Unit 8

emotion - Subjective feeling that represents one's state of mind. subjective well-being - One's perception of overall level of happiness and life satisfaction. relative deprivation - Tendency to feel that one's personal conditions are worse than others' when comparing situations. Emotion is a subjective feeling that represents one's state of mind. It's influenced by individual thoughts, physiology, experiences, and behavior. Emotions have many functions. They serve to motivate behavior. For example, anger can motivate someone into advocating for rights for others. They help communicate feelings. Someone may not know you're grieving until you express your feelings to them. They act as a warning for stress or danger. Fear can warn you to act appropriately in a dangerous situation. They facilitate social interaction and increase or decrease social behavior. And finally, emotions assist in understanding thoughts and behavior. The three components of emotions are cognitive, physiological, and behavioral components. How one interprets events influences the emotion felt. The cognitive component of emotion has an evaluative aspect. Evaluation of emotions can be automatic and unconscious, or conscious. People evaluate and label their emotions as positive, negative, or both. Emotions are influenced by physiological activity in the autonomic nervous system and in various brain structures. Emotions are accompanied by autonomic arousal or diminishment. Let's look at how our body's autonomic nervous system interacts with our emotions. Activity in the autonomic nervous system is associated with our emotions. This is linked to the arousal and calming of emotions. For example, in the sympathetic division, our pupils dilate, our mouth becomes dry, we get goose bumps or become sweaty. Our heart rate accelerates, we have increased hormonal activity, and digestion is inhibited. In the parasympathetic division, our pupils constrict. Our mouth salivates, and our skin becomes smooth or dry. Our heart rate slows. We have decreased hormonal activity, and digestion is stimulated. Autonomic responses involved with emotion are controlled by various brain activities. This is associated with activity in three specific structures, the thalamus, amygdala, and prefrontal cortex. Sensory input initiating emotion enters the thalamus. It's then routed to the amygdala, where the amygdala quickly processes information. It plays a role in the development and memory of specific fears. And recent research has linked the amygdala to positive emotions as well. As the amygdala processes information, it triggers neural activity that activates the autonomic nervous system, as well as the endocrine system, which releases the appropriate hormones. The prefrontal cortex helps to control emotional response. It's activated when processing information associated with emotional stress or conflict or emotional rewards or pleasure. The prefrontal cortex is responsible for helping to choose between conflicting thoughts, make choices between right and wrong, predicting future events, and governing social control. Emotions are demonstrated through both verbal and non-verbal behavior. They're demonstrated through our verbal expressions, our body language, and our facial expressions. Emotion is expressed through body language. One's body language can include crossed arms or legs, rolling one's eyes, clenching a fist, or having slumped shoulders. All of these help us read the emotions of others. Facial expressions represent emotion as well. Expressions are recognizable across cultures. For example, the expression you make when you're happy is similar to the expression another individual makes when they're happy. Facial feedback theory is a theory that states that facial expressions can influence the emotions one experiences. Our facial muscles send signals to the brain that help the brain recognize which emotion is experienced. Due to the connection between one's facial muscles and the brain, mimicking another person smiling may make you feel more happy as well. Emotions are demonstrated through verbal expressions. Our voice and the words we express are an important indicator of emotion. Behavioral expressions of emotions can be deceiving. Verbal expressions or other overt behaviors don't always match the emotion felt. Societal expectations determine appropriate ways to express our emotions. For example, we don't speak loudly in a restaurant or in church. We may wear social masks, because we sometimes have difficulty letting others know how we feel, or we don't want others to know how we feel. There are seven naturally occurring emotions that are present from birth. Those include happiness, sadness, anger, fear, surprise, interest, and disgust. Happiness is a positive emotion that is achieved by gaining a desired outcome. It can be an internal or external desire that relates to success and belongingess, such as gaining self-esteem or self-respect, progressing toward a goal, receiving a reward, or receiving love or affection. Research in positive psychology has led researchers to focus on one's subjective well-being. That's one's perception of overall level of happiness and life satisfaction. Psychologists have found that many factors that individuals believe predict happiness are actually not very good indicators of happiness at all. Individuals do not appear to be very accurate at predicting which achievements will bring happiness, and one's level of happiness is relative to experience. That often depends on the current circumstances and expectations. It also depends on relative deprivation. That's the tendency to feel that one's personal conditions are worse than others when comparing situations. People generally measure the level of happiness by whether or not they're achieving their expected desires. Once we achieve, a new level of expectation emerges. According to research, happiness is more related to self-esteem, especially in individualistic countries. It's more related to optimism and agreeableness, close friendships or marriage, work that engages skills, and spiritual faith. Happiness is less related to age, gender, parenthood, and physical attractiveness. Sadness can occur as a result of separation or failure. It can motivate individuals to maintain social relationships and prepare adequately for achievements or strive for success. Anger occurs as a result of perceive injustice or betrayal, or experiencing restraint or limitation. Anger is one of the most passionate emotions. It motivates and energizes. It can be destructive, and can lead to illness. You get angry for a number of reasons. But we also get angry at behaviors or actions seem unjustified, or because we feel limited or restrained in some way. Fear occurs as a result of perceiving a situation as dangerous or threatening. Anticipating psychological or physical harm, feeling vulnerable to danger, and feeling defenseless can make one experience fear as well. Fear motivates one to engage in defensive behaviors. It can motivate someone to fight back or flee from a dangerous situation. And it can motivate one to engage in helping efforts and adaptive learning. It can motivate one to become more knowledgeable about safety issues, so their sense of security and strength increases. Surprise occurs as a result of encountering something suddenly or unexpectedly. It occurs when this is the discrepancy between reality and expectation. Surprise can be pleasant, like a large, unexpected birthday gift or unpleasant, like if your electric bill was higher than anticipated. Interest occurs as a result of stimulation from personal needs and environmental conditions. Interest creates a desire to explore, learn, and create. It creates a desire to manipulate things in the environment and extract information. Digust occurs as a result of the current offensive things or events, and lead to rejecting those offensive aspects. It motivates individuals to change their personal habits, discard waste and sanitize their surroundings, and increase their personal hygiene. We'll be discussing the James-Lange, Cannon-Bard, two-factor, and evolutionary theories of emotion. The James-Lange theory of emotion was developed from a combination of William James' and Carl Lange's