Week 3

Question 1

What are the physiological basis of stress?

Answer 1

Heart rate increases, blood pressure rises, blood vessels constrict, sugar levels rise, blood flow is directed towards major organs, breathing is deeper and faster, digestion stops and sweating increases, adrenaline is secreted

Question 2

What are the 3 stages of Stress? (GAS, General Adaptation System)

Answer 2

Alarm, Resistance and Exhaustion

Question 3

What is the Alarm stage?

Answer 3

Organism’s resistance to the stressor temporarily decreases below normal which can cause shock and impairment of normal physiological functions

Question 4

What is the Resistance (Adaptaiton) stage?

Answer 4

The organism learns to adapt to exposure of stress and nervous system goes back to normal functioning while resistance to the stressor goes above normal

Question 5

What is the Exhaustion stage?

Answer 5

When the organism is exposed to the stressor for too long, it can’t adapt or resist which can potentially lead to death

Question 6

What are the health risks of stress?

Answer 6

Weakened immune system, heart disease, high blood pressure

Question 7

What is stress appraisal (Lazarus and Folkman)?

Answer 7

When we assess new environments. Stress is the result of how an event will affect us and if we have the ability to handle it

Question 8

What is primary appraisal?

Answer 8

Allowing us to see a new environment as beneficial, neutral or negative and the possible consequences

Question 9

What is secondary appraisal?

Answer 9

Assessment of our coping abilities, resources and judgements as to whether they are sufficient enough to meet the harms, threats or challenges of a new or changing event

Question 10

What is self efficacy

Answer 10

a person’s belief that he or she is capable of the specific behaviour required to produce a desired outcome

• The more self-efficacy we have, the more likely we are to try it, persist at it and succeed
• High amounts of self-efficacy allows people to cope with stress

Question 11

What is the effect of optimism on stress?

Answer 11

it keeps stress levels low

Question 12

How are stress and relationships related?

Answer 12

People who are lonely are more susceptible to stress

The quality of friends are more important than the quantity

Question 13

What is problem focused coping?

Answer 13

o Eliminating or reducing the situation that is causing stress
o Only possible when one can control the stressor

Question 14

What is emotion focused coping?

Answer 14

o Reducing our emotional reaction to stressful situation

Question 15

What is proactive coping?

Answer 15

o Preventing or reducing stress upright, such as preventing stressful situations

Question 16

What is Stress Inoculation Training?

Answer 16

o Prepares one for the negative effects of stress and provides him with skills that will reduce their susceptibility to those effects

Question 17

What are subjective norms?

Answer 17

Our belief about what other people think we should do

Question 18

What is attitude?

Answer 18

Our evaluation of the behaviour in question

Question 19

What are perceived behaviour controls?

Answer 19

Our confidence in our ability to achieve the desired behaviour

Question 20

What are factors that affect life choices?

Answer 20

o Subjective norms, and knowing what they are
o Social support by peer groups
o Believing in long term awards over short term ones

Question 21

What is the “Type A Pattern” for personality?

Answer 21

o High levels of competitiveness, hostility, impatience, intense disposition
o Increases one’s risk of getting CHD (coronary heart disease)
o Poorer health

Question 22

What is the “Type B Pattern” for personality?

Answer 22

o Low levels of, competitiveness and hospitality, patience and easygoing
o Lower risk of getting CHD (coronary heart disease)

Question 23

What is the fight or flight response?

Answer 23

Physiological response that helps us either fight the stressor or flee dangerous situations

Question 24

What are the hormonal responses to stress?

Answer 24

• Epinephrine releases the stored version of glucose which is found in our muscles, therefore providing energy for vigorous exercises
• Epinephrine and norepinephrine increases the blood flow to the muscles through the heart, therefore changing blood pressure
• Increases risk of CHD

Question 25

What is stress?

Answer 25

o Contains multiple faces

contains many responses

o Emotional response
o physiological response – increased heart rate, heart pressures
o Cognitive response – what is stressing depends on our perception
o Behavioural response – our reaction or response to stress

Question 26

What causes stress?

Answer 26

o Crises
o Important life events
o Daily hassles
o The biggest life stressor is money

Question 27

What is the theory of planned behaviour?

Answer 27

Attitude, Subjective norm, perceived behaviour control affect behavioural intentions which affect our behaviour

Question 28

What is cognitive appraisal?

Answer 28

Changing one’s perceptions of existing stressors to be less threatening