fight or flight

Question 1

What is the fight or flight response

Answer 1

The way an animal responds when stressed - becomes physiologically aroused in readiness to fight or flee

Question 2

Where is adrenaline released

Answer 2

From the adrenal medulla - part of adrenal glad near kidneys

Question 3

What does adrenaline trigger

Answer 3

Triggers physiological changes in body - fight or flight response

Question 4

Sympathetic state

Answer 4

Sympathetic NS prepares the body for action
- increases heart rate
- Increases breathing rate
- Dilates pupils
- Inhibits digestion
- Inhibits saliva production
- Contracts rectum

Question 5

Parasympathetic state

Answer 5

Parasympathetic brings the body back to its resting state
- Decreases heart rate
- Decreases breathing rate
- Constricts pupils
- Stimulates digestion
- Stimulates saliva production
- Relaxes rectum

Question 6

First steps of the fight or flight response

Answer 6

1. The amygdala reacts to threat
2. The hypothalamus activates the sympathetic nervous system, release of adrenaline
3. The adrenal cortex releases cortisol for continued alertness

Question 7

Second step

Answer 7

The hypothalamus activates the sympathetic branch of the autonomic nervous system

Question 8

Third step

Answer 8

The adrenal glands respond by pumping adrenaline into the bloodstream, as this circulates through the body, it brings on a number of physiological changes

Question 9

Fourth step

Answer 9

The heart beats faster than normal, pushing blood to the muscles, heart and other vital organs

Question 10

Fifth step

Answer 10

Airways in the lungs open wide so that the lungs can take in as much oxygen as possible with each breath

Question 11

Sixth step

Answer 11

Pupils dilate so that we can see more clearly; unessential systems such as digestion are also inhibited; blood is shunted away from the stomach to the major muscle groups where it will be used during an emergency

Question 12

Seventh step

Answer 12

Once the threat passes the parasympathetic nervous system returns body to its resting state

Question 13

Critique

Answer 13

P - may have been useful for ancestors - less relevant now in modern day life
E - stressors in modern day life trigger fight or flight - bad for our health
E - stress and continually activate the sympathetic nervous system increase blood pressure which can cause damage to their blood vessels and heart disease
L - suggests fight or flight response is a maladaptive response in modern-day life

Question 14

Opposing research

Answer 14

P - reflection is bias towards male physiology
E - female fight or flight - risk for her children - leaves them vulnerable
E - Taylor 2006 - ‘tend and befriend’ - women more likely to protect their offspring and form alliances with other women
L - fight or flight is subject to beta bias

Question 15

Different explanation

Answer 15

P - Psychological factors - cognitive appraisal is ignored
E - Lazarus - 1999 - we make appraisals of stress by actively working out if it is a threat and whether we have the resources to cope with it
E - med students response to watching a procedure on film was determined by whether they believed the procedure to be traumatic (increased heart rate) or a rite of passage (decreased heart rate)
L - difficult for purely physiological explanations to account for this findings, this therefore shows that humans are not just passive in the face of stresses