SOC363: 6.5 - Stress Process

Question 1

What is it?

Answer 1

term standing for a multi-stage process including socio-environmental sources of stress exposure
sequences of stress trajectories through life
intervention of coping resources + behavior +
myriad of life consequences that follow..

Question 2

What is it?

Answer 2

™ A term attributed to Len Pearlin from an 1981 article called “The Stress Process”.
™ The major perspective in the sociology of mental health. Why?

Question 3

What is it?

Answer 3

– Roots the stress experience in social structures that breed inequality
– Identifies the patterning of and interdependence of stressors

Question 4

What is it?

Answer 4

– Includes the full range of coping styles and behavior and
their inter-relationships.
– Emphasizes multiple outcomes

Question 5

Origins

Answer 5

Pearlin et al. (1981) propose a multi-stage process relating different types of stress to each other, and then specifying how coping both mediates and modifies the impact of stress.

Question 6

Origins

Answer 6

disruptive job events - changes in economic strain - changes in mastery + changes in self esteem = changes to depression

Question 7

Diffusion of Stress Process Research,

1981- 2007

Answer 7

-increase in stress research

Question 8

Starting Points– and End Point

Answer 8

Sources:

– Statuses, roles, structures that generate inequality and thus are likely to map to the experience of stress.

Question 9

Starting Points– and End Point

Answer 9

™ Stressors:
– Primary and secondary — the concept of proliferation
through life.
some stressors are starting points to others - proliferation

Question 10

Starting Points– and End Point

Answer 10

– Different types – events and chronic, one breeds the other.

Question 11

Starting Points– and End Point

Answer 11

-™ Coping:
– Both social and personal coping resources intervene as
mediators and moderators
coping: distinguish social and personal coping resources ™

Question 12

Starting Points– and End Point

Answer 12

-Outcomes:

– Mental health, Physical Health, Achievements in social roles, instability in roles, losses in status.

Question 13

Not a sim–ple story

Answer 13

Coping intervenes in two ways —
– “mediates” means that coping resources may be reduced by the presence of stress, e.g., loss of social support, or an increased sense of powerlessness.

Question 14

Not a sim–ple story

Answer 14

–– “moderates” means that the level of coping resources available also directly reduces the overall impact of stress.

Question 15

Not a sim–ple story

Answer 15

-™ Pudrovska et al., (2005): chronic economic strain leads to depression in part due to the mediating role of mastery: the chronic stressor undermines mastery, and this increases depression…but also
™ The level of mastery reduces the direct impact of economic strain….

Question 16

Contingencies Occur at Each Stage

Answer 16

Contingencies in the Process:
– Coping short-circuits the consequences –
sometimes.
– Earlier stressors may lower the threat of later stressors, or make them worse.

Question 17

Contingencies Occur at Each Stage

Answer 17

– Timing of stressors essential to their meaning
– Norms, rates of stress around you, social contexts all modify the threat of stressors and /or change the risk that they occur

Question 18

Contingencies Occur at Each Stage

Answer 18

all the connections are question marks

experience means potential threat can feel less threatening

Question 19

Components of the Original Stress Process

Answer 19

Note the dotted lines…. The effect of coping resources on reducing the consequences of stress (moderating)

Question 20

Components of the Original Stress Process

Answer 20

different trajectories of stress in ppl’s life + different distribution in coping resources
mastery + self esteem are personal resources
social support - social resources

Question 21

Elaboration of the Stress Process, Middle-Stages

Answer 21

More stressors (childhood), more sources of inequality, more outcomes….

Question 22

Elaboration of the Stress Process, Middle-Stages

Answer 22

Modern Version of the Stress Process
social contexts of inequality are combined
macro structural sources, historical, life history
more personal and social resources

Question 23

Adding to the Process

Answer 23

Layers of stress, layers of inequality
™ Long view of the accumulation of stress experience: biography as context for the meaning of current stressors..
systemic sources of inequality

Question 24

Adding to the Process

Answer 24

™ The elaboration of types of social support – –
Actual vs. Perceived–
Logistical vs. Emotional
emotional - most important in mental health

Question 25

Adding to the Process

Answer 25

-– Variants --- social networks, social capital | social capital - extra info + ties in networks that are tied to you because you are tied to them

Question 26

Adding to the Process

Answer 26

-™ Differentiation of Types of Personal Resources ™ Diverse Outcomes...

