Links to Learning Objectives
ENDURING ISSUES IN STRESS AND
HEALTH PSYCHOLOGY
CHAPTER
11
Stress and Health
Psychology
SOURCES OF STRESS
Major sources of stress; three types of conflict;
self-imposed stress
Individual differences
COPING WITH STRESS
Direct & defensive coping
Socioeconomic status, culture, & gender
STAYING HEALTHY
Four proven ways to reduce stress
Coping effectively
Four elements of a healthy lifestyle
EXTREME STRESS
Five major sources of extreme stress
THE WELL-ADJUSTED PERSON
Standards for judging who is well-adjusted
HOW STRESS AFFECTS HEALTH
How the body responds to stress
Heart disease
Immune system
Enduring Issues
Person-Situation
Nature-Nurture
Stability-Change
DiversityUniversality
Enduring Issues
To what extent do the
methods that people use in
coping with stress depend
on the environment in which
they find themselves?
Mind-Body
Person-Situation
Nature-Nurture
To what extent do
people respond differently
to severe stress?
Stability-Change
DiversityUniversality
Mind-Body
Enduring Issues
Person-Situation
Nature-Nurture
Stability-Change
Can
psychological
stress cause
physical illness?
Sources
of Stress
DiversityUniversality
Mind-Body
1
Sources of Stress
Change
LEARNING OBJECTIVE: Distinguish
between stressors and stress. Identify the
major sources of stress. Describe the three
types of conflict. Explain what is meant by
“self-imposed stress.”
STRESS
CHANGE
• All stressful events
involve change.
Stressor: Any environmental
demand that
• Most people prefer order,
continuity, and predictability in
their lives, so anything requiring
change (good or bad) can be
experienced as stressful.
• Creates a state of tension or threat
(stress)
• Requires change or adaptation
(adjustment)
College Life Stress Inventory
• The more change required, the
more stressful the situation.
Everyday Hassles
Hassles can be as stressful as major life
events, since they lead to feelings of:
Pressure
Conflict
Frustration
Pressure
Frustration
Pressure
A feeling that one must
speed up, intensify, or
change the direction of
one’s behavior or live
up to a higher standard
of performance
Frustration
The feeling that
occurs when a
person is prevented
from reaching a goal
Causes include:
– Delays
–
–
–
–
Lack of resources
Losses
Failure
Discrimination
2
Conflict
Types of Conflict
Conflict
The simultaneous
existence of incompatible
demands, opportunities,
needs, or goals
Types of conflict:
• Approach/approach
• Avoidance/avoidance
• Approach/avoidance
Self-Imposed Stress
Stress and Individual Differences
LEARNING OBJECTIVE: Describe the role of optimism and pessimism, locus of
control, hardiness, and resilience in affecting people’s response to stress.
When individuals carry
around a set of irrational,
self-defeating beliefs that
add unnecessarily to the
normal stress of living
MORE LIKELY TO COPE
WELL WITH STRESS:
LESS LIKELY TO COPE
WELL WITH STRESS
• Optimists
• Pessimists
• People with an internal
locus of control
• People with an
external locus of
control
• People with the
hardiness trait
• People who are
resilient
Ways of Coping with Stress
LEARNING OBJECTIVE: Compare and contrast direct coping and defensive coping. Describe and
give an example of the three strategies for coping directly with stress. Describe and give an
example of the major ways of coping defensively.
Coping with
Stress
Direct coping:
Defensive coping:
intentional efforts
to change an
uncomfortable
situation
Various ways people
convince themselves
– through a form of
self-deception – that
they are not really
threatened or do not
really want something
they cannot get
3
Direct Coping
Confrontation
Compromise
Withdrawal
Direct Coping
Acknowledging a stressful
situation directly and
attempting to find a
solution to the problem
or to attain
the difficult
goal
Compromise
Compromise
Deciding on a more realistic
solution or goal when an ideal
solution or goal is not practical
Withdrawal
Applying Psychology
Direct Coping
Confrontation
Confrontation
Plan ahead.
Avoiding a situation
when other forms
of coping are
not practical
Exercise.
Take a study break.
Talk to other people.
Withdrawal
Meditate or use other
relaxation techniques.
Take a stress-reduction
workshop.
