Stress, Health, and Coping
Stress – Sandy 2012
Stress – Sept. 11, 2001
Stress
Craig Scott
Chronic Daily Difficulties
Daily difficulties can be
caused by facing too many
tasks, too little time, and
too little control.
Daily difficulties can be
caused by the lack of
social power and freedom:
 being bullied
 living in poverty
 living under oppressive
political conditions
Stress


A negative emotional state in response
to events that we perceive as taxing our
resources or our ability to cope
Stressors—events that are perceived as
harmful, threatening, or challenging
Biopsychosocial Model of
Health


Biopsychosocial model—the belief that
physical health and illness are determined by
the complex interaction of biological,
psychological, and social factors
Health psychology—the study of how
psychological factors influence health, illness,
and health-related behaviors
The Body’s Stress Response System
When encountering a sudden trauma or other stressor, our
body acts to increase our resistance to threat and harm.
Phase 1: The “fight or flight” Phase 2: The brain sends
sympathetic nervous
signals to the outer part of
system responds, reducing
the adrenal glands to
pain and increasing the
produce cortisol and other
heart rate.
stress hormones. These
focus us on planning
The core of the adrenal
adaptive coping strategies
glands produces
and resisting defeat by the
norepinephrine and
stressor.
epinephrine (adrenaline).
Hans Selye (1907-1982)
This system, identified by
indentified this extended
Walter Cannon (1871“resistance” phase of the
1945), gives us energy to
stress response, followed
act.
by:
Phase 3: Exhaustion.
Life Changes
Change is stressful—e.g., death, marriage,
divorce, loss of job, vacations, retirement
Daily Hassles
Annoying events in everyday life—
We all have “bad hair” days; these minor
things can add up to lots of stress
Catastrophes
Unpredictable, large-scale events can be
extremely stressful and change our lives;
can lead to PTSD
Conflict
Pull between two opposing desires or goals
 Approach-approach conflict

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Avoidance-avoidance conflict

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choice between 2 appealing outcomes
easy to resolve, low stress
choice between 2 unappealing outcomes
more stressful than approach-approach
Approach-avoidance conflict



one goal with appealing & unappealing aspects
most stressful type of conflict
often see vacillation
Social and Cultural
Sources of Stress

Social conditions that promote stress

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poverty, racism, crime
low SES tend to have highest levels of stress
Culture clashes lead to stress


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company owned by different culture
refugees, immigrants suffer
acculturative stress
Health Effects of Stress


Indirect effects—promote behaviors that
jeopardize physical well being such as use of
drugs, lack of sleep, poor concentration
Direct effects—promote changes in body
functions, leading to illness such as
headaches and other physical symptoms
Endocrine Responses to Stress
• Fight or flight preparation of body
• Stress hormones—produced by
adrenal glands

Adrenal medulla—catecholamines



Epinephrine and norepinephrine
Increases respiration, BP, heart rate
Adrenal cortex—corticosteroids


Release stored energy
Reduces inflammation and immune
system responses
General Adaptation Syndrome


Hans Selye
Three stage process



Alarm—intense arousal, mobilization of
physical resources (catecholamines)
Resistive—body actively resists stressors
(corticosteroids)
Exhaustion—more intense arousal but this
leads to physical exhaustion and physical
disorders
General Adaptation Syndrome
Stress
Resistance
Phase 1:
Alarm
Reaction
Phase 2:
Resistance
(cope)
Phase 3:
Exhaustion
Stress and the Immune System


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Psychoneuroimmunology—studies
interaction between nervous system,
endocrine system, and immune system
Stress leads to suppressed immune
function
Chronic stress tends to have more
influence
Stress-weakened immune system
increases likelihood of illness
Female and Male Stress Response

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In response to a stressor such
as the death of a loved one,
women may “tend and
befriend”: nurture themselves
and others, and bond together.
The bonding hormone
oxytocin may play a role in
this bonding.
Women show behavioral and
neurological signs of becoming
more empathetic under stress.


