Deck 12: B: Stress,coping,and Health

Question 1

Identify and discuss the two approaches to measuring stress,including the scales associated with each approach,their relation to health,and problems with the approaches.

Answer 1

Answers will vary but should contain the following information for full credit.
Major life events.Adopting the view that stressors are stimuli,David Holmes and his colleagues developed the Social Readjustment Rating Scale (SRRS)based on 43 life events ranked in terms of how stressful participants rated them.The SRRS scale is scored by adding the numbers to the right of each item experienced over the preceding 12 months.Studies using the SRRS and related measures indicate that the number of stressful events people report over the previous year or so is associated with a variety of physical and psychological disorders,like depression.Nevertheless,the sheer number of stressful life events is far from a perfect predictor of who'll become physically or psychologically ill.That's because this approach to measuring stressors doesn't take into consideration other crucial factors,including people's interpretation of events,their coping behaviours and resources,and their problems in recalling events accurately.It also neglects the fact that some stressful life events,like divorce or troubles with bosses,can be consequences rather than causes of people's psychological problems.
Hassles: Our daily lives are often loaded with hassles,minor annoyances or nuisances that strain our ability to cope.But can lots of hassles add up to be as taxing as the monumental events that shake the foundations of our world? DeLongis and colleagues at the University of British Columbia developed the Hassles Scale to measure how stressful events,ranging from small annoyances to major daily pressures,impact our adjustment.Both major life events and hassles are associated with poor general health.Nevertheless,the frequency and perceived severity of hassles are better predictors of physical health,depression,and anxiety than are major life events.Yet questions about the measurement of hassles remain.Some of the items on the scale,such as difficulties with relaxing and insomnia,may reflect symptoms of psychological disorders,such as depression or anxiety,rather than hassles.However,when the scale developers (DeLongis et al. ,1988)revised the scale by removing all words related to symptoms,they found that hassles were still associated with health outcomes.
Therefore,it's important to assess not only events that require major life adaptations but everyday hassles as well.

Question 2

Explain how hardiness,optimism,spirituality,and rumination may influence responses to stress.

Answer 2

Answers will vary but should contain the following information for full credit.
Hardiness: Resilient people possess a set of attitudes called hardiness.Hardy people view change as a challenge rather than a threat,are committed to their life and work,and believe they can control events.Hardy individuals have the courage and motivation to confront stressors and engage in problem solving to contend with them.In addition,people with attitudes toward life reflected high levels of control,commitment,and challenge remained healthier than those whose attitudes didn't.
Optimism: Optimistic people are more productive,focused,persistent,and better at handling frustration than pessimists.Optimism is also associated with a lower mortality rate,a more vigorous immune response,lower distress in infertile women trying to have a child,better surgical outcomes,and fewer physical complaints.
Spirituality: Spirituality is a search for the sacred,which may or may not extend to belief in God.Compared with nonreligious people,religious people have lower mortality rates,improved immune system functioning,lower blood pressure,and a greater ability to recover from illnesses,likely because of a prohibition of health risk behaviours in various religions (e.g. ,drinking,smoking,unsafe sex),social support from religious groups,and having a sense of purpose in life may enhance coping.
Rumination: Some of us spend a great deal of time ruminating-focusing on how bad we feel and endlessly analyzing the causes and consequences of our problems.Individuals who ruminate tend to have higher heart rates and blood pressure following stressors,problems in romantic relationships,and higher rates of depression (especially in women).

Question 3

Discuss Selye's general adaptation syndrome (GAS)and include the three stages of adaptation.

Answer 3

Answers may vary but should contain the ideas listed below to earn full credit.
--According to Selye,excess stress results in breakdowns.The human body has a sensitive physiology that deals with stressful situations by igniting us into "high gear." The responding pattern to stress is known as the GAS.All extended stressors go through three adaptive stages,including alarm,resistance,and exhaustion.
--1.Alarm Reaction-Excites the autonomic nervous system,the release of adrenaline (stress hormone),and physical anxiety
--2.Resistance-The adaptation and coping of stress due to activation of the "thinking brain" (cerebral cortex),which leads to the examination of the unfolding of events,evaluation of alternative solutions,and investigation of attempted coping strategies
--3.Exhaustion-Results from a lack of coping and limited personal resources that leads to resistance breaking down and high levels of activation can no longer be sustained.This can lead to organ system damage,immune system breakdown,depression,or PTSD.

Question 4

Identify and describe the five methods of gaining control over stressful situations.

Question 5

Describe alternative and complementary medicine.

Question 6

Describe and discuss the probable reasons for the apparent effectiveness of homeopathy and other unsupported alternative medical treatments.

Question 7

First,provide a clear definition of stress.Next,compare and contrast stress as a stimulus,stress as a transaction,and stress as a response.

Question 8

Discuss the role of stress and socioeconomic factors in coronary heart disease (CHD).