proposals on emotion. It claims that autonomic arousal precedes the perception of emotion. So individuals experience the physiological reaction of emotion before it's identified. There are different autonomic physiological responses that lead to different emotional experiences. So in this example of the James-Lange theory, I feel afraid because I'm shaking and my heart is racing. According to the theory, the stimuli, or snake, lead to the autonomic arousal or shaky hands and a racing heart, which the body recognizes as the emotion or fear. The Cannon-Bard theory of emotion was developed as a result of Walter Cannon opposing the James-Lange theory of emotion. He claimed that physiological arousal can occur without emotion. And emotions are too similar in physiological activity to distinguish from one another. Philip Bard elaborated on Cannon's proposal to develop the theory. Cannon and Bard claimed that emotion occurs alongside physiological arousal once the signal is processed by the thalamus in the brain. Later research clarified that the thalamus wasn't the neural center for emotion. But many modern researchers agree with the claim that emotions originate in specific brain structures. So in this example of the Cannon-Bard theory, the snake makes my heart race and I feel afraid. So the stimuli or snake was processed in the brain. And the autonomic response and emotion happen simultaneously. Schachter's two-factor theory of emotion was developed by Stanley Schachter. He claimed that emotions depend on situational cues in order to understand the emotion experience. So emotion depends on autonomic arousal and cognitive interpretation of the autonomic arousal. To explain emotion, one must be physically aroused and be able to cognitively label the arousal. Some research support has been found for this theory. But limitations have also been found. For example, emotions experienced are not always an immediate reaction to the current situation. And emotions exhibited also depend on prior experiences and beliefs. So if you experience arousal before taking an exam, you probably identify the emotion associated with the arousal as anxiety. In a different situation, you may identify the same arousal as some other emotion. In this example of the two-factor theory, I label my feeling as fear because I interpret the situation as dangerous. You label the emotion as fear because the snake is a deadly or dangerous creature. So the stimulus leads to the autonomic arousal, which you appraise and then recognize as fear. The evolutionary theory claims that emotions are products that serve to increase our chances of survival. So emotions are innate reactions to stimuli in the surrounding environment. Theorists also claim that thought plays a small role in emotional experience and that learning can influence emotion as well.

display rules - Norms that regulate the appropriate display of emotion and behavior. catharsis - Emotional release intended to relieve aggressive urges. feel-good, do-good phenomenon - The tendency for people to help others when they are already in a cheerful or happy mood. adaptive behavior - Constructive behavior that is used to adjust to a specific situation. maladaptive behavior - Unconstructive behavior that limits an individual's ability to adjust to specific situations. Researchers have found similarities and differences among cultures in regard to various factors concerning emotion, meaning that there are some things that are the same and some things that are different in regard to emotion across cultures. Similarities include the formation and recognition of facial expressions, and situational influences on emotion. Differences include labels for emotions, social gestures characterizing emotion, and cultural expectations, such as display rules. Basic facial expressions are similar and recognizable across cultures. So a frown is never viewed as an expression of happiness, or what's identified as a smile in New Zealand is the same as a smile the United States. Researchers Paul Ekman and Wallace Friesen conducted facial recognition experiments to determine if emotional expressions were recognizable across cultures. They showed pictures of different facial expressions to people in different parts of the world and then asked the participants to identify the emotion. Ekman and Friesen found that individuals across cultures express and interpret emotions in a similar manner. This finding was consistent when individuals viewed images of people from other cultures. So emotions are a human expression more than they are a cultural expression. However, research has demonstrated that despite consistency in recognizing emotional expressions across cultures, individuals are generally more accurate in identifying expressions of those from one's own culture than expressions of individuals from different cultures. Events triggering specific emotions are generally consistent across cultures. So for example, goal achievement or success generally leads to expressions of joy. Acts of injustice generally lead to expressions of anger. And uncertain or risky situations generally lead to expressions of fear. Cultures categorize emotions in different ways. Certain emotions in Western cultures go unrecognized in other areas. For example, the Chinese have no word for depression. Eskimos have no word for anxiety. And Tahitians have no word for sadness. Social gestures for expressing emotion differ among cultures. So a thumbs up in North America represents approval, but it's considered an insult in other countries, such as Brazil. Eye contact is a sign of respect and is polite in America, but it's considered offensive and can be used as an act of defiance in Asian countries. Cultural expectations can influence how emotion is expressed. Cultures differ in how much emotion is expressed or revealed. For example, cultures promoting individuality tend to exhibit emotions more readily than cultures that value interdependence. So the Chinese and Japanese are more emotionally reserved, so their cultures encourage socially engaging emotion such as promoting friendliness. Americans often encourage pride more than Chinese or Japanese cultures. Cultures establish display rules to serve as guidelines for behavior. These are norms that regulate the appropriate display of emotion and behavior. They vary from culture to culture depending on what is valued by that culture. So for example, kissing in public may be frowned upon in some countries, whereas in other countries, it's quite common to see public displays of affection. Emotions can influence an individual in positive or negative ways. It can motivate or limit behavior. It can improve or limit one's reasoning ability or evoke or inhibit other emotions in a self and others. In this section, we'll explore how specific emotions can either be beneficial or detrimental influences. Behaviors that are influenced by strong emotions can be adaptive or maladaptive. Adaptive behavior is constructed behavior that is used to adjust to a specific situation. It helps individuals cope with situations in a way that benefits the self and society. Maladaptive behavior is unconstructive behavior that limits an individual's ability to adjust to specific situations. It interferes with an individual's ability to cope with various situations and can perpetuate negative emotions and more dysfunctional behavior. Positive emotions generally lead to adaptive behaviors. These are emotions that create a pleasant state or feeling within an individual and include love, gratitude, joy or happiness, or hope. So any emotion that produces a dominant pleasant state would be considered a positive emotion. Negative emotions can lead to either adaptive or maladaptive behaviors. These are emotions that create an unpleasant state or feeling within an individual and include anger, fear, anxiety, or sadness. It's important to note that not all emotions can be easily classify as just positive or negative. Emotions such as empathy, for example, can invoke a rush of affection for someone, which can be positive, along with worry for their well being, which is usually unpleasant. Hope, which has been defined as a feeling of expectation or desire, has been associated with positive social