What Is Stress?
Chapter 1
© 2008 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.
Chapter Overview
• Important researchers of stress and their
contributions
• Types of stress
• Stress reactivity: general adaptation
syndrome
• Defining stress
© 2008 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.
Before we begin, ask yourself…
• What stresses you out?
• How do you deal with stress?
© 2008 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.
Before we formally define stress, let’s take
a look at some influential researchers and
how they contributed to our knowledge of
stress.
© 2008 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.
Walter Cannon
• First to describe the effects of acute stress
• Termed this stress reaction as the fight-orflight response
• A primitive response that quickly increases
heart rate, respiration, blood pressure,
and serum cholesterol
© 2008 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.
Hans Selye
• Studied the effects of long-term (chronic)
stress
• Summarized his findings by proposing a
three-phase process called the general
adaptation syndrome
– alarm reaction
– stage of resistance
– stage of exhaustion
© 2008 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.
Other Influential Researchers
• Simeons -- related evolution to psychosomatic
•
•
•
disease (twentieth century concept)
Wolff, LeShan, Engel -- studied illness,
disease, and stress
Friedman & Rosenman -- identified
relationship between stress and coronary heart
disease
Simonton -- imagery and cancer therapy
© 2008 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.
Techniques and concepts have
developed over the years, including:
• Relaxation response (Benson)
• Autogenic training (Schultz, Luthe)
• Progressive muscular relaxation, bracing,
imagery (Jacobson)
• Biofeedback (Budzynski)
© 2008 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.
Stress Theory
• Several theories explain the causes of
stress:
– Life events theory: situation requires more
resources than are available
– Hardiness theory: one’s attitude toward the
events determines stress
– Social support theory: insufficient social
support for responding to event
© 2008 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.
The Stressor
• Stressor (stimulus)
–
–
–
–
biological
psychological
sociological
philosophical
• Stress reactivity (fight-or-flight response)
– All effects are based on duration and degree
of one’s physiological reaction
– There may be gender differences
© 2008 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.
Stress Reactivity
© 2008 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.
Definition of Stress
• Mason described the different uses of the
word stress:
– stimulus
– response
– whole spectrum of interacting factors (Lazarus)
– stimulus-response interaction
© 2008 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.
Is the glass half full or half empty?
• A situation can be stressful or not -- it all
depends on your perception of the event
• A response to stress can be effective or
not -- it depends on your resources and
coping strategies
• Refer to table 1.2
© 2008 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.
Relationship between stress and
illness….
© 2008 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.
Goals for Stress Management
• Do not eliminate all stress
• Use as a motivator for peak performance
• Stress can be useful, stimulating, and
welcome
• Limit harmful effects
© 2008 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.
What Is Stress?
© 2008 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.