individual differences: hardiness Flashcards
true or false?
hardiness is an aspect of personality
true
what does hardiness give us?
existential courage to deal with stress + the determination to keep going despite setbacks/uncertainties
what are the 3 dimensions of hardiness which relate to cognitive appraisal?
~ commitment
~ challenge
~ control
what does ‘commitment’ mean in terms of hardiness?
hardy people throw themselves fully into all life has to offer them rather than standing on the sidelines
what does ‘challenge’ mean in terms of hardiness?
hardy people view stressful situations as opportunities for self-development rather than threats to their self-esteem
what does ‘control’ mean in terms of hardiness?
hardy people believe that stressful situations can be overcome through their own efforts + they are in charge of their own life
who did Kobasa research?
670 male American middle/senior managers aged 40-49
how did Kobasa identify those with high stress?
Schedule of recent experiences (forerunner to SRRS)
how did Kobasa measure illness?
Seriousness of illness survey + recorded number of days taken off work
what did Kobasa find?
those managers that coped well with their stressful jobs without becoming ill/taking time off work were those that scored highly on the 3Cs
what did Kobasa conclude?
her findings confirmed the role of hardiness in stress
who did Maddi research?
400 managers + supervisors at US Bell Telephone company
what happened to the company that Maddi researched during this time?
thousands of people lost their jobs, resulting in a highly stressful experience for employees
how many managers’ performance + health declined in Maddi’s study?
2/3
what were the outcomes of poor health/performance of stressed managers in Maddi’s study?
heart attacks, strokes, depression, drug abuse, etc.
how many managers in Maddi’s study appeared to flourish?
1/3
who were the managers in Maddi’s study that flourished the most?
the managers that scored most highly on measures of 3Cs
what are 2 strengths of this research?
~ research support
~ real-world application
what is 1 limitation of this research?
concept of hardiness may be too broad
what is 1 counterpoint to ‘research support’?
research into hardiness is based on measures that lack validity
how did Bartone et. al. provide a real-world application of hardiness?
he suggested that knowledge of hardiness may be useful in certain jobs to predict who can resist stress
who did Bartone research + what were his findings?
~ he measured hardiness in candidates applying for positions within US Army Special Forces
~ he found that those who passed the tough 4-week assessment course were significantly hardier than those who did not
how did Contrada provide research support?
he studied cardiovascular responses in men to a stressful task in lab conditions
what did Contrada find + conclude?
~ he found that students who scored highest on a measure of hardiness had lower levels of resting blood pressure in response to stressor
~ lowest blood pressure levels were found in those who were not only hardy, but had a Type B personality
~ this shows that hardiness affects physiological stress response + may protect from some stress-related illnesses
why did Hull et. al. suggest that the concept of hardiness is too broad?
he recommended that research should only focus on control + abandon the ‘challenge’ component altogether because there is psychological research showing how important a sense of personal control is to wellbeing in various contexts
true or false?
the concept of hardiness is so broad that it may have little/no validity
true
what implies that the concept of hardiness is poorly defined?
hardiness has to be measured by 5 different questionnaires, not by a single scale, showing that the concept is too vague
what did Contrada find when he analysed his data more closely?
he found that only the ‘challenge’ component of hardiness was linked to blood pressure, not all the 3Cs
