Psychology Chapter on Stress and Coping

Psychological Pressure

• Psychological pressure is an excessive or stressful demand, imagined or real, placed upon a person to think, feel, or act in a certain way.
• This pressure can stem from cognitive and affective discomfort or disorder, leading to maladaptive coping strategies.
• It is crucial to differentiate between "arousal," "anxiety," and "stress." Arousal is a general physiological and psychological activation of an organism, ranging from deep sleep to intense excitement.
• Anxiety is an unpleasant psychological state in reaction to perceived stress concerning task performance under pressure.
• Stress is a non-specific response to any demand placed on the body (Selye, 1976)
• Stress can be a state or a trait, with "good stress" or "eustress" representing a positive stressor.

Stress Process

• The stress process involves a perceived imbalance between the demands placed on an individual and their perceived ability to cope with them, where failure has severe consequences.
• The interpretation of a perceived threat plays a key role in the stress process.

General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS)

• GAS, described by Hans Selye, explains the body's response to stress in three stages: alarm, resistance, and exhaustion.
• The alarm stage initiates a fight-or-flight response, increasing stress resistance and coping ability.
• During the resistance stage, the body adapts to the stressor.
• The exhaustion stage involves depleted resources and a decreased ability to cope leading to potential maladaptive responses.

Stress Response

• Stress can be initiated by physical or psychological stressors, with distinct neural networks involved.
• The sympathetic nervous system (SNS) triggers rapid arousal in response to stressors by releasing adrenaline.
• The hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis is a slower response mechanism involving the release of corticotrophin-releasing factor from the hypothalamus.
• The HPA axis releases cortisol, which controls blood sugar availability, regulates metabolism, and reduces inflammation.
• In moments of stress, the stress response temporarily boosts immune function and reduces pain sensitivity.

Effects of Stress

• Chronic stress can lead to maladaptive cognitions and emotions, including dilated pupils, elevated respiration even at rest, elevated heart rate even at rest, increased blood pressure, perspiration, muscle tension, gastrointestinal issues, and redirection of blood flow to large muscles.
• Repeated bouts of acute stress and chronic stress can lead to maladaptive responses in biological, behavioral, and psychological domains, potentially affecting sleep patterns, cognitive processes, and mental wellbeing.

Neurotoxicity Hypothesis

• High levels of glucocorticoids (e.g., cortisol) over extended periods can negatively impact the HPA-axis regulation, potentially affecting the hippocampus and memory function (Lupien et al., 2007).
• Chronic cortisol levels can lead to cognitive impairments in areas like attention, memory, and emotional processing, making individuals more vulnerable to mental health disorders (Lupien et al., 2018).

Sources of Psychological Stress

• Stress can originate from different sources, including:
  • Traumatic Events: e.g., military combat, car accidents, crime victimization
  • Life Changes: e.g., moving, graduating, retirement
  • Hassles: e.g., finding parking, burst pipes
  • Other Stressors: e.g., job burnout, uncertainty
  • Situational factors: e.g., competition, inadequate facilities, poor weather
  • Intrapersonal factors: goals, demands, expectations, perceptions of readiness
  • Interpersonal factors: teammates, coaches, spectators, conflict, expectations

Endler’s 5 Facets of Anxiety:

• Interpersonal ego-threat
• Physical danger
• Ambiguity (fear of the unknown)
• Disruption in daily routine
• Social evaluation

Stress and Performance

• A four-stage model explains how stress influences performance:
  • Facing objective demands: The individual encounters a task or challenge.
  • Interpretation of demands: The individual perceives the demands as threatening or non-threatening.
  • Response to perceived imbalance: If perceived as threatening and the outcome matters, the individual may experience raised somatic anxiety (e.g., muscle tension) and cognitive anxiety (e.g., disrupted concentration).
  • Behavioral consequences: Leading to a "try to survive" or "able to thrive" response under pressure.

Psychological Resilience

• Psychological resilience refers to the role of mental processes and behaviors in promoting personal assets and protecting individuals from the negative effects of stressors (Fletcher & Sarkar, 2012).

Managing Psychological Pressure

• Strategies to manage psychological pressure include:
  • Reducing perceived demands: Techniques to mitigate the perceived stressfulness of a task or situation.
  • Increasing coping ability: Enhancing the individual's capacity to handle demanding situations.
  • Therapeutic interventions: e.g., CBT, ACT, release breathing, imagery, social support.

Psychological Flexibility

• Psychological flexibility, achieved through techniques like Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), involves being present, open, and willing to do what matters, even in the face of challenges.

Summary Key Points

• Differentiate between arousal, anxiety, and stress.
• Understand the stress process, including GAS, its response mechanisms (SNS, HPA), and its potential influence on performance.
• Recognize the concepts of "clutch performance" and "choking" under pressure.
• Conceptualize the concept of Fear of Failure (FoF).
• Learn about stress management techniques like CBT, psychological resilience, and psychological flexibility.