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Psychology U3/4 > U3AOS1B - Stress > Flashcards

U3AOS1B - Stress Flashcards

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1
Q

Define stress

A
  • A psychological and physiological state of tension
  • Occurs when an individual encounters something of significance that demands their attention and/or efforts to cope
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2
Q

What is distress?

A
  • Form of stress characterised by a negative psychological state
  • Also ‘eustress’ (taken out of study design), where it is a positive psychological state
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3
Q

Define acute stress

A
  • Form of stress characterised by intense psychological and physiological symptoms that are brief in duration
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4
Q

Define chronic stress

A
  • Form of stress that endures for several months or longer
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5
Q

Briefly describe the Yerkes-Dodson law

A
  • Low and high arousal is linked to poor performance
  • Moderate arousal is linked to optimal performance
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6
Q

Define stressor

A
  • A stimulus (internal or external) that prompts the stress response
  • Can be internal or external
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7
Q

Define and list examples of internal stressors

A
  • A stimulus from within a person’s body that prompts the stress response
    • Hunger, illness (physiological)
    • Pessimistic attitude, low self-esteem (psychological)
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8
Q

Define and list examples of external stressors

A
  • A stimulus from outside of a person’s body that prompts the stress response
    • An upcoming exam
    • Financial difficulties
    • Relationship conflicts
    • Being overworked
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9
Q

State examples of physiological stress responses

A
  • Skin rashes
  • Headaches
  • Colds/flu
  • Heart palpitations
  • Heart attack
  • Stomach ulcers
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10
Q

State examples of psychological stress responses

A
  • Behavioural
    • Changes to eating habits
    • Changes to sleep
  • Emotional
    • Irritability
    • Aggression
  • Cognitive
    • Decreased concentration
    • Memory impairment
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11
Q

Explain the fight-flight-freeze response in relation to stress

A
  • More prominent during acute stress
  • Can include any adaptive response that gives the body all necessary resources to maximise survival
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12
Q

Define cortisol

A
  • Hormone released in times of stress to aid the body in initiating and maintaining heightened arousal
  • Increases glucose to help different bodily functions repair damage done through stress and to help combat the stress itself
  • Released after the FFF response to help sustain high levels of energy
  • More prominent in chronic stress
  • Also has a job in defending the immune system
    • If used in stress, cannot protect the immune system
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13
Q

How can stress damage the body?

A
  • During acute stress adrenaline is released
  • If for a prolonged time, adrenaline can stay in the body and eventually cause damage to the stomach (stomach ulcers)
  • Cortisol is released to repair damage and sustain heightened arousal
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14
Q

Does stress cause disease?

A
  • No, but prolonged stress can make individuals more susceptible
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15
Q

Describe the HPA axis in relation to stress

A
  • Hypothalamus, Pituitary and Adrenal glands
  • FFF response activates adrenaline
  • Stress continues, therefore the release of adrenaline must continue
  • Amygdala senses that there is a threat
  • Triggers HPA axis to release cortisol
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16
Q

Draw and label each stage of Selye’s General Adaptation Syndrome model

A
  • Graph should include:
    • Y-Axis of Resistance levels to stress
    • X-axis of Time
    • Stages - Alarm (split into shock and counter shock), Resistance and Exhaustion
    • Should decrease in shock, increase in counter shock and peak around the middle of Resistance (adrenaline requires assistance from cortisol) until final decrease in Exhaustion
    • Line starts at ‘Normal levels of resistance to stress’
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17
Q

Describe the elements of General Adaptation Syndrome

A
  • Alarm - Shock
    • RTS is below normal
    • Body acts as though it is injured, blood pressure and body temperature drop
  • Alarm - Counter shock
    • RTS is above normal
    • Sympathetic NS is activated
    • FFF response is activated
    • Adrenaline and cortisol released
  • Resistance
    • RTS is above normal
    • Cortisol is released and all unnecessary functions are shut down
    • Individual appears as though all is normal
  • Exhaustion
    • RTS is below normal
    • Resources are depleted
    • Immune system is left weakened and prolonged release of adrenaline has negative effects on the body (stomach ulcers)
    • Individual is susceptible to illness and disease

RTS = Resistance to Stress

18
Q

How does GAS explain stress?

A
  • Explains stress from a biological perspective
19
Q

What are the strengths of GAS?

A
  • Evidence of relationship between stress and illness
  • Highlights predictable pattern that can be measured in individuals
20
Q

What are the weaknesses of GAS?

A
  • Research was not conducted on humans (done on rats)
  • Does not account for individual differences and psychological factors
21
Q

What is the Transactional Model of Stress and Coping?

A
  • Involves encounter between an individual and their external environment
  • Stress response depends upon the individual’s interpretation (appraisal) of the stressor and their ability to cope with it
22
Q

Describe the first stage of the TMS

A
  • Primary Appraisal
    • Individual’s assessment of the situation
    • Benign-Positive, Stressful or Irrelevant
    • If stressful, it is deduced as either a harm/loss (past), threat (could happen in future) or challenge
23
Q

Describe the second stage of the TMS

A
  • Secondary Appraisal
    • Assessment of available sources for coping
    • If not enough - Stress
    • If enough - Reduced/ eliminated stress OR reappraisal (go back to primary)
    • Internal resources - Character, personality
    • External resources - Support networks, money, time
24
Q

Is reappraisal important?