Question 27

Stress Prol–iferation v.1

Answer 27

™ Chains of stress set off by an initial (primary) stressor. ™ NOT automatic --- there are contingencies at each stage determining whether the next stressor occurs.

Question 28

Stress Prol–iferation v.1

Answer 28

™ Examples -– Job lossàfinancial strainàlong-term unemployment => marital conflict

Question 29

Stress Prol–iferation v.1

Answer 29

Parental divorceàown divorceàconflict with ex- spouseàproblems with kidsàloss of contact with kids. – Childhood abuseàDrop out of schoolàLeave Home earlyàAbuse from Partner

Question 30

Stress Prol–iferation v.1

Answer 30

multiple opportunities for problems to get solved

Question 31

Stress Prol–iferation v.2

Answer 31

™ Spillover of stress across Roles, Lives, and Levels of Social Reality: – Work-family conflict -stress from work spills to family–

Question 32

Stress Prol–iferation v.2

Answer 32

Network and social ties spread stress. | aware of stress through social ties

Question 33

Stress Prol–iferation v.2

Answer 33

-– Cost of Caring (Kessler and McLeod, 1984) cost of caring: explaining gender differences women more source of help to others than men higher awareness of others’ troubles can be a burden for women

Question 34

Stress Prol–iferation v.2

Answer 34

-– Macro-stressors at the system level imply higher risk at the individual level --- recessions raise the risk of two kinds of stress --- individual job loss, and the threat of job loss. job loss - life event threat of job loss - chronic and widespread stress

Question 35

“New–” Stressors

Answer 35

Wheaton (2001): ™ Spread of regulation in public interaction ™ Spread of mistrust ™ Early and easy labeling.degree of oversight + constraints in what can occur

Question 36

“New–” Stressors

Answer 36

ppl operate more when given scripts than personal expression how we approach ppl - guilty until proven innocent labelling worse now - even for most trivial things

Question 37

“New–” Stressors

Answer 37

™ Glavin et al., (2010): reach of communication technology and role-blurring ™ Electronic connectedness (Facebook stress) ™ Wheaton et al., (2010):

Question 38

“New–” Stressors

Answer 38

glavin: teens on phone 9 hours a day stress in connectedness because of demands satisfaction of getting accepted

Question 39

“New–” Stressors

Answer 39

™Wheaton et al.: Terrorism (9/11) ™ Knowing Too Much about Others Lives; Absence of Privacy

Question 40

“New–” Stressors

Answer 40

™ Virtualization of Social Relations – Replaced Intimacy ™ Stress of contexts --- like neighbourhoods, workplaces. ™ Technology: Complexity, Frailty, and Interdependence.

Question 41

“New–” Stressors

Answer 41

--™ Mass violence terrorism - endemic discourse privacy: knowing too much - uncovering of identities

Question 42

Mediating / Moderating

Answer 42

Df: a mediator is a variable that is affected by an earlier variable in a process and explains part or all of its effect. –It answers this question: how does X affect Y? It is part of the effect of X on Y. – The task of explanation and theorizing a relationship involves specifying mediators.

Question 43

Mediating / Moderating

Answer 43

moderator is a variable that actually changes the size of the effect of X on Y. ™ Coping resources play both roles (See dotted vs. filled lines in the model)

Question 44

Mediating vs. Moderating: Pathways and Disruptions

Answer 44

Model for a mediator: Stressor => Resource => Depression | Stressor affects resource which affects depression

Question 45

Mediating vs. Moderating: Pathways and Disruptions

Answer 45

™model with a moderator: Stressor = Resource => Depression resource affects how stressor influences depression

Question 46

Resources in a Dual Role

Answer 46

Stressor –=> => Depression | Resource = social support. What happens when a stressor occurs?

Question 47

Resources in a Dual Role

Answer 47

If stressor activates support: – Mediation: Support increases, which then reduces depression.–  Moderation: Support’s role in reducing the impact of stress is enhanced.

