copyright © pearson education 2011 mastering the world of psychology 4e samuel e. wood, ellen green...

Copyright © Pearson Education 2011

MASTERING THE WORLD OF PSYCHOLOGY 4eSamuel E. Wood, Ellen Green Wood, Denise Boyd

10


Links to Learning Objectives

SOURCES OF STRESS

10.1 How does the life events approach describe stress?

10.2 What do hassles, uplifts, and choices contribute to stress?

10.3 What variables contribute to workers’ comfort zone?

10.4 What are some social sources of stress?

THE HEALTH-STRESS CONNECTION

10.5 How does the biopsychosocial model approach health and illness?

10.6 How does the fight-or-fight response affect health?

10.7 How do theorists explain physiological and psychological responses to stress?

10.8 What factors promote resilience in the face of stress?

Sources of Stress


The Life Events Approach

Social Readjustment Rating Scale (SRRS): • Assesses stress in terms of

major life events, positive or negative, that necessitate change and adaptation

• Ranks 43 life events from most to least stressful and assigns a point value to each

LO 10.1 How does the life events approach describe stress?

STRESS


The Life Events Approach

Catastrophic events:

• People respond differently.

• Some develop posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), which is often characterized by:

–Flashbacks–Nightmares–Intrusive memories of the

traumatic event


Everyday Stressors

Richard Lazarus:

Hassles can cause more stress than major life

changes do.

Uplifts may neutralize the effects of many hassles.

LO 10.2 What do hassles, uplifts, and choices contribute to stress?


Everyday Stressors

Choices are another source of stress in everyday life.

Approach-Approach Conflicts

Approach-Approach Conflicts

GOAL #1GOAL #1

GOAL #2GOAL #2

Approach-Avoidance Conflicts

Approach-Avoidance Conflicts

GOALGOAL

Avoidance-Avoidance Conflicts

Avoidance-Avoidance Conflicts

GOAL #1

GOAL #1

GOAL #2

GOAL #2


Stress in the Workplace

Nine variables that should fall within a worker’s comfort zone:1. Workload

2. Clarity of job description and evaluation criteria

3. Physical variables

4. Job status

5. Accountability

6. Task variety

7. Human contact

8. Physical challenge

9. Mental challenge

LO 10.3 What variables contribute to workers’ comfort zone?


People of low socioeconomic status have more stress-related health problems than those of higher status.

Some researchers propose: The higher incidence of high blood pressure among African Americans is attributable to stress associated with historical racism.

Racism Socioeconomic Status

Social Sources of Stress

LO 10.4 What are some social sources of stress?


Adjusting to life in a new culture can be extremely stressful.

People who losetheir jobs suffer more stress-related illnesses in the months followingjob loss than peers who are still employed.

Unemployment

Social Sources of Stress

The Health-Stress Connection


The Biopsychosocial Model of Health and Illness

Biopsychosocial model: Health and illness are determined by a combination of biological, psychological, and social factors.

Biomedical model: Explains illness solely in terms of biological factors.

LO 10.5 How does the biopsychosocial model approach health and illness?

social

Bio psychoBiopsychosocial

Model


The Biopsychosocial Model of Health and Illness

Source: Green & Shellenberger (1990).


The Physiology of the Health-Stress Connection LO 10.6 How does the fight-or-fight response affect health?

Stress causes the body to try to maintain the fight-or-flight response over a long period of time, which influences health in two ways:

Biochemicals associated with the response can make the body more vulnerable to illness through their direct actions on tissues.

The response influences health indirectly because it suppresses the immune system.


The General Adaptation Syndrome

LO 10.7 How do theorists explain physiological and psychological responses to stress?

Stage 1:Alarm

Stage 2:Resistance

Stage 3:Exhaustion


Lazarus’s Cognitive Theory of Stress

Source: Folkman (1984).


Risk and Resilience: Coping Strategies

Emotion-focused coping:A response involving reappraisal of a stressor to reduce its emotional impact

Problem-focused coping: A direct response aimed at reducing, modifying, or eliminating a source of stress

Proactive coping:Active measures taken in advance of a potentially stressful situation in order to prevent its occurrence or to minimize its consequences

LO 10.8 What factors promote resilience in the face of stress?


Risk and Resilience: Optimism

Optimists:Tend to cope more effectively with stress,

which may reduce their risk of illness


Risk and Resilience: Hardiness

Hardiness: Combination of three psychological qualities shared by people who can handle high levels of stress and remain healthy

1. Commitment

2. Control

3. Challenge


Risk and Resilience: Religious and Social Involvement

Religious involvement: Positively associated with measures of physical health


Risk and Resilience: Social Support

Tangible and/or emotional support provided in time of

need by family members, friends, and others

The feeling of being loved, valued, and cared for by those toward whom we feel a similar obligation

Social Support


Risk and Resilience: Perceived Control

Perceived control: Belief that one has some degree of control over stressors

copyright © pearson education 2011 mastering the world of psychology 4e samuel e. wood, ellen green...

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