Psychology applied to modern life adjustment in the 21st century, 11e chapter 3

• We first make a primary appraisal, or initial evaluation of the relevance, level of threat, and degree of stress the event brings.. Responding to Stress, continued– However, stress ca

Chapter 3 Stress and Its Effects

The Nature of Stress

are perceived to threaten one’s well-being and thereby tax one’s coping abilities”

• Stress has several characteristics

1 Stress is a common, everyday event.

• Both major and minor problems can be stressful

• Even daily “hassles” can have negative effects on our well-being

• Stressful events have a cumulative impact

The Nature of Stress, continued

2 Stress is subjective Not everyone feels the

same degree of stress from the same event

• The difference may depend on how we

appraise events (see Figure 3.2)

• We first make a primary appraisal, or initial

evaluation of the relevance, level of threat, and degree of stress the event brings

• If viewed as stressful, we make a secondary

appraisal, or an evaluation of our ability to

cope

Figure 3.2 Primary and secondary appraisal of stress Primary appraisal is an initial evaluation of

whether an event is (1) irrelevant to you, (2) relevant, but not threatening, or (3) stressful When you view an

event as stressful, you are likely to make a secondary appraisal, which is an evaluation of your coping

resources and options for dealing with the stress (Based on Lazarus & Folkman, 1994)

The Nature of Stress, continued

3 Ambient stress – refers to chronic negative

conditions embedded in the environment

• Certain types have been associated with elevated stress hormones (see Figure 3.3)

4 Stress is influenced by culture.

• Culture affects which types of stress we experience

• Cultural change is a major source of stress

in most cultures

Figure 3.3 Excessive noise and stress hormones Evans, Hygge, and Bullinger (1995) compared

children from noisy areas near Munich International Airport with similar children from quiet neighborhoods in Munich They hound elevated levels of two hormones (epinephrine and norepinephrine) associated with stress reactions in the children exposed to the high noise of the airport.

Adapted from Evans, G.W., Hygge, S., & Bullinger, M (1995) Chronic noise and psychological stress Psychological Science, 6, 333-338 Copyright © 1995 Blackwell Publishers Adapted by permission

Major Sources of Stress, continued

• There are three basic categories

1 Acute stressors – “threatening events that

have a relatively short duration and a clear endpoint”

2 Chronic stressors – “threatening events

that have a relatively long duration and no readily apparent time limit”

3 Anticipatory stressors – “upcoming or

future events that are perceived to be threatening”

Major Sources of Stress, continued

• Other categories of stressors

1 Frustration – “occurs in any situation in

which the pursuit of some goal is thwarted”

2 Internal conflict – “occurs when two or

more incompatible motivations or behavioral impulses compete for expression”

Major Sources of Stress, continued

– Internal conflicts come in three types (see

Fig 3.4)

choice between two attractive goals

choice between two unattractive goals

whether or not to pursue ONE goal, which has both pros and cons

– This conflict causes the greatest stress

Figure 3.4 Types of conflict Psychologists

have identified three basic types of conflict In approach-approach and avoidance-avoidance conflicts, the person is torn between two goals In

an approach-avoidance conflict, only one goal is under consideration, but it has both positive and negative aspects.

Major Sources of Stress, continued

3.Life changes – “any noticeable alterations in

one’s living circumstances that require

readjustment”

– Holmes and Rahe (1967) believe both

positive and negative life changes are associated with physical illness

– They developed the Social Readjustment

Rating Scale (SRRS) to assess health risk due to the accumulation of life changes (see Figure 3.5)

Figure 3.5 Social Readjustment Rating Scale (SRRS) Devised by Holmes and Rahe (1967), this scale is designed to

measure the change-related stress in one’s life The numbers on the right are supposed to reflect the average amount of stress (readjustment) produced by each event Respondents check off the events that have occurred to them recently and add

up the associated numbers to arrive at their stress scores.

Adapted from Holmes, T.H., & Rahe, R (1967) The Social Readjustment Rating Scale Journal of Psychosomatic

Research, 11, 213-218 Copyright © 1967 by Elsevier Science Publishing Co Reprinted by permission.

Major Sources of Stress, continued

4.Pressure – “involves expectations or demands

that one behave in a certain way”

– The two types of pressure below are important and both are associated with many

psychological symptoms and problems (see Fig 3.6):

• Pressure to perform

• Pressure to conform

Figure 3.6 Pressure and psychological symptoms A comparison of pressure and life change as

sources of stress suggests that pressure may be more strongly related to mental health than change is In one study, Weiten (1988) found a correlation of 59 between scores on the Pressure Inventory (PI) and symptoms of psychological distress In the same sample, the correlation between SRRS scores and psychological symptoms was only 28.

• Emotional responses are usually negative

and fall into three categories:

1 Annoyance, anger, and rage

2 Apprehension, anxiety, and fear

3 Dejection, sadness, and grief

Responding to Stress, continued

– However, stress can prompt positive

emotional responses, which in turn

• Increase creativity, flexibility in

problem-solving, and

• Enhance immune system functioning, increase valuable social support, and promote proactive coping

Responding to Stress, continued

– Strong emotions may hamper or enhance our ability to cope with stress, depending on our level of arousal and the task complexity (see Figure 3.9)

– The “inverted-U hypothesis” predicts that

• For low complexity tasks, a high level of arousal is best;

• For medium complexity tasks, a medium

level of arousal is best; and

• For high complexity tasks, a low level of arousal is best

Figure 3.9 Arousal and performance Graphs of the relationship between emotional arousal and task

performance tend to resemble an inverted U, as increased arousal is associated with improved performance

up to a point, after which higher arousal leads to poorer performance The optimal level of arousal for a task depends on the complexity of the task On complex tasks, a relatively low level of arousal tends to be

optimal On simple tasks, however, performance may peak at a much higher level of arousal.