Defensive Coping
Defensive Coping
TYPES OF DEFENSE
MECHANISMS:
TYPES OF DEFENSE
MECHANISMS:
Denial
Repression
Projection
Identification
Refusal to
acknowledge
a painful or
threatening
reality
Denial
Repression
Projection
Identification
Regression
Regression
Intellectualization
Intellectualization
Reaction Formation
Reaction Formation
Displacement
Displacement
Sublimation
Sublimation
Excluding uncomfortable
thoughts, feelings,
and desires from
consciousness
4
Defensive Coping
Defensive Coping
TYPES OF DEFENSE
MECHANISMS:
TYPES OF DEFENSE
MECHANISMS:
Denial
Repression
Projection
Identification
Attributing one’s repressed
motives, feelings,
or wishes to
others
Regression
Denial
Repression
Projection
Identification
Regression
Intellectualization
Intellectualization
Reaction Formation
Reaction Formation
Displacement
Displacement
Sublimation
Sublimation
Defensive Coping
Defensive Coping
TYPES OF DEFENSE
MECHANISMS:
TYPES OF DEFENSE
MECHANISMS:
Denial
Repression
Projection
Identification
Denial
Reverting to
childlike
behavior and
defenses
Regression
Repression
Projection
Identification
Regression
Intellectualization
Reaction Formation
Displacement
Displacement
Sublimation
Sublimation
Defensive Coping
Defensive Coping
TYPES OF DEFENSE
MECHANISMS:
TYPES OF DEFENSE
MECHANISMS:
Repression
Projection
Identification
Regression
Intellectualization
Reaction Formation
Displacement
Sublimation
Thinking abstractly about
stressful problems as
a way of detaching
oneself
from them
Intellectualization
Reaction Formation
Denial
Taking on the characteristics
of someone else to avoid
feeling incompetent
Expression of exaggerated
ideas and emotions that are
the opposite of
one’s repressed
beliefs
or feelings
Denial
Repression
Projection
Identification
Shifting repressed motives
and emotions from an
original object to
a substitute
object
Regression
Intellectualization
Reaction Formation
Displacement
Sublimation
5
Socioeconomic, Cultural, and Gender
Differences in Coping with Stress
Defensive Coping
TYPES OF DEFENSE
MECHANISMS:
LEARNING OBJECTIVE: Explain how socioeconomic status, culture, and gender affect levels of
stress and ways of coping with stress.
Denial
Repression
Projection
Redirecting repressed
motives and feelings
into more socially
acceptable
channels
Intellectualization
People in lower
socioeconomic
classes have to deal
with more stress
than people who are
financially secure.
Reaction Formation
• Less effective coping
Identification
Regression
Gender
Socioeconomic
Status
Culture
Cultural background
influences the way
that individuals cope
with stress.
• Fewer resources
• Most European
Americans:
Explicit social support
Men and women
may cope differently
with stress.
• Men: Alcohol,
aggression
• Women: Rumination,
tending-andbefriending; also
report experiencing
more stress
• Most Asian Americans:
Implicit social support
Displacement
Sublimation
How Stress Affects Health
LEARNING OBJECTIVE: Explain why “experiencing too much stress over too
long a period can contribute to physical problems.” In your explanation, include
Cannon’s theory of the fight-or-flight response and the several stages of Selye’s
general adaptation syndrome.
• Health psychology: A subfield
of psychology concerned with
the relationship between
psychological factors and
physical health and illness
How Stress
Affects Health
• Acute or chronic stress is linked
to lowered immunity, and poor
health makes people more
vulnerable to everything from
the common cold to an
increased risk for heart disease.
The Body’s Response to Stress
Fight-or-Flight Response
LEARNING OBJECTIVE: Explain why “experiencing too much stress over too long a
period can contribute to physical problems.” In your explanation, include Cannon’s
theory of the fight-or-flight response and the several stages of Selye’s general
adaptation syndrome.
Cannon’s Theory of
Fight-or-Flight
Selye’s General
Adaptation
Syndrome
• The hypothalamus
stimulates the sympathetic
branch of the autonomic
nervous system and the
adrenal glands to release
stress hormones such as
adrenaline and
norepinephrine into
the blood.
• The physiological response
mobilizes the body to
respond to external threats
by attacking or fleeing.
Source: Figure from p. 54 by Laurie Gracie in “Invisible Wounds” by R.F. Mollica,
Scientific American, June 2000. Copyright © 2000. Reprinted by permission.
6
General Adaptation Syndrome
Stress and Heart Disease
LEARNING OBJECTIVE: Summarize the evidence that shows chronic stress can
contribute to heart disease. Include Type A and Type D personalities in your summary.
Stress is a major
contributing factor
in the development
of coronary heart
disease (CHD), the
leading cause of
death and disability
in the U.S. Certain
behavior patterns
are linked to CHD:
Stage 1:
Alarm reaction
Stage 2:
Resistance
Type A Type D
Personality
Personality
Characteristics:
Characteristics:
•
•
•
•
Hostility • Depression
Competiveness
• Negative emotions
Urgency • Social inhibition
Constant striving
Link to CHD:
Link to CHD:
Stage 3:
Exhaustion
•
•
•
•
High heart• rate
Cortisol
High blood pressure
Chronic anger
Hostility
Stress and the Immune System
LEARNING OBJECTIVE: Summarize the research evidence that “stress
also affects the functioning of the immune system.”
• Psychoneuroimmunology (PNI):
Studies the interaction between
stress and immune, endocrine,
and nervous system activity
Staying Healthy
• Chronic stress has been linked
to suppressed functioning of the
immune system, especially with
respiratory illness.