relationships. Those that demonstrate high levels of hope generally get along well with others and express positive emotions more than others. Hope often provokes goal-directed behavior. Researchers found that hopeful individuals are more likely to pursue and attain goals. Feelings of love often provoke pro-social behaviors. Those who feel love generally are mindful and caring toward others. Happiness has been linked to pro-social behavior and increased playfulness, creative problem solving, and activity. It may seem obvious that people who are happy tend to behave more positively towards others. But research has shown that joy provokes playfulness and others. Psychologists claim that this is highly important in building social attachments to others, promoting brain development, and evoking creativity in individuals. Feelings of happiness may lead others to help each other more. This is the feel-good do-good phenomenon, or the tendency for people to help others when they're already in a cheerful or happy mood. So acts of kindness increase as individual moods improve. Gratitude and empathy have been connected to altruistic behavior. This is honest or caring behavior towards others. Research indicates that feelings of empathy commonly lead to forgiveness. Fear is a distressing emotion aroused by a real or perceived threat or danger. It can lead to adaptive or maladaptive behaviors. Being afraid can limit or motivate behavior. It can unite individuals. For example, fear of the same enemy can unite nations or individuals. It can motivate individuals to take action. Fear of failure can motivate one to take action toward success. It can improve sensory perception and state of alertness. When a individual experiences fear, sensory perceptions, such as peripheral vision in one's eyes, improves. It also improves focus on the problem and corresponding solutions. Fear can increase panic or anxiety in individuals and may lead to irrational judgments and behavior. Individuals who panic in response to fear can lead individuals towards irrational behavior, such as stampeding in a crowd. Fear can also lead individuals to take no action when action is needed. Anger is a negative or distressing emotion that occurs when one can't control a situation, feels betrayed by another, or feels limited in some way. It can lead to both adaptive or maladaptive behaviors as well. Anger can lead one to effectively communicate thoughts and feelings to others. It may also motivate one toward positive action. For example, if an individual becomes angry at acts of injustice that are happening to either themselves or others, they may become an activist in some way to promote fair treatment of others. Anger may lead one to behave in physically or verbally violent ways towards others as well. Venting, or releasing one's emotion, may be useful in temporarily decreasing anger. Catharsis is an emotional release intended to relieve aggressive urges. Research about the lasting effects of catharsis finds that it doesn't necessarily lead to adaptive or healthy ways of dealing with anger. It may temporarily relieve emotion, but it can lead to maladaptive ways of dealing with anger and may reinforce the tendency to lash out towards others. Catharsis appears to be useful in promoting calm feelings if several situational factors occur. For example, if the emotional release is targeted at the provoker, if the counterattack feels justifiable, or if the provoker is not intimidating to the one venting anger. So the general consensus is that catharsis doesn't work, at least not in the long-term. The connection between intense emotions and our behavior varies among individuals. Our behavior and responses may be adaptive, and ultimately a positive reaction to emotions. But they can be maladaptive, whereby we don't manage our emotions in a positive way.

approach-approach conflict - Type of conflict that occurs when an individual must choose between two attractive or appealing goals. avoidance-avoidance conflict - Type of conflict that occurs when an individual must choose between two unattractive or unappealing goals. approach-avoidance conflict - Type of conflict that occurs when an individual must decide whether to pursue a goal that has both appealing and unappealing aspects. psychosomatic diseases - Physical ailments thought to be partially caused by stress. stress - Any event or experience that is perceived as threatening and interferes with one's ability to cope. acute stressor - Threatening events that are relatively short term. chronic stressor - Threatening events that are relatively long term. burnout - Physical and emotional exhaustion that results from chronic work-related stress. Many tense situations individuals encounter throughout their lives can lead to varying levels or degrees of stress. This is any event or experience that is perceived as threatening and interferes with one's ability to cope. Stress level is determined by our valuation of events, not the events themselves. Stress can interfere with or influence many personal factors, such as immediate physical safety, long-range security, self-esteem, reputation, and peace of mind. How stressful an experience or situation is depends on one's perception or appraisal of the event. What events stress one person out may not cause any stress for others. For example, some people may find that flying on an airplane or the experience of going on a date is very stressful, while these events can cause others excitement. Common events that may result in stress include traumatic experiences and daily hassles. Traumatic experiences could be catastrophes such as war; natural disasters like tsunamis, tornadoes, or floods; or the death of a loved one. Research indicates that traumatic experiences may be connected to psychological disorders and physical illness. Daily hassles are things like paying the bills, rush hour traffic, physical illness, or waiting in line. Researchers claim that the harmful effects associated with daily hassles are likely due to the cumulative effects that result from encountering these types of hassles on a daily basis. In other words, these hassles add up over time. Both traumatic events and daily hassles can be classified as either chronic or acute stressors, depending on the duration of stress. A chronic stressor is a threatening event that's relatively long-term, so the endpoint is unclear. This could be something like an unpleasant job or financial problems or a chronic illness. An acute stressor is a threatening event that is relatively short-term. So in other words, the endpoint is clear. This could be something like dealing with a rude person in the grocery line or taking an unpleasant or important exam. There are four major types of stress. They include frustration, conflict, change, and pressure. Frustration can occur when one is prevented from pursuing a goal. This occurs in any situation in which personal desires are restricted. Frustration is commonly dealt with by many individuals on a daily basis. Frustration is usually short-lived, but some frustrations could be a source of major stress if there's an accumulation of many over time. Types of frustrations include losses, like deprivation of something you once had and considered part of your life, or failures. We all fail, but if we set unrealistic goals or put too much emphasis on obtaining success, failure can be devastating. Another type of major stress is conflict. This is a type of stress characterized by competition between two more desires or choices. Conflict is a part of life, and some conflicts are hard to resolve than others. Let's take a look at three kinds of conflicts that generate different levels of stress. They're approach-approach, approach-avoidance, and avoidance-avoidance. Approach-approach conflict is the type of conflict that occurs when the individual must choose between two attractive or appealing goals. You may want both, but you can only have one. For example, should I go out for pizza or Chinese food? Avoidance-avoidance conflict is a type of conflict that occurs when an individual must choose between two unattractive or unappealing goals. For example, you can either get surgery you don't want as a result of a sports injury or you can risk making