PSYCH 1100 (Unit 2) Chapter 16: The Healthy Mind: Stress and Coping, Health Psychology, and Positive Psychology

alarm reaction

first stage of GAS. initiated when stressor is perceived/identified. sympathetic arousal and mental clarity

Hans Selye did research on rats to form his theory, called the ______

general adaption syndrome

Mark nearly crashes his car. To help his body cope with the stress, a surge of _______ is released into his bloodstream from his adrenal glands.

cortisol

biopsychosocial model

health is viewed as the sum of biological (such as genetics, infection, and injury), psychological (such as lifestyle, stress, and health beliefs), and social factors (such as culture, family, and social support)

physical reactions to flight or fight response

heart rate increases, blood pressure increases, respiration increases, non-essential functions (i.e. digestion) are stopped, stored energy is released, blood travels to muscles

Cognitive appraisal models

help us to predict when a particular stimulus or event is likely to be a stressor for an individual person.

Relationship-focused coping

helps maintain and protect social relationships.

Emotion-focused coping

helps you deal with the negative emotions associated with a stressor.

Once the amygdala has identified a stimulus as potentially dangerous, it communicates with the __________

hypothalamus

role of hypothalamus in stress

hypothalamus commands sympathetic division of autonomic nervous system.

Which of the following is NOT positively correlated with high levels of stress? Obesity, Heart Disease, Intelligence, Immune System Malfunction

intelligence

what happens when hippocampus detects high levels of stress hormones

it signals the hypothalamus, which in turn tells the adrenal glands to reduce the release of cortisol, and arousal dissipates.

neurotransmitter related to fear that is released in body's response to stress

norepinephrine

appraisal

our appraisal, or interpretations, of an event/experience determines if we view it as a stressor

what hormone is related to the "tend and befriend" reaction

oxytocin, a hormone related to social bonding

positive vs negative relationship focused coping

people caring for Alzheimer's patients, which can be stressful, exhibited both positive coping (empathy, support, and compromise) and negative coping (confronting, ignoring, blaming, and withdrawal)

3 types of happiness

pleasant life, good life, meaningful life

hassles

relatively insignificant stressors

Some people view stress as an obstacle but others view the same stressor as a positive challenge. The second group of people likely has higher levels of __________.

resiliance

Perceiving a potential source of danger mobilizes the body's resources using two systems. what are they

the sympathetic adrenal-medullary (SAM) system and the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis.

true/false: The hippocampus contains large numbers of receptors for cortisol and other stress hormones.

true

true/false: children are especially susceptible to PTSD

true

true/false: stress hormones directly suppress the activity of lymphocytes

true

true/false: the exhaustion stage of GAS can lead to death

true. Strength and energy drop to very low levels.

true/false: nurture at a young age can lead the body to react better to stress later in life

true. The nurture received from the mother had influenced how the genes responsible for producing and reacting to stress hormones behaved during later stressful experiences

true/false: pregnant women experiencing stress can "pass it to" the baby

true. cortisol and other common stress hormones can pass thru the placenta during pregnancy. common after traumatic and/or prolonged stress (i.e. after 9/11)

true/false: social isolation can be a major stressor

true. feeling unsafe and lonely occurs when one is socially isolated, and feeling unsafe leads to stress

true/false: if enough hassles occur within a short period, people begin to react as if something larger had occurred.

true. if enough "little things" happen at same time, well-being is affected

true/false: the brain can identify dangerous stimuli using different sensory pathways

true. many sensory pathways for information to travel to amygdala

true/false: research suggests we have a "set point" of happiness, largely determined by genes

true. research in identical twins has shown this. however, this doesn't mean your happiness level doesn't change or that behavior has no influence

true/false: stress can contribute to mental illnesses

true. stress has been linked to PTSD, depression, and schizophrenia

true/false: stressors vary by person

true. unique emotional experiences

true/false: stress can accelerate aging process

true: stress accelerates the aging process, including the shortening of telomeres, the "caps" found at the end of chromosomes. Premature aging, of course, is also going to lead to earlier death.

can stress be positive?

yes, stress can be motivational to perform well and makes us healthier in the long run

three ways to cope with a stressor

1. problem-focused 2. emotion-focused 3.relationship-focused

how many stages are in GAS? what are they?

3: alarm, resistance, and exhaustion

health psychology

A branch of psychology that investigates the relationships between psychological variables and health.

hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis

A circuit that responds to perceived stressors by initiating the release of cortisol into the bloodstream.

sympathetic adrenal-medullary (SAM) system

A circuit that responds to perceived stressors by initiating the release of epinephrine (adrenaline) and norepinephrine into the bloodstream from adrenal glands in kidneys.

cortisol

A common stress hormone released into the bloodstream from the adrenal glands.

Type A personalities

A competitive, workaholic, and in some cases hostile personality type.

