STRESS

1

• STRESS ADJUSTMENT DISORDERS

Defining Stress Sources of Stress Effects of
Stress Adjustment Disorders Factors that Moderate
Effects of Stress Appraisals Coping Individual
Characteristics
2
What Is Stress?

• The bodys physiological reaction to change
  (emotional, cognitive, or behavioral)
• Emergency reaction to threat
• controlled by sympathetic nervous system
• hormones are secreted by adrenal glands
• effects include increased heart rate and
  respiration

3
Specificity Theory

• Hypothesis that certain personality types are
  linked to certain physical illnesses
• Type A personality (competitive, hostile,
  impatient) linked to increased risk of coronary
  heart disease

4
General Adaptation Syndrome

• Reaction stage result of threat
• Resistance stage body works to resist stressors
  (physical threats, emotional experiences,
  unpleasant internal states, subjective feelings)
• Exhaustion stage depletion of bodys resistance,
  illness, and even death

5
Sources of Stress

• Psychosocial development
• caused by transition from one developmental stage
  to another
• Cultural conflicts
• stress caused by forced acculturation

Catastrophes Significant Life Events Everyday
hassles Chronic illness
6
Effects of Stress

• Physiological
• Damage to immune system
• Indirect effects on cognition and motivation
• Emotional effects (fatigue, depression, anxiety)

7
Adjustment Disorders

• Straddle the border between normality and
  pathology
• Represent extreme but temporary reactions to
  everyday crises
• See table 13.5, p. 583 of text for diagnostic
  criteria

8
Adjustment Disorder Diagnoses

• Development of emotional or behavioral symptoms
  in response to an identifiable stressor occurring
  within 3 months of the onset of the stressor
• Symptoms cause clinically significant distress or
  impairment
• Once the stressor has terminated, symptoms
  persist less than 6 additional months

9
Factors That Moderate Stress

• Appraisals
• Social support
• Individual characteristics

10
Appraisals

• How stress is interpreted and perceived
• Appraisal of life events results in emotional,
  physiological, behavioral responses
• Primary appraisal personal implication of an
  event
• Secondary appraisal what, if anything, should be
  done?

11
Coping

• Effective ways to adapt to problems and
  difficulties caused by stress
• Problem-focused coping making a plan of action
  to deal with source of stress
• Emotion-focused coping managing feelings to make
  self feel better

12
Effective Coping Strategies

• Relaxation
• Biofeedback
• Behavioral and cognitive-behavioral treatment
• Family interventions
• Environmental and community interventions

13
Individual Characteristics

• Knowledge
• Hardiness
• Self-esteem
• Locus of control
• Health beliefs and attributions

14
Hardiness

• Personality traits including
• optimism
• viewing change as a challenge
• patience
• acceptance of partial control
• downplaying of setbacks
• addressing problems in a positive way

15
Locus of Control

• Belief about whether internal or external factors
  control life
• Internal locus belief that internal factors
  such as personality traits control life events
• External locus belief that external factors
  such as luck or the environment control life
  events