the injury worse by continuing to play sports without the surgery. Approach-avoidance conflict is a type of conflict that occurs when an individual must decide whether to pursue a goal that has both appealing and unappealing aspects. For example, asking someone on the date or moving to a city for a work promotion that you don't necessarily want to live in. This type of conflict often produces vacillation. This is going back and forth in your decision making. Life change is another type of stress that occurs when one's life is significantly altered or modified. Both positive and negative life changes can be stressful. Everyone experiences change, and even positive life changes like marriage or the birth of a child can be stressful. One has to adjust to new routines that they're not used to or comfortable with, and this can produce stress for many individuals. Pressure occurs when one feels obligated to perform in a specific way due to demands or expectations. One can experience pressure in any situation. This often occurs when one is expected to fulfill responsibilities effectively or to conform to expectations of others. For example, I'm under pressure to perform in very specific ways when I'm up in front of the class as the teacher. Pressure can be self-imposed, meaning that one could even put pressure on themselves to perform up to a specific standard. Critics claim that current theories regarding the effects of stress are ineffective in adequately assessing cross-cultural influences on stress. They claim there are biases in how stress is measured in different cultural groups. Research on the effects of stress demonstrates that situations or factors eliciting stress in individuals differ among cultures. Research also indicates that how individuals cope with stress differences among cultures. Culture often influences which situations individuals define as stressful. Cultural attitudes and expectations can lead individuals to perceive stressful situations in different ways. Individuals of various cultures generally strive to meet or live in congruency with cultural expectations. If people of a particular culture feel they can't meet the cultural expectations, stress is likely to result. For example, if one can't maintain values and beliefs or cultural perspectives when they're working to achieve what's valued in a culture, they're likely to get stressed easily. The pressure to maintain or live in conjunction with cultural values can be a source of stress for individuals within any culture. In individualistic cultures, stress may result from the pressure to become autonomous and independent. Stress may increase if individuals have not achieved financial independence, or have not achieved some form of personal success. In collectivistic cultures, stress may result from the pressure to maintain group harmony and interdependent connections. Failing to remain interdependent even at the expense of one's personal welfare can cause stress for individuals in collectivistic cultures. The pressure to maintain or live in conjunction with cultural beliefs concerning family care can be a source of stress for individuals within any culture. Although variations are seen in any culture, it is generally expected more for family members to remain together or provide care for any other family members needing assistance in collectivistic cultures more so than individualistic cultures. In individualistic cultures, stress may result from having to care for older or impaired family members if having to care for a family member limits one's goals and accomplishments. This is often seen in younger adults who have children before they feel they've established a career or accomplished something of value. In contrast, in collectivistic cultures stress may result from being unable to properly care for older or impaired family members. The pressure to maintain or live in conjunction with cultural beliefs concerning life transitions or changes can be a source of stress for individuals of any culture. In individualistic cultures, changes that limit the ability to make choices or that disrupt self-reliance can be a source of stress. Stress can result if opportunities for growth or improvement are limited. For example, having to help with the family business rather than studying what's individually desired can be a source of stress. In collectivistic cultures, changes that threaten stability or safety, for example the changes that marriage brings or having to move away from one family in order to study, can be a source of stress. This stress can result when life transitions create instability within groups or relationships. Individuals in individualistic and collectivistic cultures may differ in what's perceived to be the best way to reduce stress. They generally differ in their cognitive appraisal of stressful situations and how to react to the situations. How a situation is appraised or evaluated influences one's reaction to it. People in individualistic cultures are more likely to see stressors as controllable. This may lead one to try and change their situation. Individuals in individualistic cultures are generally more focused on taking action to solve a problem. People in collectivistic cultures are more likely to see stressors as uncontrollable. This may lead one to avoid stressful situations. Individuals in collectivistic cultures are more inclined to change their thinking or feelings about a stressor. Individuals in collectivistic cultures may be more inclined to use social support to help cope with stressors than individuals in individualistic cultures. This support is more likely requested of close family members than professionals or doctors. However, individuals in collectivistic cultures may not vocalize their stress to others if there's a possibility of disrupting group harmony. People must find ways to effectively manage the stress they encounter on a daily basis. How stress is managed influences the possible effects stress can have on the mind and body. Poorly managed or severe stress can impair one's psychological and physical health. However, adequate management of stress may motivate one toward positive psychological changes. Stress can negatively impact one's psychological state in various ways. For example, impaired task performance, burnout, and psychological problems and disorders. Stress can limit one's ability to effectively perform different tasks. The pressure to perform well may increase personal self-consciousness and as a result, interfere with one's focus or attention. People may even choke under the pressure to perform. Individuals under stress tend to jump to conclusions without evaluating possible options. Competing thoughts that often occur during stressful situations may lead to poor performance and memory interference, and performance then is negatively influenced. Researchers have found that burnout is a common reaction to stress. This is the physical and emotional exhaustion that results from chronic work-related stress. This often includes chronic fatigue, which is apparent when one feels weak and has low energy. It includes cynicism, which may include a negative attitude towards oneself, one's work, or life in general. Or reduced self-efficacy. This apparent when one feels less and less competent at work, and may lead to feelings of helplessness. Different factors in the workplace appear to influence burnout. These factors include work overload, interpersonal conflicts at work, lack of control over responsibilities and outcomes, and inadequate recognition for work performance. The results of burnout can lead to a variety of negative consequences, such as work absence, reduced performance or productivity, or an increased vulnerability to health problems. Psychologists claim that stress may influence the onset of a variety of everyday psychological issues, such as poor academic performance, insomnia, and other sleep disturbances, sexual difficulties, and drug and alcohol abuse. Research has also been linked to mental disorders, such as depression. This is a psychological disorder characterized by feelings of unhappiness and fatigue. Or schizophrenia. This is a psychological disorder involving irrational and inappropriate behavior, and a tendency to