Type B personalities

A mellow, laid-back personality type.

flow

A state characterized by complete absorption in a current activity, such as work, problem solving, or creativity.

tend and befriend

An alternative to fight or flight as a response to stressors that is possibly more characteristic of females.

positive psychology

An approach to psychology that emphasizes normal behavior and human strengths.

true/false: cortisol boosts energy

Circulating cortisol boosts the energy available for dealing with a stressor.

general adaption syndrome (GAS)

Hans Selye's three-stage model for an organism's response to stressors

true/false: too much exposure to cortisol/circulating cortisol is dangerous

Long-term exposure to cortisol can produce a number of harmful effects, including the death of neurons.

who came up with type A and Type B personality

Meyer Friedman and Ray Rosenman in 1970s

negative-emotion-focused coping

Negative emotion-focused coping, such as eating food you do not need or using alcohol to dull your stress

true/false: the hippocampus can fail to regulate cortisol during extreme stress

Not only can the hippocampus fail to regulate cortisol release under conditions of extreme stress, but continued stress can damage the hippocampus further.

positive-emotion-focused coping

Positive coping with negative emotions might involve sharing your concerns with your friends or family

how does stress relate to the cardiovascular system

Stress puts the cardiovascular system at risk by affecting the ability of blood vessels to expand when necessary. People whose arteries are already stiff or clogged because of age, poor fitness, or disease often suffer from high blood pressure and might be especially susceptible to heart attacks following stress.

does the HPA or SAM response to stress last longer?

The HPA axis response to stress can continue longer than the SAM response, which explains many of the outcomes of chronic stress.

amygdala's involvement in stress

The amygdala participates in a "fear circuit" that provides a rapid response to a potentially dangerous stimulus.

immune system

The body system that defends against infection and cancer.

resistance (stage of GAS)

The second stage of the general adaptation syndrome, characterized by coping with ongoing/prolonged stress.

exhaustion (GAS)

The third and last stage of the general adaptation syndrome, characterized by depletion of physical and psychological resources.

True/False: In the resistance phase of GAS, we attempt to take care of both arousal and resting functions simultaneously.

True. body will switch between periods of calm and arousal. neither set of functions work at full capacity during the resistance phase of GAS.

2 important researchers for flight or fight response

Walter Cannon and Hans Selye

lymphocytes

White blood cells that are products of the immune system. Protect us from "invaders"

what is the first stage of GAS

alarm reaction

stress

an unpleasant emotional state that results from the perception of danger

stress is related to the _______ nervous system

autonomic

negative-problem-focused coping

avoidance, escape. i.e.) fail test --> stop attending class

Stress is caused by the perception of ______

danger

Problem-focused coping

designed to address specific problems by finding solutions.

Kyle is stressed by the amount of work at his new job. He watches more TV than usual because it relaxes him. This is an example of _________.

emotion-focused coping

self-reference effect

explains the superior recall for information relevant to the self by suggesting that the self serves as an important schema for organizing information

what three things can initiate a flight or fight response

extreme cold, lack of oxygen, emotional experiences

true/false: cortisol is solely related to stress

false. Cortisol is not just released in response to perceived stressors. cortisol also plays a role in maintaining our natural cycles of sleep and waking.

True/False: Problem-focused coping is used more often for breakups/relationships than it is for work related stressors.

false. problem-focused coping is used mostly for work related stressors.

true/false: the body's immune system reacts to long-term/chronic stress the same way it reacts to regular stress.

false: Participating in a stressful memory task was correlated with an improvement in the response of the immune system, as measured by markers of immune system activity in the saliva of volunteers. However, the immune system does not perform as well in the face of long-term, chronic sources of stress

Erica is stressed by money and panics when she gets a new bill. She gets a second job and works throughout the semester to make ends meet. At the end of the semester, she's incredibly exhausted and sleeps through a final exam. When Erica gets another job, she's demonstrating the _______ phase of the general adaptation syndrome.

resistance

Cushing's disease

results in unusually high cortisol levels.

where is pituitary gland

right above roof of mouth

positive-problem-focused coping

solving problem productively i.e.) fail test --> hire tutor

stressor

source of stress

why does long term stress have a harmful impact on our immune systems

stress hormones directly suppress the activity of lymphocytes, which protect immune system

problems high cortisol levels can cause

suggest that cortisol abnormalities might contribute to reduced hippocampus volume, memory problems, abnormal sleep patterns, and depression. death of neurons. death.

do stressors activate the sympathetic or parasympathetic division of the autonomic nervous system?

sympathetic. flight-or-fight response

Amanda (female) and Zack (male) are fraternal twins. Some research suggests that females like Amanda are more likely to use _________ in response to stressors.

tend and befriend

resilience

the ability to adapt to life's challenges in positive ways.."bounce back"