Exam Review: Stress, Health, and Social Psychology (Chapters 11 & 12)

Stress and Health

Definitions of Stress-Related Terms

• Stress: A physical, emotional, cognitive, and behavioral response to events that are perceived as threatening or challenging.

• Burnout: A state of physical, emotional, and mental exhaustion caused by prolonged stress, often seen in work environments.

• Catastrophes: Large-scale events (e.g., natural disasters, wars) that cause significant stress and disruption to many people.

• Eustress: Positive stress that motivates individuals to achieve goals and adapt, often associated with beneficial challenges.

PTSD and Acute Stress Disorder

• Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD): A psychological disorder resulting from exposure to a traumatic event, characterized by symptoms such as flashbacks, avoidance, and hyperarousal lasting more than one month.

• Acute Stress Disorder: Similar to PTSD, but symptoms occur immediately after the trauma and last from 3 days to 1 month.

Hassles, Pressure, and Frustration

• Hassles: Minor day-to-day annoyances that can accumulate and contribute to overall stress.

• Pressure: The psychological experience of being forced to speed up, intensify, or change behavior to meet a deadline or expectation.

• Frustration: The emotional response when goals are blocked or needs are unmet.

Types of Conflict

• Approach-Approach Conflict: Choosing between two desirable options.

• Avoidance-Avoidance Conflict: Choosing between two undesirable options.

• Approach-Avoidance Conflict: One option has both positive and negative aspects.

• Double Approach-Avoidance Conflict: Choosing between two options, each with both positive and negative aspects.

• Multiple Approach-Avoidance Conflict: Choosing among several options, each with mixed positive and negative aspects.

Appraisal of Stress

• Primary Appraisal: Evaluating whether an event is a threat, challenge, or harm.

• Secondary Appraisal: Assessing available resources and options for coping with the stressor.

Body's Response to Stress

• General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS): The body's three-stage response to stress: alarm, resistance, and exhaustion.

• Alarm: Initial reaction, fight-or-flight response.

• Resistance: Body adapts to ongoing stress.

• Exhaustion: Resources depleted, increased vulnerability to illness.

Coping Strategies

• Emotion-Focused Coping: Managing emotional responses to stress (e.g., seeking support, distraction).

• Problem-Focused Coping: Addressing the source of stress directly (e.g., planning, problem-solving).

Acculturation Methods

• Assimilation: Adopting the dominant culture, losing original cultural identity.

• Integration: Maintaining original culture while adopting aspects of the new culture.

• Separation: Retaining original culture and rejecting the new culture.

• Marginalization: Losing contact with both original and new cultures.

Defense Mechanisms

• Denial: Refusing to acknowledge reality.

• Repression: Pushing distressing thoughts out of conscious awareness.

• Projection: Attributing one's own feelings to others.

• Rationalization: Creating logical excuses for unacceptable behavior.

• Displacement: Redirecting emotions to a safer target.

• Regression: Reverting to earlier developmental behaviors.

• Reaction Formation: Acting opposite to one's true feelings.

Social Psychology

Norm of Reciprocity

• Norm of Reciprocity: The expectation that people will respond to each other in kind, returning benefits for benefits and harm for harm.

Compliance Techniques

• Foot-in-the-Door: Start with a small request, then follow with a larger one.

• Door-in-the-Face: Start with a large request, then retreat to a smaller one.

• Lowball Technique: Get agreement, then raise the cost or effort.

• That's-Not-All Technique: Offer something extra before the person can respond.

Social Facilitation, Impairment, and Impression Formation

• Social Facilitation: Improved performance on tasks in the presence of others.

• Social Impairment: Decreased performance on tasks in the presence of others.

• Impression Formation: The process of forming opinions or beliefs about others.

Components of Attitude

• Affective Component: Emotional feelings toward an object, person, or situation.

• Behavioral Component: Actions taken toward the object, person, or situation.

• Cognitive Component: Beliefs and thoughts about the object, person, or situation.

Sternberg's Triangular Theory of Love

• Intimacy: Emotional closeness and connectedness.

• Passion: Physical attraction and sexual desire.

• Commitment: Decision to maintain the relationship.

Cognitive Dissonance and Attribution Theory

• Cognitive Dissonance: Psychological discomfort from holding conflicting beliefs or behaviors, often motivating attitude change.

• Attribution Theory: Explains how people determine the causes of behavior, distinguishing between internal (dispositional) and external (situational) attributions.

Prejudice, Discrimination, Self-Fulfilling Prophecy, and Jigsaw Classroom

• Prejudice: Negative attitude toward a group based on stereotypes.

• Discrimination: Negative behavior toward a group based on prejudice.

• Self-Fulfilling Prophecy: Expectations about a person lead to behaviors that cause those expectations to come true.

• Jigsaw Classroom: Cooperative learning technique designed to reduce prejudice by having students work together on shared tasks.

Obedience and Conformity

• Obedience: Changing behavior in response to a direct command from an authority figure.

• Conformity: Adjusting behavior or thinking to match those of others or group norms.

Types of Meditation

• Mindfulness Meditation: Focusing attention on the present moment, accepting thoughts and feelings without judgment.

• Transcendental Meditation: Using a mantra to achieve a relaxed state.

• Guided Meditation: Following instructions or visualizations to promote relaxation.

• Loving-Kindness Meditation: Cultivating feelings of compassion and goodwill toward oneself and others.

Example Table: Types of Conflict

Type of Conflict	Description	Example
Approach-Approach	Choosing between two desirable options	Choosing between two job offers you like
Avoidance-Avoidance	Choosing between two undesirable options	Deciding between doing chores or homework
Approach-Avoidance	One option has both positive and negative aspects	Accepting a promotion with more pay but longer hours
Double Approach-Avoidance	Two options, each with positive and negative aspects	Choosing between two colleges, each with pros and cons
Multiple Approach-Avoidance	Several options, each with mixed aspects	Choosing among several job offers, each with benefits and drawbacks

Example Table: Components of Attitude

Component	Description	Example
Affective	Emotional response	Feeling happy about recycling
Behavioral	Actions taken	Actually recycling
Cognitive	Beliefs/thoughts	Believing recycling helps the environment

Example Table: Defense Mechanisms

Mechanism	Description	Example
Denial	Refusing to accept reality	Ignoring evidence of a problem
Repression	Blocking distressing thoughts	Forgetting a traumatic event
Projection	Attributing feelings to others	Accusing someone else of being angry
Rationalization	Making excuses	Justifying cheating on a test

Example Table: Acculturation Methods

Method	Description	Example
Assimilation	Adopting dominant culture	Immigrant adopts new country's language and customs
Integration	Combining cultures	Maintaining native traditions while participating in new culture
Separation	Rejecting new culture	Immigrant only interacts with own cultural group
Marginalization	Loss of both cultures	Feeling disconnected from both cultures