The Impact of Stress on Health

Walter Cannon = Coined the phrase 'fight or flight response' Hans Selye = Defined stress as a pattern of physiological responses Carlson et al. = Described the fight or flight response as adaptive or functional Robert Sapolsky = Introduced the concept of physical and psychological stressors

Physical stressors = Involve the anticipation of a threat Psychological stressors = Pose an external threat to an individual Acute stressors = Trigger the fight or flight response Chronic stressors = Are life-threatening situations

Fast heart beat = Feeling of tunnel vision Sweating = Increased alertness Muscles poised for action = Sensation of fear Increased alertness = Fast heart beat

<p>Fight or flight response = Allows the individual to respond more quickly and effectively Adaptive response = Triggers the fight or flight response Maladaptive response = Primes the individual to either escape or fight Stress response = Is always triggered by physical stressors</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Stress = A pattern of physiological, behavioural, emotional and cognitive responses to real or imagined stimuli Fight or flight response = A way of thinking about stress that gives it an adaptive or functional meaning Physical stress = The anticipation of a threat to an individual Psychological stress = An external threat to an individual's physical well-being</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Acute stress = Lasts minutes to hours Chronic stress = Lasts several hours a day for weeks or more Psychological stress = Lasts less than 100 minutes Physical stress = Lasts for years</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Dhabhar &amp; McEwan = Found that chronic stress has a negative impact on immune function Segerstrom and Miller = Reviewed over 300 studies on stress and immune function Unknown researchers = Discovered that stress can increase susceptibility to infectious diseases None of the above = Focused on how stressors influence immune functioning</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Improvements in immune function = Acute stress Adverse effects on the adaptive immune system = Chronic stress Increased susceptibility to infectious diseases = Psychological stress Increased inflammation and fever = Physical stress</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Providing care for a spouse with severe dementia = Stable and controllable Being a refugee forced out of one’s native country by war = Unstable and uncontrollable Suffering a traumatic injury that leads to physical disability = Pervasive and persistent Academic exams = Unstable and persistent</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Increase in blood levels of cytokines = Inflammation and fever Decrease in blood levels of cytokines = Improvements in immune function Release of cortisol = Adverse effects on the adaptive immune system Release of adrenaline = Increased susceptibility to infectious diseases</p> Signup and view all the answers