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Men under stress are more
likely to socially withdraw and
numb themselves with
alcohol.
Men are also more likely to
become aggressive under
stress.
In either case, men’s behavior
and brains show LESS
empathy and less tuning in to
others under stress.
Stress and the common cold
Stressors
Stress Increases
The Risk of Illness
Here we see psychoneuroimmunology in action:
 psychological factors, such
as appraisal, thoughts, and
feelings.
 neurological factors, such
as brain signals engaging
the stress response
system.
 immunology, such as
stress hormone exposure
which suppresses the
immune system.
Appraisal
Thoughts
Feelings
Brain signals
Hormonal
action
Immune
suppression
Risk of illness
Immune Suppression Can Be
Learned

UCS
(drug)
Ader & Cohen’s
rat study
UCR
(immune
suppression)
CS
(sweetened
water)
CS
(sweetened
water)
UCS
(drug)
UCR
(immune
suppression)
CR
(immune
suppression)
Response to Stress

Psychological Factors


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Perception of control
Explanatory style
Chronic negative emotions
Hostility
Social Factors

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Outside resources
Friends and family
Positive relationships
Perceived Control


Sense of control decreases stress, anxiety,
& depression
Perceptions of control must be realistic to be
adaptive
Stress factor: Perceived Level of
Control
Experiment: the left and middle rats below
received shocks. The rat on the left was able
to turn off the shocks for both rats. Which rat
had the worst stress and health problems?


Only the
middle,
subordinate
rat had
increased
ulcers.
It is not the
level of
shock, but
the level of
control over
the shock,
which
created
stress.
External vs. Internal Locus of
Control
Locus of control: Our perception of where the seat
of power over our lives is located.
Internal locus of control:
we feel that we are in
charge of ourselves and
our circumstances.
External locus of
control: we picture that a
force outside of ourselves
controls our fate.
Too much internal locus of
control: We blame
ourselves for bad events,
or have the illusion that we
have the power to prevent
bad events.
Too much external locus of
control: We lose initiative,
lose motivation to achieve,
have more anxiety about
what might happen to us,
don’t bother developing
willpower.
Perceived Control?
Explanatory style

Optimism

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use external, unstable, & specific explanations
for negative events
predicts better health outcomes
Pessimism


use internal, stable, & global explanations for
negative events
predicts worse health outcomes
Stress, Personality,
and Heart Disease

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Coronary heart disease is North America’s
leading cause of death
Habitually grouchy people tend to have
poorer health outcomes
Chronic negative emotions have negative
effect on immune system
Depression and Heart Disease

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Why does depression
appear so often with
heart disease? Does
one cause the other?
One possible answer
is that the two
problems are both
caused by chronic
stress.
There may be an
intervening variable:
excessive
inflammation.
Type A vs. type B Personality

Type A

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time urgency
intense ambition and competitiveness
general hostility
associated with heart disease
Type B

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more easygoing
not associated with heart disease
Research on type A
Personality

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
Time urgency &
competitiveness not
associated with poor
health outcomes
Negative emotions,
anger, aggressive
reactivity
High levels of hostility
increase chance of all
disease (e.g., cancer)
Social Factors Promoting
Health
Social support—resources provided by
others in times of need

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Emotional—expressions of concern,
empathy, positive regard
Tangible—direct assistance such as lending
money, providing meals
Informational—such as making good
suggestions, advice, good referrals
Social Support

Improves ability to cope with stress &
benefits health

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Pets as social support

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person modifies appraisal of stressor’s
significance to be less threatening
helps to decrease intensity of physical
reactions to stress
make person less likely to experience negative
emotions
especially for elderly and people who live
alone
Gender and social support
Pets as social support
Health benefits of a companion
Coping


Behavioral and cognitive responses used to
deal with stressors
Involves efforts to change circumstances or
our interpretation of them to make them more
favorable and less threatening
Coping

Problem-focused coping

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managing or changing the stressor
use if problem seems alterable
confrontive coping
planful problem solving
Emotion-focused coping


try to feel better about situation
use if problem out of our control
Coping with Stress
Emotion-focused coping
means reducing the
emotional impact of
stress by getting
support, comfort, and
perspective from others.
Problem-focused coping
means reducing the
stressors, such as by
working out a conflict, or
tackling a difficult
project.

Risk: magnifying
emotional distress,
especially if trying to
change something
that’s difficult to change
(e.g. another person’s
traits).


