PSYC 231-027 Modules 1 to 5
Personality 101
"Individual differences in characteristic patterns of thinking, feeling, and behavior" (APA) How to best understand personality? "Proneness" "Big 5"
Stress Management
"The ability to reduce stress arousal or to cope in a competent manner with stressors" (Girdano, Everly, & Dusek, 1993, p.7)
Thyroid Gland
(affects metabolism among other things)
Adrenal Glands
(help trigger the fight-or-flight response)
Parathyroids
(helps regulate level of calcium in the blood)
Effects of Stress During the Prenatal Period
Brain development occurs Neurogenesis Neuronal migration Synaptogenesis Exposure to stress has "programming" effects on... The brain HPA Axis Exposure to stress also implicated in: Lower birth weight Social difficulties Neuropsychiatric illnesses
4. Arousal Reduction
Breathing Two patterns: Chest or thoracic breathing Abdominal or diaphragmatic breathing Many forms Focusing on the breath "Box Breathing" Progressive Muscle Relaxation Each muscle group becomes focus of attention The specific muscle group is tensed for 5-7 seconds and then released Meditation and Mindfulness Establish a posture Center yourself Grounding Breathing Attitude
Emotion-Focused
Change the emotions around the situation Wishful thinking Distancing Emphasizing the positive Self-blame Tension-reduction Self-isolation
Problem-Focused
Change the situation
Taken Together
Chronic or repeated exposure to stress has enduring effects on the brain, with highest impact on structures developing or undergoing age-related changes at the time of stress exposure
What are the important qualifications to those punch lines?
Chronic or repeated stressors can potentially make you sick or can increase your risk of being sick. Stressors, even if massive, repetitive, or chronic in nature, do not automatically lead to illness
Coping
Cognition Behavior Physiological activation
Coping
Cognitive and behavioral efforts people make to address the situation Problem-Focused or Emotion - Focused (Folkman & Lazarus, 1985)
Allostatic load
Consequences of sustained activation
The Anxious Prone
Constant alertness, vigilance Overactive stress-responses Overactive sympathetic system and an overabundance of epinephrine and norepinephrine Hyperactive amygdala Glucocorticoid excess is not the usual response for those who are anxiety prone
Cognitive Reappraisal
Continuous
Culture
Culture as "mazeways" (Wallace, 1966) The types of stress that an individual encounters, and the range of acceptable coping strategies, are determined in part by an individual's position in the mazeway Affects the stress and coping process in four ways: Shapes the types of stressors Affect the appraisal of the stressfulness Affects the choice of coping Emotion-focused versus problem-focused Provides different institutional mechanisms by which an individual can cope with stress
Effects of Stress During Adulthood
Decreased hippocampal functioning can occur during chronic stress Effects of chronic stress appear to be reversible
The Amygdala
Fear, anxiety, aggression
Gender Differences
Gender vs. Sex Women are more likely to express emotional distress than men Women may be more willing to reveal stress and distress Women may face more stress than men Women may be more vulnerable to stress due to poor coping or lack of resources Women may be more likely to "tend and befriend" under stress, rather than "fight or flight" When faced with similar problems, studies show no sex differences in coping
Alarm
HPA Axis Activated
The Hostile-Prone: "Type A"
Highly competitive, overachieving, time-pressured, impatient, hostile Early research found "causal" link between Type A personality and cardiovascular disease risk Hostility (causally) linked to increase in mortality across all diseases But what aspect of hostility? Hostility overactivates stress-responses, Hostility can be modified
innate immunity
Immunity that is present before exposure and effective from birth. Responds to a broad range of pathogens.
acquired immunity
Immunity that is present only after exposure and is highly specific.