see or hear illusions. Or post-traumatic stress disorder known as PTSD. This is a disorder characterized by depression and nightmares related to being party to a traumatic experience. Stressful events may lead people toward positive personal changes. They may develop new skills, reevaluate their priorities, acquire new insights, and develop new strengths, improve their self-concept, learn from their mistakes, and improve their coping abilities. Recent research in positive psychology demonstrates that stress can motivate one toward personal growth and self-improvement. This is evident through research on the effects of resilience, or persistence in light of obstacles or limitation. Many individuals have reported gaining benefits from adversity when battling major health issues. Research has linked stress to physical illness, such as rheumatoid arthritis, diabetes, and fibromyalgia. This may be due to stress negatively impacting one's immune functioning. One's immune response is the body's defense against viruses and bacteria that's triggered when an individual encounters foreign substances. So it protects the body from disease. During extremely stressful situations, research has demonstrated that immune levels decrease. Psychosomatic diseases are physical ailments thought to be partially caused by stress. They include high blood pressure, asthma, skin disorders such as eczema and hives, and migraines. Researchers have linked heart disease to specific personalities that are more prone to the negative effects of stress. As a result of researching the connection between psychological factors and heart problems, psychologists have classified two types of personalities. They are type A personality and Type B personality. Individuals classified as a Type A personality are generally prone to self-imposed stress, and often have intense reactions to stressful situations. Individuals classified with a Type A personality are generally impatient, aggressive and time conscious, highly motivated, competitive and perfectionistic, and quick to anger. They often try to do several things at once, and often become frantic over the shortest delays. These types of individuals can also become workaholics, and can be driven by deadlines. Individuals classified as a Type B personality are not as prone to the negative effects of stress as Type A personalities are. Individuals classified with a Type B personality are relatively relaxed. They're patient, easygoing, and amicable or good natured and friendly. People who have a Type B personality are often relaxed about time, and not as easily angered and competitive as Type A personalities.

fight-or-flight response - Physiological reaction in which the body's autonomic nervous system prepares the body for attacking (fight) or fleeing (flight) during threatening situations. general adaptation syndrome - Process that describe the body's natural physiological response to stress. coping strategies - Strategies used to reduce or tolerate the effects of stress. How would your body react if you went into a room and a face appeared in the shadows? Your reaction may be to lash out or to run. Your heart rate and breathing would generally increase. Even if you learn the stranger in the room was really your brother attempting to play a prank on you, your body's initial automatic reaction would be the same as it would be if you thought it was an intruder. A fight-or-flight response is triggered within the body when humans and animals encounter stressful situations. This is a physiological reaction in which the body's autonomic nervous system prepares the body for attacking, know as fight, or fleeing, known as flight, during threatening situations. With a fight-or-flight response, it's characterized by a rapid heartbeat and an increase in breathing. Walter Cannon was one of the first researchers to describe the fight-or-flight response. He studied the fight-or-flight response in cats. The body's fight-or-flight response is managed by the sympathetic nervous system. The fight-or-flight response is an adaptive response to danger that prepares the body for survival. Hans Selye of the University of Montreal identified and labeled the concept of stress while studying animal reactions to different kinds of stressors. He found that animals had the same physiological reaction to stress, despite that type of stressor the animal was exposed to. Selye's theory about the body's automatic stress reactions is known as the general adaptation syndrome. This is the process that describes the body's natural physiological response to stress. It consists of three stages that the body advances through when fight-or-flight response is triggered. The three stages representing the general adaptation syndrome include alarm, resistance, and exhaustion. The alarm stage is the first stage of the general adaptation syndrome. It reflects the fight-or-flight response as described by Walter Cannon. This is when the organism recognizes a threat. One's energy increases as physiological arousal occurs, so heart rate increases, blood flow increases to skeletal muscles, and respiration increases. Resistance is the second phase of the general adaptation syndrome, that occurs if stress remains. The body begins to cope with the stressor. A release of hormones helps to stabilize the body's resources in preparation to fight. So the body adapts to the state of stress and remains in a constant state of arousal. Physiological changes remain higher than normal, so temperature, blood pressure, and respiration remain elevated. Exhaustion is the last phase of the general adaptation syndrome, that occurs if stress continues beyond the resistance phase. The body's energy resources begin to deplete and the organism eventually experiences hormonal exhaustion. In extreme situations, this can cause a person to collapse or even experience death, and the body becomes more vulnerable to illness. Even if the stressor doesn't cause extreme fear, over time exposure to the same stressor, like a stressful job, can deplete one's energetic resources. Ways of coping with stress can be adaptive or maladaptive. Coping methods used to decrease stress are often influenced by the situation. Individuals using flexible strategies to cope with stress generally manage stressful situations more effectively than individuals who use consistent methods of coping. For example, one who's more flexible may evaluate the situation and react in different ways depending on situational factors. Whereas others may generally use one way of coping with any type of stressful situation. Coping strategies vary among individuals. These are strategies used to reduce or tolerate the effects of stress. Positive coping strategies are adaptive or constructive. Negative coping strategies are maladaptive or unconstructive. Psychologists claim that an overall constructive coping method for stress involves four processes. Confronting the problem directly, which includes taking action to solve problems. Realistically evaluating stressful issues and coping possibilities. Learning recognize and regulate stressors. And ensuring the body is not vulnerable to the damaging effects of stress. Although these processes generally lead to the best way to effectively manage stress, there's no guarantee that these processes will successfully reduce stress. Effective patterns of positive coping include taking care of your physical health, altering your thoughts, using humor, releasing suppressed emotion, forgiving others, and practicing relaxation strategies. Theorist Albert Ellis claimed that one's emotional reaction to stress can be controlled by altering evaluations of stressful events. He felt stress often occurs as a result of negative appraisals and irrational assumptions about events. So changing one's thoughts about stressful events may change the reaction to it. So for example, someone who believes they must have approval of all of their friends may become stressed when this doesn't occur. Altering one's thinking about having approval from many friends will generally help in reducing stress when someone close doesn't demonstrate their approval. Using humor to reduce stress helps in moderating the negative impact stress can have on one's health. It can