Chapter 2
The Emotional
and Intellectual Basis of
Stress
McGraw-Hill/Irwin
Copyright © 2012 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
Overview
 This chapter
Examines relationship between emotions,
intelligence, and stress
Defines personality and how it develops
Examines ways some personality types are
more or less susceptible to stress than
others
Discusses the notion of emotional
intelligence
Presents a theory of stress appraisal that
converges intellectual and emotional
factors
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Outline
Emotions and stress
Personality development and
types
Intelligence and stress
Emotional intelligence
Perception and stress
appraisal
2-3
The Emotional Basis of
Stress
Emotions and stress
Emotion: “a feeling, and its
distinctive thoughts,
psychological and biological
states, and range of propensities
to act” (Daniel Goleman)
Lazarus’ stress emotions
Core relational themes
(internalized personal scripts)
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Emotions in Japanese
Psychotherapy
Morita therapy: the action element
of Japanese psychotherapy
Reynolds adapted Shomo Morita’s
five guiding principles of feelings
“Living Constructively” boxes
throughout the textbook focus on
Morita and Naikan (the
introspective element of) Japanese
psychology
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Personality Defined
Personality: a collection of
thoughts, attitudes, values, beliefs,
perceptions, behaviors, and
emotions that define who we are,
how we view the world around us,
and how others perceive us
Personality is constantly evolving
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Emotional
Development and
Personality
 Personality development theories
Watson (behaviorism)
Freud (psychoanalytical theory)
Erikson (developmental stages and
tasks)
Piaget (cognitive development)
Kohlberg (moral development)
Maslow (hierarchy of needs)
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Stress and
Personality
Stress-Prone Personality Types
Type A Personality
Type C Personality
Type D Personality
(Ellis’s) Irrational, Illogical
Personality
Negative Self-Talk
Millon’s Model
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The Type A
Personality
Pioneered by cardiologists
Friedman and Rosenman (1974)
Noticed their cardiology
patients always tried to achieve
more in less time
Hypothesized this was stressful
and harmful to one’s heart
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Characteristics of Type
A Personality
Competitive
Verbally aggressive
Hard-driving
Unable to relax
Very time conscious
Easily angered
Hostile
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Type A Personality Body
Language and Speech
Patterns
Tightening of facial muscles
Gesturing with a clenched fist
Grimacing
Using explosive speech
Interrupting the interviewer
Hurrying the pace
2-11
Type A Personality
Health Risks
Greater rate of cardiovascular
disease
Greater rate of heart attacks
Increased risk for premature
death from all causes
Not gender-specific
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Recent Type A Personality
Studies
Clarify earlier work
Suggest Type A personality not
a causative factor in high blood
pressure
Identify anger and hostility as
factors most closely related to
cardiovascular disease
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Anger and Hostility
Anger
Directed at anything
Reaction to a specific situation
Road rage is a common form
Hostility
An enduring anger directed at
people
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The Type C Personality
Identified by Temoshok and
Dreher
Described as ______-prone
personality
Responds to repeated failure
and stress by giving up
(helpless/hopeless)
Suppresses emotions and
resigns self to fate
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The Type D Personality
Associated with cardiovascular
disease
Similar to Type A
Anger & hostility
Type D’s:
suppress their emotions
Avoid social contact
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The Irrational, Illogical
Personality
Named by Albert Ellis
Founder of rational
emotive behavior therapy
(REBT)
Believes people or things
don’t make us feel bad
______ beliefs about people
and things are the basis for
stress
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Categories of Ellis &
Harper’s 10 Illogical
Beliefs (Walen et al.)
“Awfulizing” statements—
Shoulds/musts/oughts—
Evaluation of worth statements—
Need statements—
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Millon’s Model
Millon identified 8 personality styles
that are particularly prone to stress
Aggressive
Narcissistic
Histrionic
Dependent
Passive-Aggressive
Compulsive
Avoidant
Schizoid
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Stress-Resistant Personality
Types
Personality types that are
protective against stress
The Type B Personality
The Hardy Personality
2-20
The Type B
Personality
 Identified by Rosenman and Friedman as
polar opposite of Type A
Also known as non-Type A
Lower risk of heart disease when free
of diabetes, hypertension, and
elevated cholesterol
Doesn’t preclude success and
achievement
2-21
The Hardy
Personality
Identified by Kobasa and Maddi
Exhibits three personality traits that
protect against ravages of stress
Commitment (actively involved
with life)
Control (internal locus of control)
Challenge (welcomes change)
2-22
The Intellectual Basis of
Stress
Our “intellectual resources”
(Lazarus) influence
How we perceive potential
stressors
Our perceived ability to cope
Intellectual resources include
intelligence, life experience,
communication skills, creativity,
problem-solving ability
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Emotional Intelligence
Goleman (1997) coined this term to
mean the intellectual attributes
associated with understanding and
managing emotions
We can exert some control over our
emotions, moods, temperament, and
emotional disorders
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Five Criteria for
Emotional Intelligence
Knowing emotions
Managing emotions
Motivating oneself
Recognizing emotions in others
Handling relationships
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Lazarus & Folkman’s
Stress Appraisal Model
The model contains a convergence
of intellectual and emotional factors
Things become stressors when they
threaten our well-being
Appraisal process influenced by
time and environment (context)
Appraisal process has three parts
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Three Appraisal
Processes
Primary appraisal: Is it a
threat?
Secondary appraisal: Can I
cope with it?
Cognitive reappraisal: Is this
potential stressor a real
stressor?
2-27
Primary Threat Appraisal
Threat: state of anticipated
confrontation with a harmful
condition
Physical harm, emotional pain, or social
discomfort
 Primary appraisal: Is it a threat?
Irrelevant
Benign/positive
Stress
Threat (harm or loss anticipated)
Harm/loss (assessing consequences of exposure)
Challenge (possible positive outcomes)
2-28
Situation Factors in Stress
Appraisal
 The potential stressor
 Novelty, predictability, event uncertainty
 Imminence, duration, and temporal
uncertainty
Person Factors in Stress
Appraisal
 Commitments
 Beliefs (cognitive configurations)
2-29
Secondary Stress Appraisal
 Can I cope with it?
 Occurs simultaneously with primary
appraisal
 Coping: Emotion-focused or problemfocused
 Coping resources
 Health and energy
 Positive beliefs
 Problem-solving skills
 Social skills
 Social support
 Material resources
 Situational constraints
2-30
Cognitive Reappraisal
Is this potential stressor a real
stressor?
Reassessing after weighing
all of the situational factors,
commitments and beliefs, and
assessing ability to cope
2-31
Chapter 2: The Emotional
and Intellectual Basis of
Stress
Summary
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