Chapter 10: Stress and Health
Study Unit 10.21Promoting Healthy Behavior INTERACTIVE QUESTION Work through the interactive figure to review the most common methods of unwinding, then answer the question that follows. Match each activity to the corresponding fact. Note that you can see exact numbers by hovering over each part of the graph at the end of the figure.
Americans do this about twice as much on the weekend as on weekdays. Correct label:socializing and communicating This activity has the smallest difference between time spent on weekdays and weekends. Correct label:reading The average American spends over two hours a day doing this.watching TV Correct label:watching TV This is the only leisure activity people do more on weekdays than on weekends. Correct label: nongame leisurely computer use This is the third most popular form of leisure on weekdays. Correct label:relaxing and thinking
Gene methylation, which can result from chronic stress, can effectively "turn off" genes by ensuring they don't get expressed. What recent discovery about gene methylation has dramatic implications for the effects of chronic stress?
Chronic Stress Changes gene expression Even in cases where there is no genetic relationship between the foster parents and offspring.
Label the diagram with the recommended levels of daily food intake for an average person.
Coffee: 7 to 10 ounces (200 to 280 grams) Fruit: 2 to 2.5 cups (0.5 to 0.6 liters) Fish: 6 to 7 ounces (170 to 200 grams) Water: .8 to 1.1 ounces (24 to 31 gram Salt: 0.08 ounces (2.3 grams) Dairy:3 cups (0.7 liters) Sugar: 2 to 2.5 ounces (55 to 70 grams) Veggies: 3 to 3.5 cups (0.7 to 0.8 liters)
Which of the following statements are examples of implementation intentions?
Correct Answer(s) "If the dog signals that she needs to go out, then I will take her for a quick walk up and down the block." "At 10 PM, I'm going to take out the recycling." Incorrect Answer(s) "It's obvious that the best way to write a paper is to write the body first, then write the introduction second." "I should get some work done when I'm feeling in the mood."
Identify the reasons stress can increase the risk of disease.
Correct Answer(s) Chronic activation of the sympathetic nervous system can accelerate certain diseases. Chronic stress undermines the immune system. Depression and stress often go hand in hand. Incorrect Answer(s) Stress makes the body vulnerable to diseases that people without stress are immune to. Elevated stress levels in anyone nearby, even strangers, can be contagious.
Primatologist Robert Sapolsky has made an argument for "why zebras don't get ulcers." Identify the reasons, according to Sapolsky's view, that so many modern humans are crippled by chronic stress.
Correct Answer(s) Evolution did not optimize our bodies to be able to sustain stress responses for long periods of time. Zebras do not experience prolonged stress over social or emotional factors. Our ancestors evolved to deal with immediate, life-threatening stressors such as dangerous predators. Incorrect Answer(s) Zebras naturally accept the strict social hierarchies in the animal kingdom. Unlike herbivorous zebras, modern humans are omnivores.
Amira is fired from her job without warning, and she is uncertain how she will pay her rent at the end of the month. Although she quit smoking cigarettes years ago, she now finds herself smoking heavily in response to her situation. Identify the reason(s) she might feel the impulse to smoke.
Correct Answer(s) Faced with intense stress, Amira's behavioral inhibition is impaired. As a stimulant, nicotine can short-circuit negative emotions and replace them with a pleasant high. Incorrect Answer(s) Nicotine acts as a painkiller, dampening both physical and emotional pain. The nicotine in cigarettes dampens the central nervous system.
It is sometimes said that stress is contagious. Which of the following statements explain why this is so?
Correct Answer(s) Knowing that our loved ones are suffering is itself stressful. Spending time around a person suffering from a stressful situation tends to create feelings of stress. Incorrect Answer(s) The cytokines generated by a stressed person can be transmitted to those around them. Stress is primarily the result of infectious disease.
Mindfulness meditation appears to have benefits for subjective well-being, but scientists remain unsure why. Which of the following are proposed reasons meditation could yield emotional benefits?
Correct Answer(s) Meditation lets you see yourself as a changing entity. Regular practice at regulating your attention improves executive functions. Practitioners are less likely to hold onto negative emotions. Mindfulness increases your awareness of your physical state. Incorrect Answer(s) Mindfulness meditation triggers the same restorative processes that are active during sleep. Mindfulness meditation helps to erase the sense of self.
Identify the physical reactions to stress that Gretel is displaying.
Correct Answer(s) SAM axis activation challenge reactivity sympathetic nervous system activity Incorrect Answer(s) parasympathetic nervous system activity HPA axis activation threat reactivity
Identify the reasons stress increases the risk of heart disease.
