Chapter 4D

Question 1

what is primary appraisal

Answer 1

when the individual decides whether the situation/event is important to them. based on this it is categorized as stressful or not stressful.
if deemed as stressful it will be categorized as either a threat, harm/loss or a challenge.
if deemed as not stressful it will be categorized as either irrelevant or benign/positive

Question 2

what is secondary appraisal

Answer 2

when the individual considers the available resources as well as their own coping strategies to decide the best way of dealing with the stressor.

Question 3

strengths of the transactional model

Answer 3

-acknowledges the psychological causes of the stress response
-emphasizes the personal nature and individuality of the stress response
-allows for the fact that stressors and circumstances under which they occur can change overtime and that our thinking about a stressor and our response to it can also change.

Question 4

limitations

Answer 4

-difficult to test through research because of the subjective nature of individua responses to stress.
-individuals may not always be consciously aware of the factors causing them stress.
-narrowly focused on cognitive processes and doesn’t account for physiological variations in individual responses to stress and external, sociocultural factors that may influence stress such as race, socio-economic status or education.