A series of PowerPoint lectures to accompany the introductory psychology textbooks offered by Worth publishers
Editor: Harvey G. Shulman, Ph.D.
Health, Stress, and Coping
Lisa Cravens-Brown
The Ohio State University
Department of Psychology
© 1999 The Ohio State University & Worth Publishers .
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 What is stress?
 The general adaptation syndrome
 Stressful life events
 Sources of stress
 Stress & heart disease
 personality types
 Stress & immune function
 Coping
 Modifying behavior
 exercise
 smoking
© 1999 The Ohio State University & Worth Publishers .
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 Threats, challenges to people
 Responses to situations
 Process by which we appraise and cope with environmental threats & challenges
 Positive effects
 motivation to conquer problems
 Negative effects
 threaten resources
© 1999 The Ohio State University & Worth Publishers .
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 Stress hormones
 epinephrine (adrenaline)
 norepinephrine
 Fight or flight preparation of body
 General adaptation syndrome (GAS)
 body’s adaptive response to stress
 very general
 responds no matter what stressor used
© 1999 The Ohio State University & Worth Publishers .
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Stress
Resistance
Phase 1:
Alarm
Reaction
Phase 2:
Resistance
(cope)
© 1999 The Ohio State University & Worth Publishers .
Phase 3:
Exhaustion
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 Catastrophes
 unpredictable, large-scale events
 e.g., war, earthquake
 can have significant health consequences
 Life Changes
 e.g., death, marriage, divorce, loss of job
 make person more vulnerable to disease
 Daily Hassles
 annoying events in everyday life
 e.g., rush hour traffic, roommates
 cumulative effect on health
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 Pull between two opposing desires or goals
 Approach-approach conflict
 choice between 2 appealing outcomes
 easy to resolve, low stress
 Avoidance-avoidance conflict
 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
© 1999 The Ohio State University & Worth Publishers .
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 Social conditions that promote stress
 e.g., poverty, racism, crime
 low SES tend to have highest levels of stress
 Culture clashes lead to stress
 e.g., company owned by different culture
 refugees, immigrants suffer too
© 1999 The Ohio State University & Worth Publishers .
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 Sense of control decreases stress, anxiety, & depression
 Perceptions of control must be realistic to be adaptive
© 1999 The Ohio State University & Worth Publishers .
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 Optimism
 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
© 1999 The Ohio State University & Worth Publishers .
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 Coronary heart disease is North America’s leading cause of death
 Habitually grouchy people tend to have poorer health outcomes
© 1999 The Ohio State University & Worth Publishers .
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 Type A
 time urgency
 general hostility
 intense ambition and competitiveness
 associated with heart disease
 Type B
 more easygoing
 not associated with heart disease
© 1999 The Ohio State University & Worth Publishers .
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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)
© 1999 The Ohio State University & Worth Publishers .
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 Indirect effects of stress on health
 promote jeopardizing behaviors
 e.g., smoking, drinking
 Psychophysiological illnesses
 physiological effects of psychological states
 hypertension, headaches
© 1999 The Ohio State University & Worth Publishers .
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 Stress leads to suppressed immune function
 Diverts energy to muscles & brain
 Even brief exposure alters immune function
 Stress-weakened immune system increases risk of cancer
 depression
 bereavement
 bottled-up negative emotions
 Hope & determination associated with better outcomes in cancer patients
© 1999 The Ohio State University & Worth Publishers .
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 Ader & Cohen’s rat study
© 1999 The Ohio State University & Worth Publishers .
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 Social support
 resources provided by others in times of need
 emotional
 expressions of concern, empathy, positive regard
 tangible
 direct assistance
 eg., lending money, providing meals
 informational
 suggestions, advice
© 1999 The Ohio State University & Worth Publishers .
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 Improves ability to cope with stress & benefits health
 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
 Pets as social support
 especially for elderly and people who live alone
 Gender and social support
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 Problem-focused coping
 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
© 1999 The Ohio State University & Worth Publishers .
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 Escape-avoidance
 try to escape stressor
 Distancing
 minimize impact of stressor
 Denial
 refuse to acknowledge problem exists
© 1999 The Ohio State University & Worth Publishers .
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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
© 1999 The Ohio State University & Worth Publishers .
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 Men & women show similar patterns of coping
 Culture
 Individualist
 less likely to seek social support
 favor problem-focused coping
 Collectivist
 more oriented to social support
 favor emotion-focused coping
© 1999 The Ohio State University & Worth Publishers .
22

 Aerobic exercise can reduce stress, depression, & anxiety
 Effect above relaxation treatment
© 1999 The Ohio State University & Worth Publishers .
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 Strengthens heart
 Lowers blood pressure
 Lowers blood pressure reactivity to stress
 Releases chemicals
 norepinephrine
 serotonin
 endorphins
 Sense of accomplishment
 Improved physique
© 1999 The Ohio State University & Worth Publishers .
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 Feedback about subtle bodily responses
 e.g., tension in forehead
 Mirror metaphor
 Not controlling body’s responses
 People can influence some of these responses
 finger temperature
 forehead tension
 Reduce intensity of migraines
 Help with some chronic pain
 Relaxation crucial to biofeedback success
© 1999 The Ohio State University & Worth Publishers .
25

 Meditation can lower blood pressure, heart rate, oxygen consumption
 Can it help with stress-related disease?
© 1999 The Ohio State University & Worth Publishers .
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

 poor achievers
 low self-esteem
 low sense of personal control
© 1999 The Ohio State University & Worth Publishers .
27

 Why do people keep smoking?
 dependence
 tolerance to nicotine levels
 withdrawal if stop
© 1999 The Ohio State University & Worth Publishers .
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 Efforts to help people stop
 Public health warnings, counseling, drug treatment, aversive conditioning, hypnosis
 Effective in short run
 1/5 participants start smoking again
 Teen smoking on the
.
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 Easier not to begin than to quit
 Make smoking immediately costly
 Smoking inoculation program
© 1999 The Ohio State University & Worth Publishers .
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© 1999 The Ohio State University & Worth Publishers .
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© 1999 The Ohio State University & Worth Publishers .
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Copyright 1999 by Worth Publishers, New York, NY and by The Ohio State University. All rights reserved. No part of the material protected by this copyright may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission of the copyright owners.
© 1999 The Ohio State University & Worth Publishers .
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