Correct Answer(s) SAM axis activation increases blood pressure. The effect of stress on blood pressure causes a buildup of arterial plaque. Incorrect Answer(s) Stress causes toxins in the blood to increase. Chronic stress is characterized by sustained low blood pressure.
Pollyanna has been told she has a very positive attitude. She maintains a sunny disposition even in terrible circumstances. Which of the following health consequences will she likely experience as a result of this personality trait, compared to the average person?
Correct Answer(s) She is likely to live longer. Her HPA axis shows a reduced level of activation when under stress. She is less likely to get sick when exposed to disease. Incorrect Answer(s) She is more likely to develop PTSD at a later point in life. She is more likely to have low intelligence.
Stress is a phenomenon with multiple components. Identify the necessary parts of the definition of stress.
Correct Answer(s) Stress is a physiological response. Stress is a reaction to an environmental event. Stress depends on subjective appraisal. Incorrect Answer(s) Stress is an emotional response. Stressors can be identified objectively.
Which of the following qualities are likely to belong to someone who has a good sense of humor?
Correct Answer(s) They are less likely to suffer from depression. They are likely optimistic. They likely have high self-esteem. Incorrect Answer(s) They are likely physically healthy. They likely engage in healthy behaviors.
Which of the following scenarios are examples of emotions that serve a broaden-and-build function?
Correct Answer(s) While contentedly enjoying his vacation, Haoran sets time aside to think about how the year could have gone better. Frederique incorporates a lot of material about her disastrous first marriage into her standup comedy act. Incorrect Answer(s) As a method actor, Lakshman thinks about things that make him feel angry or upset in order to access those emotions on stage. Sandy hardly ever thinks about her abusive parents since she severed ties with them at age 20. Having been embarrassed by forgetting his mother-in-law's name, Paol is unlikely to forget it again.
Which of the following practices are examples of good sleep hygiene?
Correct Answer(s) avoiding tasks that involve concentration before going to bed going to bed at the same time each night using your bed only for sleep and sex Incorrect Answer(s) using the snooze button to stretch out your wakeup routine
When Hans Selye discovered general adaptation syndrome, which of the following symptoms did he observe in the rats he was working with?
Correct Answer(s) shrinking of the thymus, spleen, and lymph nodes bleeding stomach ulcers enlarged adrenal glands Incorrect Answer(s) loss of fur muscle atrophy
Identify the fields that are brought together by health psychology
Correct Answer(s) social psychology clinical psychology physiology cognitive psychology medicine Incorrect Answer(s) economics anthropology physics
Which of the following phrases describe(s) an illusion of control?
Correct Answer(s) the feeling of having more control over outcomes than we actually do a way to protect ourselves against depression and discouragement Incorrect Answer(s) a risk factor that is predictive of depression a delusional state most often seen in cases of psychosis
Which of the following people are experiencing flow?
FLOW -After what she believed was a couple of hours of playing a video game, Lana looked up and realized that she had played straight through the night. -When improvising a jazz solo, John finds the notes coming so easily that it's almost as if the music is playing him. NOT FLOW -The professor's voice is so pleasant to listen to that Carolyn realizes the class period has flown by without her remembering what was being discussed. =Barunka snaps to attention and realizes that she can't remember anything about the last few hours.
Devon visits his sick girlfriend to bring her soup, and they wind up watching a movie. This movie turns out to be a very scary horror movie, and Devon's heart races throughout it. Not long after, he realizes that he has caught a cold. Devon most likely got sick because the stress of the film suppressed his immune system, not because he was exposed to his girlfriend's cold.
False
Emotion-focused coping strategies are consistently more effective than problem-focused coping strategies.
False
Warren is deeply depressed after his retirement and the death of his wife. He decides that he should travel to try to recapture a feeling of meaning and purpose in his life. True or False: Warren's choice to seek meaning is enough to ensure that his depression will improve.
False
Fill in the blanks to complete the passage about the body's response to stress.
General adaptation syndrome is characterized by three stages. The first is a(n) alarm reaction, which can range from apprehension to a full-blown fight-or-flight response. The second stage is characterized by resistance. This includes enhanced immune system activity but reduced activity by the digestive system. Finally, the third stage is exhaustion, during which the failure of body systems can result in organ damage.
According to the differential sensitivities hypothesis, which child would likely display the best long-term outcomes?
Highly sensitive child in a supportive environment
What are cytokines?
Inflammatory molecules released by certain cells in the immune system
Which of the following statements are reasons there are pronounced health disparities between people of different socio-economic status (SES)?