1. Stimulus/Environmental Manipulation
Increase control Increase predictability
Parasympathetic Nervous System
Mediates the rest the and digest response
Social Context
Most of us are embedded in families Reciprocity is helpful How parents cope likely affects children
Big 5, Stress, and Coping
Neuroticism linked to... Stress-proneness Inefficient ways of coping with stress Less conclusive for other traits O-C-E-A may be related to lower stress levels Extraversion linked to social support Resiliency Conscientiousness, openness, extraversion, agreeableness Individuals identified as "resilient" less likely to experience stress Resiliency may even reduce impact of neuroticism
The Big Five
O: Openness Imaginative, creative, curious, original, variety seeking C: Conscientiousness Hardworking, well organized, punctual, ambitious, persevering E: Extraversion Affectionate, talkative, active, fun-loving A: Agreeableness Softhearted, trusting, generous, good-natured N: Neuroticism Anxious, temperamental, self-pitying, emotional
The Repressive Prone
Often successful, reporting accomplishment, happiness, and absence of depression, anxiety, hostility High need for social conformity, discomfort with ambiguity, inhibition of negative affect Overactive stress-responses High levels of glucocorticoids
Three main ingredients:
Physical alteration of environmental stressors Modification of a person's cognitive attributions Alteration of behavioral and physiological responsivity
Psychological Factors 101
Physiological stress-response modulated by psychological factors Change the perception/appraisal, change the response Stress-response also triggered by psychological factors
Building Blocks of Psychological Stressors
Positive outlets for frustration Social support Predictability Control* *Belief, not reality/exercise Perception about improvement/decline
2. SL/Coping
Problem-Solving Identify the problem Generate solutions List the pros/cons of each solution Make a choice Evaluate your choice Time Management Priority Setting Daily Activity Organization Time Management Tips and Tricks Constructive use of breaks Your most productive time of day Social Skills Training/Assertiveness Use of "I" statements Confident body language, volume, tone Cognitive and speaking skills portraying easy-to-understand argumentation Cognitive Restructuring Activating Event ⇒ Beliefs ⇒ Consequences Refuting irrational thoughts The "shoulds", "oughts", and "musts" Tactics to do so: Ask yourself, is there any rational support for this idea? What evidence exists for the falseness of this idea? What is the worst thing that can happen? What good things might occur?
The Hypothalamus
Regulates survival Four Fs: Fighting, fleeing, feeding, mating
3. Buffer
Social Support Emotional Informational Instrumental **Perception is key** Pet Ownership Physical Fitness Aerobic or Cardiovascular Exercises Stretching/flexibility Toning/Strengthening Nutrition 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans A variety of vegetables Grains Proteins Oil Sleep Hygiene vAllow for 8 hours Keep regular bed/wake time Avoid caffeine/alcohol/large meals close to bedtime Regular exercise* Pleasurable Activities and Environments
Four categories of techniques:
Stimulus or Environmental Manipulations Teaching of Coping Skills Creation of Buffers Arousal Reduction Interventions
Self-Report
Stressful life events (recency) (most common) The social readjustment rating scale (SRRS; Holmes & Rahe, 1967) Interview based methods Perceived stress measures Perceived stress scale (PSS; Cohen et al., 1983)
The parasympathetic component mediates what?
The parasympathetic component mediates calm, vegetative activities—everything but the four F's.
Stress-induced hyperalgesia
The role of emotional reactivity
The Addictive Prone
Thrive on risk-taking, getting their next fix The role of dopamine and the pleasure pathway in the brain Anticipation of pleasure, energizing to respond to incentives The role of stress Glucocorticoids trigger release of dopamine in pleasure pathway
Effects of Stress During the Adolescent Phase
Time of extensive, physical, psychological, and neurobiological development Brain development differentially impacted by stress
Molecules are absorbed into the bloodstream
Used to construct proteins, fats, carbohydrates Used to provide energy
At the onset of a stressor
immune response is enhanced
What is stress?
"[T]hat quality of experience, produced through a person-environment transaction, that, through either overarousal or underarousal, results in psychological or physiological distress." (Aldwin, 2007, p.24) Stress involves diverse responses orchestrated across several levels of functioning, leading to a whole organism reaction.