A
  • Yes because the consideration of one’s resources can change their perception of a situation
25
Q

What is the equation of the Transactional Model?

A
  • Demands > resources = stress
26
Q

How does the TMS explain stress?

A
  • Primary and secondary appraisal are dependent on individual factors and the many psychological determinants that may influence this response
  • Explains stress as a psychological process
27
Q

What are the strengths of the TMS?

A
  • Accounts for individual differences in responses to similar situations
  • Responds to changes in an individual’s response through the reappraisal stage
    • Explains why differences can occur within an individual’s response to situations
28
Q

What are the weaknesses of the TMS?

A
  • Lack of empirical evidence due to the subjective nature of data collected
  • Often overlap between primary and secondary appraisal stages
    • Less discrete and reoccur more simultaneously than the model suggests
29
Q

Compare GAS to TMS

A
  • Similarities
    • Stress over time
    • References to stress as a psychobiological process
  • Differences
    • GAS - Biological, TMS - Psychological
    • GAS - Study done on animals, TMS - Study done on humans
30
Q

What is the relationship between gut microbiota and stress?

A
  • Biome - Area for a community of living things
  • Gut becomes its own microbiome due to the microbiota that live thre
  • Study conducted where microorganisms were removed from gut of animals
    • Animals were found to secrete more stress hormone
    • Showed anxiety-like behaviours
  • Recent research on humans show unhealthy gut microbiota is linked to…
    • Higher stress levels
    • Anxiety disorders
    • Cognitive decline
31
Q

What is the gut-brain axis?

A
  • Bi-directional relationship between the gut and the brain through the enteric and central nervous systems
  • Messages are relayed between gut and brain through vagus nerve
    • Connect cognitive & emotional regions of brain via sensory + motor neurons
    • 90% information afferent pathway
  • Gut microbiota
    • Produce GABA, serotonin + dopamine
    • Chronic stress and cortisol levels have an impact
    • Type + Variety of microbiota influence responsiveness to stress
  • Examples of gut-brain axis in action…
    • Bowel inflammation 👅 → Impacts brain function 🧠
    • Depression 🧠 → Impacts gut health 👅

🔗- Zietgebers = Blue Light ↑ Cortisol
Important → Bidirectional, link emotional & cognitive parts of the brain with peripheral intestinal functions

32
Q

How can ingesting antibiotics influence stress levels?

A
  • Antibiotics are designed to kill bacteria
  • This can include both good and bad bacteria in the gut microbiome → Alters its composition
  • Results in a change in the balance of hormones released by the enteric nervous system → Higher levels of stress
33
Q

What is an approach strategy?

A
  • Coping strategies that directly confront the source of the stress
  • Involve behaviours that attempt to decrease the stress by addressing or finding solutions to the problem
  • Typically a healthy response
34
Q

What is an avoidance strategy?

A
  • Coping strategies that evade the stressor, seeking to indirectly reduce stress
  • Involve failing to engage or deal with the stress by protecting oneself from psychological distress
  • Typically maladaptive
    • Unhealthy for the individual
    • Unhelpful for relieving the source of the stress
35
Q

What can influence which coping strategy we engage in?

A
  • Self-efficacy
    • The belief in our own ability and that our actions can influence outcomes
  • Resilience
    • Our ability to bounce back following adversity
36
Q

What are the strengths of an approach strategy?

A
  • Generally considered more adaptive and effective
  • People who rely on approach strategies tend to experience fewer psychological symptoms
    • Can function more effectively
37
Q

What are the weaknesses of an approach strategy?

A
  • In short term, they may increase stress levels while the individual is directly engaged with the stressor and its causes
  • May require a lot of energy to focus and deal with the stressor
    • Cause them to neglect other aspects of their lives
38
Q

What are the strengths of an avoidance strategy?

A
  • Appropriate in a situation where nothing can be done
    • Avoiding unchangeable stressor → Adaptive
    • Allows you to conserve energy for other stressors that can be changed
  • More effective in short term
39
Q

What are the weaknesses of an avoidance strategy?

A
  • Tend to be maladaptive
  • Excessive reliance associated with negative consequences
  • Tend to only be helpful in short term
    • Use in long-term can prevent people from responding to stressors in constructive ways
  • Use can be detrimental when action is needed
40
Q

What is context-specific effectiveness?

A
  • When the coping strategy used is appropriate for the unique demands of the stressor
41
Q

What is coping flexibility?

A
  • The ability to adjust or change one’s coping strategies depending on the unique and changing demands of a stressor
  • High levels are associated with a lower incidence of mental illness and a higher incidence of positive outcomes

Psychology U3/4 (12 decks)

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