Chapter Seven: Coping, Resilience, and Social Support Flashcards
Def: stress moderators
modify how stress is experienced & the effects it has
Def: coping
managing the internal & external demands of stressful situations using thoughts & behaviors. Like: resources, values, and commitments with the environment at the time.
Coping characteristics:
Relationship with stressful events is a dynamic process
Important aspect of coping is its breadth
External resources or impediments of the coping process:
Tangible resources
Social support
Major life events & daily hassles
Internal resources or impediments of the Coping Process
Usually coping styles
Other personality factors that influence selection of coping responses & strategies
Negative affectivity & coping:
Marked by anxiety, depression, & hostility.
Associate with poor health habits
Ppl don’t respond well to treatments
Those high in neuroticism
Can create an illusion of poor health
Can be related to:
Poor health - chronic disorders and diseases
All-cause mortality
Higher levels of stress indicators
More likely to do illegal drugs and abuse prescription drugs
Positive emotional states & coping:
Promotes better mental & physical health
Linked to lower levels of stress indicators
Triggers better immune responses
Improves coping
Linked to a longer life
Better mood.
Optimism + Psychosocial resources =
Better coping with stress
Reduces one’s risk for illness
Better physiological stress profiles (cortisol, BP, & inflammation).
Persistent when pursuing their goals.
Overly _________ people tend to not care about their health.
cheerful
Def: optimism
promotes active & persistent coping efforts
Def: psychological control
belief that one can exert control over stressful events.
Def: control-enhancing interventions
use info, relaxation, and cognitive-behavioral techniques to reduce anxiety, improve coping, & promote recovery.
Types of Psychological control:
Control-enhancing interventions
Self esteem and stress:
Associated with lower levels of stress indicators
Conscientiousness
Self-confidence
Being smart
Emotional stability
def: Resilience
helps ppl bounce back & adapt flexibly to stressful situations
Promoting resources for resilience:
Sense of coherence & purpose abt life
Sense of humor & trust in others
Sense that life is worth living
Religious beliefs
Def: coping style
propensity to deal with stressful events in a particular way
Def: avoidant coping style
coping by avoiding the issue
Def: approach coping style
coping by gathering info or directly taking action.
Def: problem-focused coping
attempting to do something constructive abt the stressful conditions.
Def: emotion-focused coping
regulating emotions experienced bc of the stressful event
Def: emotional-approach coping
clarifying, focusing on, & working thru the emotions experienced in response to a stressor
Aids in adjusting to chronic conditions & medical conditions
Helps manage stress better
Def: proactive coping
anticipating potential stressors & acting in advance.
External resources used for coping:
Time
Money
Education
Decent job
Friends
Family
Standards of living
Presence of positive life events
Absence of other life stressors
SES
Coping outcomes can:
Reduce or eliminating stressors
Tolerating or adjusting to negative events or realities
Maintaining a positive self-image
Maintaining emotional equilibrium
Continuing satisfying relationships with others
Enhancing recovery when ill
Keeping low physiological, neuroendocrine, & immune reactivity
Def: mindfulness meditation
teaches ppl to have a higher awareness of the present, focus on the present & accept it.
Improves coping
Def: mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR)
helps ppl to manage their reactions to stress & the resulting negative emotions.
Mindfulness and MBSR can ______ the biological responses to stress.
mute
Def: Acceptance & commitment therapy (ACT)
teach ppl to accept the issue, be aware of the problem’s occurrence & the conditions that caused it, and to commit to behavior change.
expressive writing effects
reduces psychological & physiological indicators of stress
Aids in effective coping
Helps organize thoughts & find meaning
Helps to focus attention on positive aspects
Provides an opportunity to clarify emotions
Affirms one’s personal values
Helps ppl feel better abt themselves
Lowers physiological activity & distress
Reduces defensive reactions to health threats
Def: relaxation training
affects the physiological experience of stress by reducing arousal.
Includes: deep breathing, progressive muscle relaxation training, guided imagery, transcendental meditation & yoga, self hypnosis.
Benefits of Relaxation training:
Reduces: heart rate, muscle tension, BP, inflammation, lipid levels, anxiety, and tension.
Def: coping effectiveness training (CET)
teaches ppl how to: assess stressful events & disaggregate the stressors into specific tasks
One learns to distinguish certain aspects of stressors that might be changeable for those that aren’t.
Encourages ppl to maintain their social support.
Phases of stress managements:
Learning & identifying stressors
Acquiring & practicing skills for coping with stress
Practicing the techniques
Stress management programs can:
Identify stressors, minotaur stress, identify stress antecedents, avoiding negative self-talk, completing take-home assignments, acquiring skills, setting new goals, engaging in positive self-talk & self-instruction, time management & planning, identifying stress carriers & confronting them.
Def: social support
info from others that one is: loved & cared for, esteemed & valued, part of a network of communication & mutual obligations, helps reduce stress, cope better, & experience positive life events
Types of Social support:
Tangible assistance
Informational support
Emotional support
Invisible support
Def: Tangible assistance
Provision of material support
Services, financial assistance, or goods.
Def: Informational support
Providing support thru info
Def: Emotional support
Reassuring someone that they are importante & cared for
Def: Invisible support
Helping someone without them being aware of it.
Effects of social support on illness:
Lowers the likelihood of illness
Speeds up recovery
Reduces the risk of mortality
Encourages ppl to use health services & stick to their medical regimens
Can lead to some bad health habits
Social support has _________ effects on the cardiovascular, endocrine, & immune systems.
positive
Biopsychosocial pathways of social support benefits
Lowers physiological & neuroendocrine responses to stress
Decreases cortisol responses to stress
Better immune functioning
Less accumulation of allostatic load
Less cellular aging
Modifies the brain’s responses to stress
Def: direct effects hypothesis
social support is generally beneficial during nonstressful as well as stressful times
Def: buffering hypothesis
physical & mental health benefits of social support are chiefly evidence during periods of high stress
Effectiveness of social support depends on _______ an individual uses a social support ________
how, network
Social skills influence the ability to ________ social support
develop
Effective kinds of support:
Marriage, especially a satisfying marriage
Familial support
Support form a community
Matching support to the stressor
Def: matching hypothesis
support that meets the needs of a stressful event is the most effective support
Social support is ineffective if the type of support provided isn’t ________
useful
Emotional support is best provided by someone ______ to the person
close
Social support is _________ when the person from whom one is seeking support is perceived to be ___________ to one’s needs.
effective, responsible
Threats to social support:
Stressful events
Intrusive social contact
Controlling or directive support
Giving social support…..
Has beneficial effects on both mental & physical health
Enhancing social support can:
Prevent a lot of ailments & issues
Forms of beneficial social support systems:
Networking or internet based systems
Family based systems