Hypothalamus
(brain region controlling the pituitary gland)
Pancreas
(regulates the level of sugar in the blood)
Pituitary Gland
(secretes many different hormones, some of which affect other glands) Sits just underneath the brain "Master Gland"
Enzymes break down complex food matter into molecules
Amino acids Glucose Fatty acids/Glycerol
Peripheral Nervous System Composed of Two Branches
1. Somatic (Voluntary) 2. Autonomic (Involuntary)
Three Basic Steps
1. Stressor 2. Initial response (Coping) 3. Physiological stress response
ANS Composed of Two Subsystems
1. Sympathetic Nervous System 2. Parasympathetic Nervous System
Stress, Coping, and Diet
About half of all American adults have one or more preventable, diet-related chronic diseases (USDA, 2015) Cardiovascular disease (CVD) High blood pressure Type II Diabetes Majority of Americans are not engaged in healthy eating patterns Healthy eating patterns associated with positive health outcomes
Endocrine System
Adrenal Glands Pituitary Gland
Allostasis
Allostasis: "Constancy through change"
Individual predispositions
Availability of resources Genetics Prior Learning Personality
Females
Brain releases LHRH → Pituitary releases LH & FSH → Ovaries release estrogen & eggs Stress disrupts female reproduction through... Effects on adrenal androgens Inhibiting LHRH release Stress can result in... Irregular cycles/amenorrhea Difficulties in conceiving Difficulties maintaining pregnancy Decreased bone strength Decreased libido
Males
Brain releases LHRH → Pituitary releases LH & FSH → Testes release testosterone & produce sperm Stress can result in... A decline in testosterone Impotency and premature ejaculation
Sleep 101
Brain works differently in different stages Slow wave sleep is when energy restoration occurs Increase in metabolic activity during REM sleep Nervous System Response Slow wave sleep increases parasympathetic activity and decreases glucocorticoid secretion REM sleep increases sympathetic activity and glucocorticoid secretion We need sleep Sleep plays a role in cognition
Cardiovascular disease
Coronary heart disease, myocardial ischemia, heart attack, stroke
Immune system defends the body against infections
Differentiate between self and non-self The role of the white blood cell
Stress and the GI Tract
Digestion occurs in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract Food breakdown through chemical processes Food breakdown through mechanical processes Water is essential throughout the process Stress shuts down digestion Sympathetic nervous system stimulates muscles in large intestine Ulcers can develop Functional GI disorders are extremely sensitive for stress
The Depressive Prone
Dysphoria, absence of positive emotions, overabundance of negative emotions, grief and guilt oriented Heterogeneity of diseases with different underlying causes "Many roads lead to depression diagnosis" Stress-depression link Stressors can cause depression Stress generation The role of glucocorticoids and stress-response
Energy Expenditure During a Stressor
Energy storage is stopped Insulin secretion decreased Stress hormones released, reversing energy storage
Two ideas of the original conception of homeostasis. What is homeostasis about vs. allostasis?
Homeostasis: There is a single optimal level, number, amount for any given measure in the body, and you reach that ideal set point through some local regulatory mechanism. Allostasis: Any given set point can be regulated in many different ways, each with its own consequences
Hormones of the Stress Response
Epinephrine and norepinephrine** **(both neurotransmitters and hormones) CRH (corticotropin releasing hormone) ACTH (corticotropin) Glucocorticoids Steroid hormones Secreted by the adrenal gland
Primary appraisal
Event relevance Irrelevant Positive-benign Challenging-harmful
Walter B. Cannon (1871-1945)
First to describe the "fight-or-flight response"
Chronic activation of this system comes with risk
Hypertension Left ventricular hypertrophy Inflamed and damaged blood vessel Plaque formation
HPA Axis
Hypothalamic CRH → Pituitary (Anterior) ACTH → Adrenal Cortex Glucocorticoids
The Reticular Formation
General arousal
Resistance
Glucocorticoid Secretion Continues
The workhorses of the stress-response are what?
Glucocorticoids and the secretions of the sympathetic nervous system (epinephrine and norepinephrine) account for a large percentage of what happens in your body during stress.
In addition to those workhorses, what hormones are essential for mobilizing energy during stress?
Glucocorticoids, glucagon, and the sympathetic nervous system raise circulating levels of the sugar glucose, these hormones are essential for mobilizing energy during stress.
Describe Guillemin & Schally's work. What did they do that led to them receiving the Nobel Prize in 1976?
Guillemin and Schally started collecting animal brains from slaughterhouses. Cut out the part at the base of the brain, near the pituitary. Throw a bunch of those in a blender, pour the resulting brain mash into a giant test tube filled with chemicals that purify the mash, collect the droplets that come out the other end. Then inject those droplets into a rat and see if the rat's pituitary changes its pattern of hormone release. If it does, maybe those brain droplets contain one of those imagined releasing or inhibiting hormones. Try to purify what's in the droplets, figure out its chemical structure, make an artificial version of it, and see if that regulates pituitary function.