Lower-SES settings tend to be subject to more instability and hardship. Elevated stress increases risky behaviors. Having a lower SES is predictive of having worse or no health insurance. Healthy behaviors are not merely a matter of choice but also a matter of time and cost. Incorrect Answer(s) People of low SES tend to have lower overall ability.
Which network in the nervous system is responsible for down-regulating, or suppressing, the body's response to stressful events?
Parasympathetic nervous system.
Conrad gets anxious in social situations, something his girlfriend Saranda has never understood. She sometimes tells him that certain social situations are obviously not stressful, because she doesn't feel stressed by them. He replies that she only feels that way because she doesn't perceive social situations in the same way he does. What concept from health psychology could help Saranda understand Conrad's perspective?
Stress Appraisial theory
Which statement best describes the relationship between sleep and stress?
Stress tends to disrupt sleep, and poor sleep tends to enhance stress
Which example demonstrates allostatic load?
Sustained high levels of Cortisol have left henry with persistant information
Which sequence of events best describes what happens in your body when a stressor persists for long periods of time?
The Hypothalamus releases CRH, the Pituitary gland releases ACTH, The HPA axis is activated
This figure shows the results of a study of nuns who entered a convent in their twenties and wrote autobiographies at the time. The figure plots survival rates for nuns who used more positive language versus less positive language in their autobiographies. What is the significance of the fact that both groups have 100 percent survival at age 75?
The study only began tracking mortality at age 75
Despite belonging to a highly individualistic culture, Americans who identify as having European heritage are more likely to seek out social support to cope with stress than are Korean citizens, whose culture relies more on interdependence.
True
In his will, a comedian requests that his funeral service take the form of a "comedy roast," in which his friends and family tell jokes at his expense. Participating in this activity will give the comedian's loved ones an additional coping mechanism for their grief.
True
Stress tends to increase impulsivity and risk taking by suppressing the activity of the prefrontal cortex.
True
The Medical College Admission Test (MCAT) has tested student knowledge of chemistry and physics since 1977. These two topics were added to the MCAT before psychology was added.
True
Identify the true and false statements about health disparities as a function of social status.
True Statement(s) People suffer worse outcomes if they perceive their own social status as being relatively low, even if they have an objectively higher status than most people. Health disparities among minority groups cannot be explained solely by socio-economic disparities. False Statement(s) Health consequences only vary as a function of socio-economic status, not of perceived status. Health disparities depend only on current socio-economic status. Socio-economic health disparities can be explained completely by different access to health care and health insurance.
Identify the true and false statements about stress and exercise.
True Statement(s) People who get regular exercise report less stress and anxiety in their lives. People who are stressed out are more likely to skip exercising. False Statement(s) People who exercise are healthier mainly because they tend to be wealthier. Because it raises your heart rate, exercise increases the amount of physical stress your body experiences.
People sometimes use alcohol as a means of self-medication to deal with stressful situations, but this approach can have dangerous complications. Identify the true and false statements about alcohol and stress.
True Statement(s) Self-medicating with alcohol increases the odds of binge drinking. Alcohol constrains self-awareness. Stress may make alcohol seem less risky. Alcohol dampens the central nervous system. False Statement(s) By suppressing stress, low doses of alcohol can help people self-regulate. Alcohol's soothing effects get stronger with more drinks.
Identify the individuals who are probably vulnerable to stress.
Vulnerable to Stress Li Jing's social world is online; she mostly interacts with others by reading their posts. Jordan sees a lot of people socially but wouldn't trust any of them with a secret. Cassie doesn't consider herself a people person and rarely interacts with anyone outside of work Not Vulnerable to Stress Emily is open about her feelings with most people and is a generous listener. Serge keeps most people at a distance but has four friends he considers close and trustworthy. Minsuk is very close with his siblings and communicates with at least one of them every day.
Writing about past trauma appears to reduce risk of depression and stress-related health complications. Researchers have suggested this effect occurs for which reason?
Writing about trauma appears to help people understand what they went through.
Place the stages of general adaptation syndrome in order from first to last.
alarm reaction stage of resistance stage of exhaustion
Match each example to the way of finding meaning that it represents.
benefit-finding Correct label:"This acid reflux has been a real bummer, but at least I'm eating healthier now." Correct label:"Raising my daughter has been really hard work, but I can see that she's going to do great things." sense-making Correct label:"My sister's death has me thinking a lot about whether there's an afterlife." Correct label:"The older I get, the more I realize life is about having experiences."