Responding to Stress, continued

• Physiological responses

– The fight-or-flight response - “a

physiological reaction to threat that

mobilizes an organism for attacking (fight)

or fleeing (flight) an enemy”

– It occurs in the autonomic nervous

system (ANS), which “is made up of the

nerves that connect to the heart, blood

vessels, smooth muscles, and glands”

Responding to Stress, continued

– The ANS is broken into two divisions (see Fig 3.10):

• Sympathetic division mobilizes energy

during emergencies, engages the or-flight response

fight-• Parasympathetic division conserves

energy, has calming effect on body

–Unfortunately, the fight-flight response is not well suited for coping with modern threats

Figure 3.10 The autonomic nervous system (ANS) The ANS is composed of the nerves that connect to

the heart, blood vessels, smooth muscles, and glands The ANS is subdivided into the sympathetic division, which mobilizes bodily resources in times of need, and the parasympathetic division, which conserves

bodily resources Some of the key functions controlled by each division of the ANS are summarized in the center of the diagram.

Responding to Stress, continued

– Hans Seyle’s general adaptation syndrome

is a “model of the body’s stress response,

consisting of three stages” (see Fig 3.11)

1.Alarm phase – initial response to threat,

fight-or-flight response engages

2.Resistance phase – if threat continues,

physiological changes stabilize, coping begins

3.Exhaustion phase – if the threat continues

too long, the body’s resources are depleted, leading to physical exhaustion and illness

Figure 3.11 The general adaptation syndrome According to Selye, the physiological response to stress

can be broken into three phases During the first phase, the body mobilizes its resources for resistance after

a brief initial shock In the second phase, resistance levels off and eventually begins to decline If the third phase of the general adaptation syndrome is reached, resistance is depleted, leading to health problems and exhaustion.

Responding to Stress, continued

– Two brain-body pathways control our

physiological responses to stress (see Fig 3.13):

1.The Catecholamine Pathway –

hypothalamus activates sympathetic system; adrenal glands release catecholamines that

mobilize the body for action

2.The Corticosteroid Pathway – hypothalamus

signals pituitary gland to secrete ACTH;

adrenal cortex to release corticosteroids that increase energy

Figure 3.13 Brain-body pathways in stress In times of stress, the

brain sends signals along two pathways The pathway through the autonomic nervous system (shown in blue on the right) controls the release of catecholamine hormones that help mobilize the body for action The pathway through the pituitary gland and the endocrine system (shown in brown on the left) controls the release of

corticosteroid hormones that increase energy and ward off tissue inflammation.

Responding to Stress, continued

• Behavioral responses to stress usually refer

to coping, or “active efforts to master,

reduce, or tolerate the demands created by stress”

– Coping response may be

• Healthy (e.g., actively trying to solve a problem by asking for help or generating

solutions) or

• Unhealthy (e.g., ignoring problem, indulging in alcohol, or excessive eating)

The Potential Effects of Stress, continued

• Impaired task performance

– Stress can cause people to “freeze up” or

“crack under pressure”

– Elevated self-consciousness can disrupt

attention to task

• Disruption of cognitive function

– Increased tendency to jump to conclusions.– Decreased ability to carefully review options.– Decreased memory function

The Potential Effects of Stress, continued

emotional exhaustion, cynicism, and a lowered sense of self-efficacy that is attributable to

Figure 3.15 The antecedents, components, and consequences of burnout Christina Maslach and

Michael Leiter have developed a systematic model of burnout that specifies its antecedents, components, and consequences The antecedents on the left in the diagram are the stressful features of the work environment that cause burnout The burnout syndrome itself consists of the three components shown in the center of the diagram Some of the unfortunate results of burnout are listed on the right (Based on Leiter & Maslach, 2007).

The Potential Effects of Stress, continued

“involves enduring psychological disturbance

attributed to the experience of a major traumatic event”

The Potential Effects of Stress, continued

• Psychological problems and disorders

– Chronic stress may also contribute to

• Poor academic performance;

• Insomnia and other sleep disturbances;

• Sexual difficulties; and

• Substance abuse

The Potential Effects of Stress, continued

• Physical illness

– Psychosomatic diseases are “genuine

physical ailments thought to be caused in part by stress and other psychological

factors”

– Common psychosomatic diseases include

• High blood pressure

• Peptic ulcers

• Asthma

• Eczema and hives

• Migraine and tension headaches

“Health and Stress”

The Potential Effects of Stress, continued

• Positive effects: Stress can have positive

effects in at least three ways

1 It can promote positive psychological

change, or posttraumatic growth.

2 It can help satisfy a need for stimulation and challenge

3 It can inoculate us against future stress

Factors in Stress Tolerance, continued

• Some people withstand stress better than

others

• There are many moderator variables that

may reduce the impact of stress on physical and mental health:

– Social support – “aid and succor provided

by members of one’s social networks”

– Hardiness – “a disposition marked by

commitment, challenge, and control that is purportedly associated with strong stress resistance”

Factors in Stress Tolerance, continued

– Optimism – “ a general tendency to expect

–Optimists tend to stay healthier in times of stress

Application: Reducing Stress through

Self-Control, continued

approach to changing behavior through the

application of the principles of conditioning”

– The objective is to replace undesirable

patterns of behaviors with desirable ones

– Behavior modification has been used

successfully in many settings, with a variety of problem behaviors

Application: Reducing Stress through

Self-Control, continued

• There are five steps, as outlined in Figure 3.19

1 Specify your target behavior

2 Gather baseline data

3 Design your program

4 Execute and evaluate your program

5 End your program

Figure 3.19 Steps in a self-modification

program This flowchart provides an overview of the

steps necessary to execute a self-modification

program.