Question 48

Resources in a Dual Role

Answer 48

™ If stressor depletes support: – Mediation: Support decreases, which then increases depression. – Moderation: Support’s role in reducing the impact of stress is weaker.

Question 49

Resources in a Dual Role

Answer 49

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Question 50

Stress Process 2012: New Perspectives

Answer 50

Social contexts and the life course have entered the process. – The “Stress Universe” complicates the model further.

Question 51

Stress Process 2012: New Perspectives

Answer 51

Space – layers of combinations of both stressors and resources space: stress occurs at seperate layers in society consider diff layers of stress

Question 52

Stress Process 2012: New Perspectives

Answer 52

– Time – biography is the context of meaning– Long-term causation: ™ Latency: childhood stress shows up in negative effects in later adolescence

Question 53

Stress Process 2012: New Perspectives

Answer 53

™ Maintenance: long term causation occurs because things maintain signal style of interaction reproduces same situations ™ Growth and / or Decay: natural life in length of life

Question 54

Stress Process 2012: Anticipatory Stressors

Answer 54

Expected stressors? Possible stressors? ™ Distinction between the prevalence of misery and the expectation that misery may occur at any time not the same thing

Question 55

Stress Process 2012: Anticipatory Stressors

Answer 55

– Crime rate vs. fear of crime | rate of domestic violence is more rare than expexted violence

Question 56

Stress Process 2012: Anticipatory Stressors

Answer 56

™ Effect of macro-social conditions on anticipated stress: “I could be next”. shift attention to chronic expectation

Question 57

Stress Process 2012: The Problem with Coping

Answer 57

Social sources of coping styles not well understood | ™ The impact of coping styles or behaviours may be largely situational.

Question 58

Stress Process 2012: The Problem with Coping

Answer 58

™ Few demonstrations that its effects survive controls for the resources in coping themselves. ™ May not be content of coping, but flexibility and persistence per se

Question 59

Stress Process 2012: The Problem with Coping

Answer 59

impact of diff in styles is situational | distinguish between coping actions and coping resources

Question 60

Stress Process 2012: The Complexities of Support

Answer 60

Perceived Availability vs. Actual Transactions ™ Causal direction with mental health outcomes an issue, and the direction of the effect is a clue. ™Support can be threatening.

Question 61

Stress Process 2012: The Complexities of Support

Answer 61

™ Support can be a disappointment. ™ Giving support can be stressful to the self (cost of caring) perceived availability of support

Question 62

Stress Process 2012: The Complexities of Support

Answer 62

ok to assume it, but don’t test it or push it ppl are often disappointed about support given to you illusions that we are loved more than we are really loved

Question 63

Stress Process 2012: The Complexities of Support

Answer 63

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Question 64

Stress Process 2012: Mastery

Answer 64

™ The perception of personal control over life outcomes. | ™ May be the key element..

Question 65

Stress Process 2012: Mastery

Answer 65

-™ Reasons for its impact important: | – Reduces estimated threat of stressor

Question 66

Stress Process 2012: Mastery

Answer 66

– Activates coping attempts – Precipitates effort and persistence, not choice of content. ™ Resources as replaceable functions?

Question 67

Stress Process 2012: Belief System

Answer 67

™ Religion: – Substance vs. belief per se? – Effects of commitment? – Social functions of participation

Question 68

Stress Process 2012: Belief System

Answer 68

™ Political systems: | – What makes people happy in unhappy Russia?

Question 69

Stress Process 2012: Belief System

Answer 69

-– Democratic vs. autocratic regimes related to human rights. Does this carry through to differences in emotional status? – “Freedom of choice” vs. “freedom from choice”?

Question 70

Stress Process 2012: Multiple Outcomes

Answer 70

The problem with single outcome studies – gender differences an example. ™ The study of stress demands multiple outcomes at once:

Question 71

Stress Process 2012: Multiple Outcomes

Answer 71

-– Different groups may have different culturally prescribed but functionally equivalent responses to stress. – Aneshensel et al (1991) on gender differences.