Quiz 9 & 10

Which of the following is an example of external perfectionism?

If other people fail me, they are useless. An external perfectionist is someone who has very high, often extremely demanding, expectations of others. They expect perfection in others' work.

Of the 15 million college students in the U.S., approximately how many will die prematurely due to smoking-related illnesses?

1-2 million. The 2010 College Student Health Survey (Lust, Ehlinger, & Golden, 2010) revealed that about 18% of college students reported that they had used tobacco within the previous 30 days. This means "of the 15 million college students in the United States, an estimated 1.7 million will die prematurely due to smoking-related illnesses."

Shopaholics typically report the following feelings while shopping, EXCEPT:

A sense of confusion. Shopaholics typically shop in person and on the Internet. When shopping, they report the same feelings gamblers do when winning: happiness, elation, a sense of power, gratification, and even a release of tension.

Generally speaking, when people are stressed, they tend to eat more.

False Stress-related eating behaviors are actually quite common. Some people eat more when they are feeling stressed, while other people eat less.

Research studies on procrastination support the idea that some people do their best work "in the 11th hour" or under pressure.

FALSE Some people might claim that they do their best work in the eleventh hour or under pressure, but research studies on procrastination don't support this. One study clearly highlights the problems experienced by college student procrastinators (Baumeister & Tice, 1997). The researchers found that "procrastinators reported lower stress and less illness than nonprocrastinators early in the semester, but they reported higher stress and more illness late in the term, and overall they were sicker. Procrastinators also received lower grades on all assignments. Procrastination thus appears to be a self-defeating behavior pattern marked by short-term benefits and long-term costs" (p. 454).

In addition to a high need for achievement, Type A's generally have high self-confidence and feelings of self-worth.

False. Type A behavior seems to stem from a very strong achievement drive, a high need for positive regard from others, and a low sense of self-worth.

Anger is an uncommon response to stress.

False. Anger is an unfortunate but common response to stress. College students in particular may "experience stress and anger related to the numerous developmental milestones they face, including identity formation and adjustment to college curricula and class expectations

Nicotine provides stress management benefits when used sparingly.

False. It's interesting to note that many tobacco users claim that their habit "helps them manage stress." Any stress management benefits, though, stem from factors unrelated to the nicotine.

If you think you might be an emotional eater, it's wise to try all of the following EXCEPT:

Going on a diet. If you find that your eating patterns become unhealthy when you're stressed, you might want to evaluate them further. For many people, simply becoming aware of these tendencies helps a lot. It might be a good idea to keep a food diary for a few days to help you get an accurate picture of your habits. Track not only what you eat and when you eat it, but also how you're feeling at the time. If you feel that your eating habits are unbalanced, or if you'd simply like more information about healthy, balanced diets, we'd recommend that you consult a dietician at your college health service, or even take a course focused on nutrition.

"Well that's just great. The rest of this day is going to be terrible!" is an example of:

Permanence. Example of permanence: "This is just awful, it will stay awful and will never get better."

All of the following are true of pessimists, EXCEPT:

They live longer compared to optimists When compared to optimists, pessimists tend to: Experience sickness more often, perceive more stress in their lives, have shorter life spans, earn lower grades, report achieving their goals less often, and suffer from depression and anxiety more often.

Perfectionists are often preoccupied with "shoulds" for themselves and others.

True They are greatly concerned with maintaining an outward image of doing everything right and they are terribly afraid of embarrassment. They are preoccupied with shoulds.

Type A behavior is a possible risk factor for cardiovascular disease.

True. Framingham researchers noted that not all of the variance in cardiovascular health could be explained by typical risk factors such as high blood pressure, smoking, and elevated cholesterol levels. After further investigation, they hypothesized that the behavior pattern of some individuals could actually contribute to cardiovascular risk due to an increased perception of stress. Further, they noted that this behavior pattern manifested in some consistent traits throughout individuals who exhibited it. Thus, "Type A Behavior Pattern" was hypothesized to be a possible risk factor for cardiovascular disease

One strategy for Type E behavior is to learn to say no to others.

True. Disentangling yourself from some activities and obligations may prove to take a bit of creativity, assertiveness, and diligence, but it is worth it. You'll need to practice saying no to new requests, too. This can be hard, but you can do it! Do not feel guilty about your choices.

It's possible for our reactions to situations to become automatic and subconscious.

True. In fact, we can become so used to responding to and approaching life in a given way that our reactions become automatic and subconscious. In fact, some people find that their automatic reaction to life is governed by a distress-prone pattern.

Feeling and expressing anger can result in which outcome?

a. clouded judgment b. quick, rash decisions c. motivation and positive outcomes. Sometimes, anger can be motivating and result in positive outcomes. All too often, though, it can cloud our judgment, cause us to make quick, rash decisions, and lead to regrettable consequences.

Illicit drugs add stress due to:

a. lengths gone to obtain the illegal substances b. the unpredictability of the substance or contaminants c. long-term side effects (such as addiction) d. penalties for possession of drug First, using drugs which are illicit or for which you do not have a prescription is illegal. Thus, there's a certain amount of stress involved in simply gaining access to the drugs. Additionally, the penalties for possession of these substances can range from a hassle to a significant charge. Secondly, many of these substances cause short-term effects that are highly unpredictable. This unpredictability may be due to the drug itself, or potential contaminants. You can never be fully certain about the safety or purity of the substance you ingest, inhale, snort, or inject. Many of these drugs have long-term effects as well.

Smoking can lead to additional stressors, including:

a. proneness to colds and health concerns b. withdrawal symptoms when quitting c. cost In addition to the long-term health concerns, smokers also experience a greater number of acute illnesses as well like colds, allergies, and congestion, in addition to the financial cost. The withdrawal symptoms are uncomfortable and it can be a stressful process - at least in the beginning.

The three basic dimensions to learned pessimism are:

personalization, permanence and pervasiveness. When something stressful or undesirable happens, this person tends to hold the following beliefs: personalization, permanence, and pervasiveness.

Gambling and shopping have which in common:

they are popular among college students b. they involve giving up money in exchange for something else c. they provide temporary satisfaction Gambling and shopping have a few things in common: Both involve money, both require you to give up some of your money in exchange for something else (in the case of gambling, the chance to win more money; in the case of shopping, material goods), both provide temporary satisfaction, as you're often left wanting more of whatever you gained, both can be fun diversions, if limited, both are popular among some college students, both can become compulsions, get out of control and lead to debt and many other problems and both are cited as "stress relievers" by some but often create more stress than they relieve!