Cardiovascular Stress Response 101
Heart rate and blood pressure increase during stress Blood distribution increases to muscles, decreases to nonessential parts of the body Blood distribution within the brain changes Blood distribution decreases to kidneys through hormone vasopressin
How does the book differentiate a neurotransmitter vs. a hormone?
If a neuron (a cell of the nervous system) secretes a chemical messenger that travels a thousandth of an inch and causes the next cell in line (typically, another neuron) to do something different, that messenger is called a neurotransmitter If a neuron (or any cell) secretes a messenger that, instead, percolates into the bloodstream and affects events far and wide, that messenger is a hormone.
The critical point of the book: What's the difference between the ways that we get stressed and the ways a zebra does?
If you are that zebra running for your life, or that lion sprinting for your meal, your body's physiological response mechanisms are superbly adapted for dealing with such short-term physical emergencies. For the vast majority of beasts on this planet, stress is about a short-term crisis, after which it's either over with or you're over with. When we sit around and worry about stressful things, we turn on the same physiological responses—but they are potentially a disaster when provoked chronically
What are the two punch lines of the book?
If you plan to get stressed like a normal mammal, dealing with an acute physical challenge, and you cannot appropriately turn on the stress-response, you're in big trouble. If you repeatedly turn on the stress-response, or if you cannot turn off the stress response at the end of a stressful event, the stress-response can eventually become damaging.
The Role of Breath
Inhaling turns on the sympathetic nervous system Exhaling turns on the parasympathetic nervous system
Stressors
Internal vs external Acute vs chronic Controllability high/low
The Hippocampus
Learning, memory
The Midbrain
Process visual, auditory stimuli
The spine
May activate a spinal reflex Sends the information to the brain
Sympathetic Nervous System
Mediates: Fight, Flight, Freeze Response Releases: Epinephrine and norepinephrine
The Hindbrain
Medulla Pons Cerebellum
Chronic Stress
Metabolic process is inefficient Leads to fatigue Muscle breakdown Increases cardiovascular risk
Stress and Memory
Mild to moderate short-term stressors can enhance memory Sympathetic nervous system indirectly arouses the hippocampus The role of glucocorticoids Stress enhances implicit memory Stress can enhance emotional memories
Difficulty differentiating
Missing an infection Mistaking an innocuous non-self for something infectious Mistaking something self as an infectious non-self
The Role of the Brain for memory
Neuronal networks and glutamate Cortex Hippocampus Amygdala
Where do sympathetic projections originate, and where do they project to? What do the nerve endings of this system release?
Originating in the brain, sympathetic projections exit your spine and branch out to nearly every organ, every blood vessel, and every sweat gland in your body. Sympathetic nerve endings release norepinephrine and epinephrine.
General Adaptation Syndrome (Selye, 1956)
People have the same physical response to all types of prolonged stress Activation Adaptation Exhaustion
Stress Response
Physical exhaustion Behavior Perceived affect
An internal state of the organism ("Strain")
Physiological, emotional, cellular reactions Sympathetic activation, parasympathetic suppression Other neuroendocrine & immune suppressions and stimulations Negative affect, Emotional Numbing, Lower Positive Affect
What's the "two elephants on a seesaw" model of stress-related disease?
Put two little kids on a seesaw, and they can pretty readily balance themselves on it. This is allostatic balance when nothing stressful is going on, with the children representing the low levels of the various stress hormones that will be presented in coming chapters. In contrast, the torrents of those same stress hormones released by a stressor can be thought of as two massive elephants on the seesaw. With great effort, they can balance themselves as well. But if you constantly try to balance a seesaw with two elephants instead of two little kids, all sorts of problems will emerge.
What are the complications to this model that Sapolsky ends the chapter discussing?
Recent work by the psychologist Shelley Taylor of UCLA has forced people to rethink the "fight-or-flight" response. She suggests that the fight-or-flight response is what dealing with stress is about in males, and that it has been overemphasized as a phenomenon because of the long-standing bias among (mostly male) scientists to study males rather than females. Taylor also emphasizes a hormonal mechanism that helps contribute to the "tend and befriend" stress-response. While the sympathetic nervous system, glucocorticoids, and the other hormones just reviewed are about preparing the body for major physical demands, the hormone oxytocin seems more related to the tend and befriend themes.