help to change one's appraisal of events. It can enhance positive emotions and often facilitates social support from others. Releasing suppressed emotion can help in reducing the negative effects of stress. Failing to release anger and other stress-related emotions can increase one's blood pressure. And suppressing an emotion can lead to an increase in stress and negative emotion. Although lashing out at others is a way of expressing emotion, it's not classified as a healthy way to reduce stress. However, suppressing emotions over time can lead to more stress as well. Forgiving others can help to effectively manage stress and reduce depression. Research has established a connection between forgiveness and one's well-being. Studies have associated vengefulness with an increase in negative emotion and life dissatisfaction. Practicing methods of relaxation is a valuable way to soothe the negative emotion and reduce physiological arousal. Factors promoting effective relaxation include being in a quiet environment, using a mental device to direct your focus, keeping a passive attitude during the technique, and maintaining a comfortable position. Taking care of physical health assists in managing the negative effects that stress can have on the body. Physical health can be improved through moderate exercise, a better nutritional diet, and adequate sleep. Taking care of one's physical health doesn't guarantee that one won't experience stress. But it does help in keeping one from being as vulnerable to the negative effects of stress. Patterns of negative coping include blaming oneself, striking out at others, and overindulging. Some individuals tend to engage in self-blame or become self-critical when encountering stressful situations. Researchers have noted that negative self-talk may influence the development of depressive disorders. Although recognizing one's weaknesses can lead to a clearer self-concept, most psychologists agree that chronically blaming oneself for situations that provoke stress isn't a healthy coping strategy for managing stress. People may strike out at others as a response to stressful situations. This is generally an ineffective coping strategy that tends to lead to more anger or frustration. Encountering stressful situations often leads to reduced impulse control or self-indulgence. Some individuals tend to engage in excessive consumption when stressed such as overeating, overspending, or excessive drug or alcohol consumption. Some researchers argue that some methods may appear to be negative, but also can be perceived as positive. Whether or not the results of certain coping strategies are healthy often depends on the situation and the degree of use. Two methods of coping that psychologists argue could be adaptive or maladaptive include giving up or using defense mechanisms. Giving up or withdrawing from a stressful situation is a common coping behavior in individuals. Giving up can be maladaptive or adaptive behavior. Commonly giving up in the face of any obstacle or constantly giving up on goals may lead to depression. However, giving up on a goal when a goal is unattainable can lead to lower levels of stress hormones and better health. So whether or not giving up is an effective coping strategy depends on the situation. Many individuals commonly use defense mechanisms to cope with stress. These are mechanisms or behaviors that protect or guard against unpleasant emotions. They often help to distort one's unpleasant or unwanted reality. Common defense mechanisms include denial, intellectuallization, fantasy, undoing, and overcompensation. Defense mechanisms can either be maladaptive or adaptive. Denying or avoiding situations generally does not provide solutions to problems. Positive illusions about reality can be beneficial to one's mental health and well-being. Research indicates that people who are depressed more than others generally have a less favorable, yet more realistic self-concept and are generally less optimistic about reality. However, an overly positive view of the self and optimism has been known to improve stress management. So some positive illusions concerning one's reality may be beneficial for individuals when it comes to coping with stress.

motivation - A need or desire that energizes and directs behavior. goal - The end result or purpose of directed and motivated effort. obesity - The abnormal accumulation of body fat. Here's one example of motivation. Aron Ralston was inspired to cut off part of his right arm to free himself from an 800 pound rock that had flipped and trapped him while he was hiking in Utah's Bluejohn Canyon in 2003. While trapped in the canyon, he believed he would starve to death, which is what motivated him to cut off his right arm. The movie 127 Hours was based off of Aron Ralston's experience. But what inspires or pushes you? Like Ralston, we're all driven by many factors to do the things we do. This is motivation. Motivation is a need or a desire that energizes and directs behavior. It drives one toward attaining goals. Individuals are motivated to attain specific goals. These are the end result or purpose of directed and motivated effort. Goals vary among individuals according to individual perspective. One may consider a Ph.D very valuable, while another gains satisfaction in learning how to build a car. Goals vary according to life circumstances. One who has experienced poverty may be motivated towards different goals than one who is surrounded by material comforts. Finally, goes very according to age. One who's younger may be more focused on establishing a career, while an older individual may be focused on maintaining strong family ties. Short-term goals can be accomplished in a relatively short time frame; for example, completing homework for tomorrow's class. While long-term goals take time to accomplish and can be broken into smaller steps; for example, learning how to fly an airplane. In attempts to reach a goal, highly motivated individuals demonstrate specific behaviors more often than others. These include exerting more effort, reacting quicker in situations. These individuals are more persistent and take advantage of opportunities. Motivation to attain specific goals is influenced by internal and external factors. Rewards, expectations, and needs can be either internal or external motivators. Beliefs and values are internal motivators. A reward for accomplishing goals will always serve as a motivator for individuals. They can be internal rewards, like emotions of excitement or joy, or external rewards, like money. Expectations include the expected outcome of the goal or desire. Whatever you believe you'll gain because of your efforts serves as a motivator to direct your behavior. For example, the expectation that hunger will be satisfied will probably lead you to make a snack after school. Or the expectation that you'll receive a scholarship for good grades can motivate you to work harder at maintaining your grades. Needs. Both internal and external needs motivate an individual to act in one way or another. You may have a need to feel proud of yourself, which can lead you to try new things. Or a need for social acceptance, which will propel you to establish strong friendships with others. Beliefs. If you believe you're capable of achieving something, you're more likely to exert effort in achieving it. The opposite is also true. If you don't believe you can accomplish a task, you're less likely to put effort in accomplishing it. Values. Values are influenced by society, personal reflection, and our relationships. For example, one who values financial freedom may put more effort into gaining money. And one who believes that family ties are important may be more focused on staying close with their family members. Eating is essential in maintaining effective physical and mental health. Hunger is the body's automatic response that assists people in detecting a need for food. Hunger and eating behavior are influenced by both biological and environmental factors. Early theories on hunger suggested that stomach contractions cause hunger. This is known as the stomach contraction theory, which was proposed by Walter Cannon and A. L. Washburn in 1912. The theory was discredited by later