Openstax Psychology Chapter 14 Key Terms and Definitions

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Openstax Psychology Chapter 14 Key Terms and Definitions Stimulus-based definitions characterize stress as a stimulus that causes certain reactions; fails to recognize that people differ in how they... view and react to challenging life events and situations Response-based definitions describe stress as a response to environmental conditions Hans Selye's definition of stress response of the body to any demand, whether it is caused by, or results in, pleasant or unpleasant conditions Stress a process whereby an individual perceives and responds to events that he appraises as overwhelming or threatening to his well-being Stressors events that may be judged as demanding or threatening events; stimuli that initiate the stress process Primary Appraisal judgement about the degree of potential harm or threat to well-being that a stressor might entail; challenge or threat? Secondary Appraisal judgement of the options available to cope with a stressor, as well as perceptions of how effective such options will be Eustress a good kind of stress associated with positive feelings, optimal health, and performance; Selye's term Distress when stress is no longer a positive force and become excessive and debilitating Health Psychology a subfield of psychology devoted to understanding the importance of psychological influences on health, illness, and how people respond when they become ill; how stress impacts health falls here Walter Cannon American physiologist; first to identify the body's physiological reactions to stress; named the fight-or-flight response Fight-or-flight Response occurs when a person experiences very strong emotions--especially those associated with a perceived threat; body is aroused by activation of both the sympathetic nervous system and the endocrine system General Adaptation Syndrome the body's nonspecific physiological response to stress; discovered by Hans Selye; 3 stages: 1. Alarm reaction 2. Stage of resistance 3. Stage of exhaustion Alarm reaction the body's immediate reaction upon facing a threatening situation or emergency [Show More]

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