• The research on a possible link
between stress and cancer is
mixed.
Reduce Stress
Coping Effectively
LEARNING OBJECTIVE: Describe the four proven ways to reduce stress.
LEARNING OBJECTIVE: Explain the role of proactive coping, positive reappraisal,
and humor in reducing stress.
Ways
to reduce
stress:
Religion/
Altruism
Social
support
Effective
coping
skills
Exercise/
Relaxation/
Training
Proactive coping:
Positive reappraisal:
Anticipating stressful events
and taking steps to avoid
them or minimize their
impact
Finding a new meaning
in a situation, or finding a
perspective or insight
that you had overlooked
to view events as being
more positive
– Humor: One of
the most effective,
stress-relieving forms
of reappraisal
7
Adopt a Healthy Lifestyle
LEARNING OBJECTIVE: Describe the four elements of a healthy lifestyle.
Extreme Stress
Avoid
High-Risk
Behaviors
Sources of Extreme Stress
Posttraumatic Stress Disorder
LEARNING OBJECTIVE: Identify the five major sources of extreme stress and
describe their impact.
LEARNING OBJECTIVE: Explain the role of proactive coping, positive reappraisal,
and humor in reducing stress.
1
Unemployment
2
Divorce and separation
3
Bereavement
4
Catastrophes
5
Combat and other threatening personal attacks
• Posttraumatic Stress Disorder
(PTSD): Psychological disorder
characterized by episodes of
anxiety, sleeplessness, and
nightmares resulting from some
disturbing past event; also
daytime flashbacks
• Posttraumatic Growth (PTG):
Positive growth that may follow
an extremely stressful event
The Well-Adjusted Person
LEARNING OBJECTIVE: Describe the several standards for
judging whether an individual is well adjusted.
The
Well-Adjusted
Person
Psychologists disagree about
what constitutes good
adjustment.
• Some think it is the ability to live
according to social norms.
• Others argue that well-adjusted
people enjoy the difficulties and
ambiguities of life, treating them
as challenges to be overcome.
• According to Abraham Maslow,
well-adjusted people attempt to
“actualize” themselves; they live
in a way that enhances their own
growth and fulfillment.
8
Acknowledgments
Slide #
text template
chapter
template
3
4
4
5
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
34
35
35
36
37
38
39
41
42
46
48
Image Description
upside down blue sky & grass
Image Source
©iStockphoto.com/Konrad Lew
frustrated tennis player
stock exchange chaos
motivated by stress
defeated by stress
box of tissues and medicine
high stress situation, natural disaster
pressure gauge
Table 11-1: C ollege Life Stress Inventory
mosquitoes (hassles)
stressed out office worker
road rage
tug of war
Table: Types of C onflict
man holding head in hands
confrontation
compromise
withdrawal
student minimizing stress
person refusing to face something
man covering ears
hand pointing at you
sports fan
paper airplane
garden labyrinth
jumping
busted computer
boxer
box of tissues and medicine
Figure 11-1: Physiological Response to Stress
Figure 11.1: General Adaptation Syndrome
Figure 11-1: Physiological Response to Stress
Figure 11.1: General Adaptation Syndrome
EKG Heartbeat
college age person coughing
blue sky & clouds
laughing
soldier in combat
well-adjusted
©istockphoto.com/Özgür Donmaz
©istockphoto.com/pixalot
©istockphoto.com/Amanda Rohde
©istockphoto.com/Suprijono Suharjoto
©istockphoto.com/david franklin
©istockphoto.com/vanbeets
©istockphoto.com/Mark Evans
Morris/Maisto, 9/e p. 365
©istockphoto.com/Tomasz Zachariasz
©istockphoto.com/digital planet design
©istockphoto.com/323 Design
©istockphoto.com/winterling
Morris/Maisto, 9/e p. 366
©istockphoto.com/Dragana Djorovic
©istockphoto.com/Marcus C lackson
©istockphoto.com/Diane Diederich
©istockphoto.com/Marcus Lindström
©istockphoto.com/ranplett
©istockphoto.com/bibikoff
©istockphoto.com/Yougen
©istockphoto.com/Guillermo Perales Gonzalez
©istockphoto.com/Mikkel William Nielsen
©istockphoto.com/Ethan Myerson
©istockphoto.com/Gordon Dixon
©istockphoto.com/Rubén Hidalgo
©istockphoto.com/gabyjalbert
©istockphoto.com/Pali Rao
©istockphoto.com/david franklin
Morris/Maisto, 9/e p. 374
From C iccarelli, Psychology, 2/e p. 445
Morris/Maisto, 9/e p. 374
From C iccarelli, Psychology, 2/e p. 445
©istockphoto.com/dan ionut popescu
©istockphoto.com/Sharon Barnes Photography
©istockphoto.com/kertlis
©istockphoto.com/Stratesigns, Inc.
©istockphoto.com/Rockfinder Photography
©istockphoto.com/zhang bo
9