Match each stressor to the category to which it belongs. Warning: Some of these examples may be uncomfortable to think about.
daily hassleSELECT A LABEL Correct label:Xael hates how often she has to shovel the snow in her driveway so as to be able to drive to work in the morning. Correct label:Arturo needs to spend the afternoon typing memos, but an ingrown fingernail makes typing uncomfortable. catastrophic eventSELECT A LABEL Correct label:Dalmat was 7 years old when his town became the site of a military battle that destroyed his home. Correct label:Following a traffic accident, Elodie awoke to discover that she had been paralyzed from the neck down. major life eventSELECT A LABEL Correct label:After years of marriage, Jack and Diane got a divorce. Correct label:Because of a new job, Craig moved to a new town where he didn't know anyone.
Place the life events in order from most to least stressful, according to the Holmes & Rahe stress inventory.
death of a spouse divorce imprisonment death of a family member major injury or illness
The diathesis-stress model holds that our genes give us susceptibilities, or diatheses, for certain health outcomes, but that stressors in our environment often serve as the triggers that activate or intensify those health outcomes. Identify each scenario as describing only a diathesis, only a stressor, or both.
diathesis onlySELECT A LABEL Correct label:Kevin has a gene that is a risk factor for Alzheimer's disease, although he doesn't yet realize it. Correct label:Both sides of Ahdri's family are genetically predisposed to alcoholism. stressor onlySELECT A LABEL Correct label:Michael has fallen on hard times in recent years and can only afford to eat five meals a week. Correct label:Jedda is beside herself with grief after her twin brother dies in a car accident. diathesis and stressorSELECT A LABEL Correct label:Born to a bipolar mother, Yves's first psychotic break was triggered by a bad reaction to the psychoactive drug salvia. Correct label:The progress of his Huntington's disease symptoms accelerated after Alejandro fought off a nasty flu.
Place the professions in order from most to least stressful, according to a 2018 survey.
enlisted military personnel broadcaster taxi driver pharmacy technician hair stylist
Using the most recent data, place the causes of death in the United States in order from most common to least common. Note that you can see specific numbers by hovering over the bars in the chart.
heart disease cancer accidents diabetes pneumonia/flu
Identify each consideration as an example of either a primary or secondary stress appraisal.
primary appraisal When Vincent learns that his sister has lost her husband, he thinks about how challenging it will be for her whole family. Correct label:When Ljubica's son is denied a spot in AP calculus, she thinks, "This could impact his college applications." Correct label:Rumain always drives below the speed limit because he worries that any interaction he has with the police might go badly. Correct label:When Vincent learns that his sister has lost her husband, he thinks about how challenging it will be for her whole family. secondary appraisal Following the death of a family pet, Yoel goes to bed wondering how he's going to muster the will to get up in the morning. Correct label:Justin receives news that he needs to start taking expensive heart medication, and his first thought is, "I don't think I can afford this." Correct label:While examining a damaged painting that he intends to restore, Jacob realizes that he may not have the skills necessary to do the repairs. Correct label:Following the death of a family pet, Yoel goes to bed wondering how he's going to muster the will to get up in the morning.
There are many factors that may contribute to a person's decision to smoke or not smoke a cigarette. Identify each reason as a biological, psychological, or social factor, as described by the biopsychosocial model.
psychological Correct label:Regular smokers crave a cigarette if they go without. Correct label:Smokers who know that smoking is unhealthy often make excuses about why they can't quit social Correct label:Laws that regulate where smoking can happen impact how normal it seems. Correct label:Some people perceive smoking as gross, which can discourage others from doing it. biological Correct label:Brain receptors sensitive to nicotine influence alertness. Correct label:Nicotine increases dopamine levels in the brain.
Place the actions in order from most beneficial to longevity to least beneficial.
receiving social support quitting smoking consuming alcohol in moderation regular exercise maintaining a healthy body weight
Match each factor to the corresponding biopsychosocial category.
social contextSELECT A LABEL Correct label:culture and education Correct label:socio-economic status Correct label:family and friends biologySELECT A LABEL Correct label:genetic background Correct label:illness and immune functioning Correct label:neurochemistry psychologySELECT A LABEL Correct label:personality and beliefs Correct label:coping strategies Correct label:behavior
Match each experience to the physiological system that governs the body's reaction to that experience.
sympathetic-adreno-medullary (SAM) axis: Correct label:Reina receives a phone call informing her that her boyfriend has been kidnapped. Correct label:Lukas feels his heart beating faster when his mother starts showing his new girlfriend his baby pictures. hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) : Correct label: Adhara has an achy shoulder and feels discomfort for days, even when taking painkillers. Correct label:Shelley is in constant competition with her coworkers and suspects she may be fired. Correct label:Eunice has had trouble sleeping since her brother was arrested a few days ago.
