from within an individual , a personal problem causes concern about the potential consequences

Question 3

external stressor:

Answer 3

originates from outside an individual from situations in environments

Question 4

stress is:

Answer 4

a psychological and physiological response produced by internal pr external stressors

Question 5

what are acute and chronic stress distinguished by?

Answer 5

their duration

Question 6

acute stress is

Answer 6

stress that lasts a short amount of time thats typically easier to bounce back from

Question 7

physiological responses involved:

Answer 7

elevated blood pressure, reduced motivation, release of adrenaline

Question 8

neurohormone associated with acute stress is:

Answer 8

adrenaline

Question 9

chronic stress is:

Answer 9

stress that continues for prolonged periods of time, involving feelings of helplessness, with ongoing demands and constant pressure

Question 10

which stress response is the fight flight freeze response initiated by?

Answer 10

acute stress response

Question 11

what area of the brain detects the threat which then contacts the hypothalamus?

Answer 11

amygdala

Question 12

hypothalamus activates which NS and to do what?

Answer 12

sympathetic nervous system, to activate adrenal glands and release adrenaline into bloodstream to prepare the body for action

Question 13

hypothalamus also signals the pituitary glands to secrete what?

Answer 13

cortisol

Question 14

cortisol acts:
cortisol slows:

Answer 14

• slowly and lasts a longer amount of time
• cortisol slows digestion

Question 15

symptoms of freeze reaction

Answer 15

stiff muscles, low heart rate, hyper vigilance

Question 16

symptom of fight and flight response:

Answer 16

increased blood pressure, pupil dilation, higher heart rate

Question 17

cortisol is what:

Answer 17

the primary stress hormone, involved in both chronic and acute stress

Question 18

immediate effects of cortisol:

Answer 18

increased blood sugar levels, slowed digestion & other bodily functions

Question 19

too much cortisol can lead to:

Answer 19

impaired immune system functioning

Question 20

what is the gut-brain axis?

Answer 20

a bidirectional communication link between the central NS and the enteric NS
- involves direct links between cognitive/emotional brain areas and the gastrointestinal tract

Question 21

what are gut microbiota

Answer 21

personal compositions of micro-organisms present in the digestive tract

Question 22

collective term for microbiota is:

Answer 22

a microbiome

Question 23

role of gut microbiota

Answer 23

to communicate with the brain through the GBA, influencing our mental processes and behaviour

Question 24

impact of imbalanced microbiota:

Answer 24

if someone has imbalanced microbiota, serotonin production may be impacted and released less

Question 25

relationship of gut microbiota and stress:

Answer 25

stress disturbs the balance of gut microbiota and microbiota imbalance increases susceptibility to stress

Question 26

what nerve connects the CNS and enteric NS

Answer 26

vagus nerve

Question 27

role of vagus nerve:

Answer 27

sends info about the gastrointestinal tract to the brain

Question 28

what is Selye’s general adaptation syndrome?

Answer 28

GAS: is a three stage physiological response to stress that occurs regardless of the stress encountered

Question 29

GAS stages

Answer 29

alarm reaction, resistance and exhaustion

Question 30

2 stages of alarm reaction:

Answer 30

shock and counter-shock

Question 31

what happens in alarm reaction?

Answer 31

level of resistance to stressors drops below normal. usually adrenaline is released

Question 32

what happens in resistance?

Answer 32

parasympathetic NS lowers heart rate, cortisol is the primary hormone,

Question 33

what happens in exhaustion:

Answer 33

only after a prolonged exhaustion stage, body’s resources are depleted and resistance drops way below normal

Question 34

strengths of GAS:

Answer 34

identifies links between stress and diseases & shows that the greater there stressor, the greater the physiological response

Question 35

weaknesses of GAS:

Answer 35

fails to recognise role of emotion and cognition & tests were only performed on rats

Question 36

factors influencing stress in relation to transactional model of stress:

Answer 36

optimism vs pessimism, influence of family and friends as support system, past experiences with stress (positive and negative)

Question 37

the transactional model of stress and coping looks at:

Answer 37

stress as an encounter between person and environment, stress depends on individual’s interpretation of stress and their ability to cope

Question 38

primary appraisal options:

Answer 38

benign positive, irrelevant OR stressful

Question 39

if stressful, stimuli is determined as either:

Answer 39

• a harm loss thats already done
• a challenge to be solved
• OR a threat that could lead to possible bad outcomes

Question 40

secondary appraisal involves:

Answer 40

assessing the ability to cope with the stressor

Question 40

after secondary appraisal the coping resources may be seen as:

Answer 40

• not enough (more stress)
• or adequate (maladaptive) leading to less stress or reappraisal

Question 40

strengths of the transactional mode of stress and coping:

Answer 40

accounts for individual differences in similar situations, & looks at reappraisal

Question 41

weaknesses of transactional model of stress and coping:

Answer 41

format is simulaic and may not apply to everyone
& a lack of empirical evidence

Question 42

adaptive strategies:

Answer 42

proactive strategies to reduce emotional stress

Question 42

maladaptive strategies:

Answer 42

avoidant strategies like distraction

Question 43

context specific effectiveness:

Answer 43

considers how a coping strategy will be effective or not, based on past experiences

Question 44

coping flexibility:

Answer 44

refers to an individual’s ability to recognise if coping approach is effective or ineffective, and the ability to change coping approach
- high or low

Question 45

COPING STRATEGIES
approach:

Answer 45

involve efforts to confront and deal with a stressor directly, causing a solution to address the problem and minimise the effects of the stressor

Question 46

COPING STRATEGIES: avoidance

Answer 46

involves efforts that evade the stressor and deal indirectly with it, not confronting the stressor
- emotion focussed