Sympathetic Nervous System (SNS)
Releases epinephrine and norepinephrine Fight-flight-freeze response
Exhaustion
Reserves Depleted
Secondary appraisal
Resource/ability evaluation Adequate → No stress response Inadequate → Stress response
How did Selye discover stress?
Selye simply subjected rats to stressful events and surgeries
The Thalamus
Sensory relay station
Prolonged Stress and Memory
Severe (too big, too long) stress negatively impacts explicit memory Hippocampal difficulties The role of glucocorticoids and the sympathetic nervous system
Stress and Sleep
Sleep Deprivation Sympathetic nervous system is activated Glucocorticoid levels increase May impact learning and memory Stress as a disruptor CRH suppresses sleep Compromises sleep quality
Buffers
Social support Fitness Nutrition Meaning of life Pleasurable activities Environments
Psychobiological Markers
Steady growth of interest in psychobiological markers of stress and resilience The hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal cortical (HPA) axis Regulation of glucocorticoids (cortisol) (constantly changing of levels and locations)
Stress and Food Consumption
Stress can cause... Hyperphagia Hypophagia CRH suppresses appetite Glucocorticoids stimulate appetite Particularly for starchy, sugary, fatty foods Timing is critical
An experience that arises from a transaction between a person and the environment
Stress especially occurs when there is a mismatch between individual's resources and the perceived challenge Depends on cognitive appraisals Recognition of harm, loss, threat, challenge Depends on severity of problem
Within the conception of allostasis, how does Sapolsky define stressor and stress-response?
Stressor: Anything that throws your body out of allostatic balance Stress-response: The body's attempt to restore allostasis
Caveats
Studies can show "links" between human personality types and stress-related diseases Links = correlations Correlation does not equal causation Problem of directionality Third variable problem
The brain
Subjectively interprets the pain through emotional responses and contextualizing the experience
Major (or chronic) stressors suppresses the immune response
Suppresses white blood cell functioning Inhibits the innate immune response
Peripheral Nervous System
Sympathetic Nervous System (SNS) Parasympathetic Nervous System (PNS)
Parasympathetic Nervous System (PNS)
The SNS and PNS cannot be simultaneously activated
Hans Selye (1907-1982)
The body has a stress-response system The stress-response system can be harmful Stress-response rat testing
Psychological Appraisal
The impact of very stressful events can be attenuated The impact of more minor stressful events can be amplified
Stress-induced analgesia
The role of opiate receptors and endorphins
While Selye's original conception of "exhaustion" appears incorrect, as it's very rare to see depletion of necessary hormones, what does seem to happen with sufficient activation of the stress-response?
The stress-response can become more damaging than the stressor itself, especially when the stress is purely psychological.
Stress and the Autonomic Nervous System - are they entirely within our control, entirely outside of our control? What are examples that the book gives to answer this question?
The voluntary nervous system is a conscious process whereas the autonomic nervous system is mostly outside of our control. The sympathetic nervous system kicks into action during emergencies.
An external event ("Stressor")
Trauma, life events, hassles/daily stressors, aversive physical environment, chronic role strain, cumulative adversity Exist across dimensions of duration (temporal in nature), rapidity of onset, and fluctuation
The Cerebrum: "Complex Thought"
Two hemispheres: Left and right Corpus Callosum: Connects the hemispheres 4 Lobes: Frontal: Advanced thought processes Parietal: Sensory, touch Temporal: Auditory, language Occipital: Visual
Stress and Pain
Useful when it motivates us to modify our behavior Sensation of pain comes from receptors in our body Receptors send nerve projectors to the spine
What hormones are inhibited during stress?
Various hormonal systems are inhibited during stress. The secretion of various reproductive hormones such as estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone is inhibited. Hormones related to growth (such as growth hormone) are also inhibited, as is the secretion of insulin, a pancreatic hormone that normally tells your body to store energy for later use.
Chronic Stress
Very suppressed immune systems will increase risk of getting sick Relationship between immune system suppression and disease risk unclear when less than "very" suppressed
Three categories of ways to get upset
acute physical crises chronic physical challenges psychological and social disruptions
glucocorticoids
raises blood sugar levels