Risk: ignoring the
problem.
We might focus on this
style of coping when we
perceive the stressor as
something we cannot
change.
Problem-focused coping
Emotion-focused
Coping Strategies
Escape-avoidance—try to escape
stressor
 Distancing—minimize impact of
stressor
 Denial—refuse to acknowledge problem
exists

Emotion-Focused Coping
Strategies

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Wishful thinking—imagining stressor is
magically gone
Seeking social support—turn to friends,
support people
Positive reappraisal—minimize
negative, emphasize positive
Downward comparison—compare self
to those less fortunate
Culture and Coping

Individualist
 less
likely to seek social support
 favor problem-focused coping

Collectivist
 more
oriented to social support
 favor emotion-focused coping
Active Coping Strategies


Aerobic exercise can reduce stress,
depression, & anxiety
Effect above relaxation treatment
Aerobic Exercise and Mental Health

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Aerobic exercise reduces
depression and anxiety,
and improves
management of stress.
How do we know?
Aerobic exercise is
correlated with high
confidence, vitality, and
energy, and good mood.
Is there causation? Perhaps
depression simply reduces
exercise.
One study establishing
causation: mildly depressed
young women randomly
assigned to an exercise
group showed reduced
Faith Communities and Health:
Intervening Factors
The health impact of religious involvement may be
indirect.
Health may improve because of the lifestyle and
emotional factors associated with religious involvement,
and not [just] the faith.
Closer Look at a Particular Emotion: Happiness
Happiness is:
 a mood.
 an attitude.
 a social phenomenon.
 a cognitive filter.
 a way to stay hopeful,
motivated, and connected to
others.
The feel-good, do-good
phenomenon: when in a good
mood, we do more for others.
The reverse is also true: doing
good feels good.
A More Positive Psychology



Martin Seligman, who earlier
kept dogs from escaping his
shocks until they developed
learned helplessness.
Developed Positive
Psychology, the “scientific
study of optimal human
functioning,” finding ways to
help people thrive.
Focus: building strengths,
virtue, emotional well-being,
resilience, optimism, sense of
meaning.Three pillars of Positive
Psychology:
1. Emotions, e.g. engagement
2. Character, e.g. courage
3. Groups, Culture, Institutions
Wealth and Well-Being:
A Change in Goals


In the late 1960s, students entering college had a
primary goal of developing a meaningful life philosophy.
Since 1977, being very well-off financially has become
more of a primary goal for first year students.
Can Money Buy Happiness?
Money seems to buy
happiness when it lifts
people out of extreme
poverty. Otherwise,
money doesn’t seem to
help our mood much.
1.The average level of
income (adjusted for
inflation) and purchasing
power has increased in
the United States.
2.The percentage of
people feeling very
happy, though, has not
followed the same trend
of improvement.
Correlates of Happiness
There are behaviors that seem to go with
happiness. Whether they are the cause or the
effect of happiness is not clear, but it can’t
hurt to try them.
Researchers have found that
happy people tend to:
Happiness seems not
much related to other
factors:
 Have high self-esteem (in
 Age (example: the woman
individualistic countries)
at the laptop in the picture)
 Be optimistic, outgoing, and
 Gender (women are more
agreeable
often depressed, but also
 Have close friendships or a
satisfying marriage
more often joyful)
 Have work and leisure that engage
 Parenthood (having
their skills
children or not)
 Have an active religious faith
 Physical attractiveness
 Sleep well and exercise
There also may be a genetic basis for a predisposition to happiness.
Whether because of genes, culture, or personal history, we each
seem to develop a mood “set point,” a level of happiness to which we
keep returning.
Possible Ways to
Increase Your Chances
at Happiness
 Look beyond wealth for satisfaction.
 Bring your habits in line with your goals; take control
of your time.
 Smile and act happy.
 Find work and leisure that engages your skills.
 Exercise, or just move!
 Focus on the needs and wishes of others.
 Work, rest, …and SLEEP.
 Notice what goes well, and express gratitude.
 Nurture spirituality, meaning, and community.
 Make your close relationships a priority.
Relaxation


Meditation can lower blood pressure,
heart rate, oxygen consumption
Can it help with stress-related disease?