research demonstrating that people who had their stomachs removed still felt hungry. Later research on laboratory animals suggests that hunger is controlled by the hypothalamus. Researchers found that hunger either decreased or increased when parts of the hypothalamus were stimulated or destroyed. The same results occurred whether the rats were well fed or starving. So even when the rats were full, they would still eat if certain cells or parts of the hypothalamus were destroyed or stimulated. Glucose is the type the body uses for energy. Studies show the hunger generally increases when blood glucose levels decrease. Insulin is a hormone secreted by the pancreas. Studies show that insulin levels may influence the fluctuation of hunger. Leptin is a protein secreted in fat cells, and it provides information about the body's level of fat. Studies show that hunger generally diminishes when leptin levels are high. There are key environmental factors that governing eating behavior. First, food availability and variety, food palatability, innate and learned preferences and habits, and stress. Individuals tend to eat more as food availability increases. Being served larger portions of food generally leads to more consumption. And reading about food and being exposed to images of food can increase hunger. This is why when you watch an advertisement about food that looks appealing to you, it increases your craving for that food. Individuals generally eat more as the variety of food increases. So the appeal for a specific food declines once it has been consumed. More choices tend to make people eat more, because they keep shifting to different foods. This often happens when we attend buffets. Food palatability is how tasty or delicious the food is to you. It generally increases food consumption. Palatability also increases the amount of food animals consume. Humans have innate preferences for sweet and salty foods. And our preference for fatty foods is partially influenced by genetics. Our learned preferences and eating habits influence what an individual is hungry for, and what foods are eaten. So individuals in different cultures vary in their food preferences. For example, Americans often eat chicken. Alaska natives eat whale blabber. Campa Indians in Peru often eat roasted ants. And dog meat is consumed in various countries. Fried sparrow is considered a delicacy in some cultures as well. Parental behaviors and social situations influence eating behaviors as well. People generally consume larger amounts of food in social settings. Research indicates that the presence of other people may exaggerate our natural behavior. Parents influence the food preferences in their children. Children are more likely to eat certain foods after seeing a parent eat them. But forcing children to eat specific foods often has negative effects on their food preferences, because they may grow to dislike the food and eat less of it rather than more. Eating preferences can develop through conditioning. Taste diversions can develop after individuals have become sick from eating specific foods. And humans can become conditioned to pair certain food flavors with pleasant events. Stress can increase food consumption. This may be more common among individuals who diet chronically. Negative emotions occurring as a result of stress may promote the increase in food consumption. And individuals may crave specific foods when they're tense or depressed. So when individual's experience negative emotions, they may expect that treats will make them feel better. This is why they eat more when they're stressed. Obesity is the abnormal accumulation of body fat. It's determined through the body mass index, or IBM. This is a measurement that determines ideal weight based on weight and height calculations. A BMI of between 25 and 29.9 is considered overweight, and a BMI above 30 is considered obese. The American culture has seen a rise in obesity rates with almost 2/3 of American struggling with weight issues, and around 32% having issues with obesity. Obesity has been associated with a variety of physical and psychological health problems, such as high blood pressure and heart disease, cancer, the risk for Alzheimer's Disease, a shortened life spam, social ridicule and discrimination, and depression and anxiety. There are different factors influencing obesity and weight control. Biological factors may determine if one is genetically predisposed to weight gain. Children and biological parents are similar in their weights. And identical twins are more similar in their weight than fraternal twins raised together. Environmental factors may lead to excessive eating and inadequate exercise, which then influence obesity. Food consumption generally tends to be greater than energy expended for overweight individuals. And the availability of high fat foods has increased due to modern conveniences. Set point theory is a theory claiming that the body naturally monitors and stabilizes an individual's weight around a specific set point. Level of hunger and metabolic rate change according to weight gain or loss. The metabolic rate is the rate at which one burns calories or energy. According to set point theory, if your weight is below your set point or natural weight, your hunger will increase and your metabolism will decrease. And the opposite is true when people gain weight above their set point. Settling point theory is a theory stating that weight tends to settle around a certain level dependent upon energy expended and calories consumed. So weight tends to remained fairly stable until impacted by outside factors.

intrinsic motivation - The incentive to undertake an activity based on the enjoyment felt from engaging in the activity. extrinsic motivation - The incentive to undertake an activity based on obtaining or avoiding an external outcome. drive - An internal state of tension that motivates behavior. incentive - Any external stimulus that can motivate behavior. There are two types of motivation, intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. Intrinsic motivation is the incentive to undertake an activity based on the enjoyment felt from engaging in the activity. So it's a motivation that comes from within. Someone who is intrinsically motivated is doing something because they want to, not because they have to. Someone who's intrinsically motivated to play sports will play them because they're having fun. They enjoy doing them and they could do it all day or they love the game. Here are some other examples of intrinsic motivation. Reading a story because it's exciting, cleaning because being in a clean room makes one feel better, practicing sports because it is fun, or playing an instrument to relax. Extrinsic motivation is the incentive to undertake an activity based on obtaining or avoiding an external outcome. It comes from another source outside the person. This could be rewards like new shoes for running every day for a months, or a punishment like being grounded for not cleaning your room. This dog may be extrinsically motivated to sit on its hind legs because it wants the treat, and so it will work for food. Here's some other examples of extrinsic motivation. Cleaning a bedroom so one can go out with their friends, studying for a test to make a good grade, playing football to get a scholarship, or driving the speed limit to avoid a traffic ticket. Goals or tasks are sometimes influenced by both intrinsicand extrinsic motivation. For example, a musician that plays the piano may do so for fun or to develop valued skills or for self-entertainment. But they may also enjoy it because it's a chance to make money or earn a college scholarship. Extrinsic motivation may undermine intrinsic motivation. Studies they show when a reward was presented for task completion originally driven by intrinsic motivation, the intrinsic motivation for completing the task decreases. Extrinsic motivation may interfere with the quality of learning. That's because you're more focused on task completion, or the reward for your work, rather than the subject matter. Let's look at the benefits of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. Intrinsic motivation tends to increase persistence of goals and deep learning and has been connected to higher levels of creativity, exploration, and positive emotions. Extrinsic motivation can make uninteresting tasks worth pursuing. For example, you may only be interested in taking a history class because it's a requirement for graduate school, but you discover you actually like the material after taking the class. Extrinsic motivation can increase appropriate social behavior as well. If you're motivated to avoid traffic tickets for example, you may be more inclined to obey traffic laws, which increases road safety. David McClelland researched achievement motivation. He claimed that the need for achievement instigates great global and personal accomplishments, such as economic growth, scientific progress, creative masterpieces, and inspirational leadership. Behavior for individuals scoring high in the need for achievement differs from individuals scoring low in the need for achievement. Individuals scoring high in the need for achievement often work harder and are more persistent. They generally handle negative feedback more effectively than others and are more future-oriented. They're also more likely to delay gratification in pursuit of long-term goals, and usually pursue competitive, entrepreneurial careers. John Atkinson developed three factors that influence one's need for achievement. The first was strength of motive to succeed. The stronger your motivation, the more likely you are to pursue a task. Next is perceived probability of success. If you feel the probability of succeeding is low, you may not pursue achievement in that specific area. Finally, is the incentive value of success. If you don't value achievement, you may not be as likely to pursue a goal or task. According to Atkinson, all three work together to determine one's level of achievement. Drive reduction theory states that we're influenced by internal drives, which push behavior. Incentive theory claims that we're influenced by external factors, which pull behavior. Clark Hull was an American psychologist who applied the concept of homeostasis to human motivation. Homeostasis is a physiological state of internal stability. Hull believed that the drives in the body could explain why we're motivated to do many of behaviors that we do. Hull claimed that homeostasis assisted in balancing human drives. A drive is an interesting of tension that motivates behavior. Here's some examples of biological motives or drives, hunger, thirst, sleep, sex, or activity. If our biological needs are activated, we'll become motivated to seek out what will relieve the drive. Drive reduction theory states that a physiological need creates an internal state of tension or a drive. That internal tension motivate individuals to relieve the tension through behavior. For example, your hunger motive will prepare you to want and seek out food. The hungrier you are, the more finding food will take precedence over everything else. Here's another example of drive reduction theory. Say we have a need, in this case, sleep, that activate a drive. Sleep shows up as exhaustion or tiredness, and that propels you to relieve that drive by acting or behaving in a specific way, in this case sleeping. But drive theories fail to explain the motivation behind many behaviors. For example, our desire to learn or achieve, or eating when we're not hungry, or the need for independence. This led psychologists to research the influence of incentives on behavior. An incentive is any external stimulus that can motivate behavior. Here's some examples of incentives, money, ice cream, approval from others, high grades, or work promotion. These are external motivators that influence you to act in a specific way. So incentive theory states that an incentive or external stimulus is perceived by the individual and then the desire to obtain the incentive motivates the individual to act. So the need for financial stability can propel and individual to work hard at achieving success. Let's compare drive reduction and incentive theories. Drive reduction theory states that an internal state of tension pushes the individual to act, so the source of motivation lies within the organism. Incentive theory states that an external stimulus pulls the individual to act, so the source of motivation lies outside the organism. But can incentive enhance an internal state of tension or can a drive make an incentive more appealing? The answer to both of these questions is yes. Seeing or having an ideal about something wanted can create a state of tension that an individual needs to alleviate. For example, the smell bread baking can make an already hungry individual even more hungry. In this section, we'll cover one theory from the humanistic perspective on motivation, Abraham Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs, which states that individuals are motivated by physiological, social, and psychological needs. We'll also cover one cognitive perspective on motivation, the expectancy theory. This states that level of motivation is influenced by expected outcomes. Abraham Maslow was a humanistic theorist who focused on studying individual potential for self growth and freedom. He believed that individuals were motivated to strive for self-actualization. This is the realization of one's full potential. Maslow claimed that individuals are motivated to engage in specific behaviors based on both internal and external needs. He believed that basic biological needs must be partially met before one can focus on social and psychological needs. Here is Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs. The hierarchy goes in order from the most basic needs like safety needs and physiological needs at the bottom, to the highest level needs, like self-actualization at the top. Remember, Maslow claimed that one had to at least partially fulfill the lowest needs first, before they could focus on the needs higher up in the hierarchy. First, our physiological needs, like the need to satisfy hunger, thirst, and sleep. Then our safety needs, like the need to feel safe and stable, and need to feel that the world is predictable. Then we have belongingness and love needs. We have a need to love and be loved, a need to be accepted, and a need to avoid loneliness. Moving up, we have esteem needs, like the need for independence, the need for respect and recognition from others, the need for achievement and competence, and the need for self esteem. Finally, at the top, our self-actualization needs. This is a need to live up to one's fullest and unique potential. Maslow didn't think that everyone would reach this level. It involves continually seeking ways to enhance or attain personal growth. Victor Vroom claimed that individuals are motivated towards actions due to expected outcomes of situations, more so than needs. He claimed that level of motivation depends on three factors, expectancy, instrumentality, and valence. Expectancy is a belief that your effort will lead to a desired result. It's determined by four factors, the perceived difficulty of task. If an individual believes it will be difficult to reach a goal, they'll be less motivated to work towards it. Past experience. If an individual has attempted a task before and failed, their level of expectancy or belief that their effort will pay off will be low. Self confidence. One must believe that they're capable of attaining the expected outcome. And finally, perceived level of control over the outcome. If an individual doesn't feel they have some control over how their effort will pay off, they're less motivated towards the goal. Instrumentality is a belief that a person will receive a reward from gaining the expected outcome. The reward can either be intrinsic or extrinsic, such as a sense of accomplishment, a pay increase, or recognition. Valence is a belief that the outcome of the performance will be valuable. It depends on the strength of desire for the outcome. The higher the perceived value leads to a greater effort in achieving the goal. If an individual doesn't value the outcome or reward of the task, they'll be less motivated to do the task. Expectancy is that I'm capable of graduating. Instrumentality is I'll believe my studying will pay off. And valence is I believe my effort was worth it.