Which term refers to the mental or behavioral efforts used to manage problems relating to stress?

Key Terms

alarm reactionfirst stage of the general adaptation syndrome; characterized as the body’s immediate physiological reaction to a threatening situation or some other emergency; analogous to the fight-or-flight responseasthmapsychophysiological disorder in which the airways of the respiratory system become obstructed, leading to great difficulty expelling air from the lungsbiofeedbackstress-reduction technique using electronic equipment to measure a person’s involuntary (neuromuscular and autonomic) activity and provide feedback to help the person gain a level of voluntary control over these processescardiovascular disordersdisorders that involve the heart and blood circulation systemcopingmental or behavioral efforts used to manage problems relating to stress, including its cause and the unpleasant feelings and emotions it producescortisolstress hormone released by the adrenal glands when encountering a stressor; helps to provide a boost of energy, thereby preparing the individual to take actiondaily hasslesminor irritations and annoyances that are part of our everyday lives and are capable of producing stressdistressbad form of stress; usually high in intensity; often leads to exhaustion, fatigue, feeling burned out; associated with erosions in performance and healtheustressgood form of stress; low to moderate in intensity; associated with positive feelings, as well as optimal health and performancefight-or-flight responseset of physiological reactions (increases in blood pressure, heart rate, respiration rate, and sweat) that occur when an individual encounters a perceived threat; these reactions are produced by activation of the sympathetic nervous system and the endocrine systemflowstate involving intense engagement in an activity; usually is experienced when participating in creative, work, and leisure endeavorsgeneral adaptation syndromeHans Selye’s three-stage model of the body’s physiological reactions to stress and the process of stress adaptation: alarm reaction, stage of resistance, and stage of exhaustionhappinessenduring state of mind consisting of joy, contentment, and other positive emotions; the sense that one’s life has meaning and valuehealth psychologysubfield of psychology devoted to studying psychological influences on health, illness, and how people respond when they become illheart diseaseseveral types of adverse heart conditions, including those that involve the heart’s arteries or valves or those involving the inability of the heart to pump enough blood to meet the body’s needs; can include heart attack and strokehypertensionhigh blood pressure hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axisset of structures found in both the limbic system (hypothalamus) and the endocrine system (pituitary gland and adrenal glands) that regulate many of the body’s physiological reactions to stress through the release of hormonesimmune systemvarious structures, cells, and mechanisms that protect the body from foreign substances that can damage the body’s tissues and organsimmunosuppressiondecreased effectiveness of the immune systemjob burnoutgeneral sense of emotional exhaustion and cynicism in relation to one’s job; consists of three dimensions: exhaustion, depersonalization, and sense of diminished personal accomplishmentjob strainwork situation involving the combination of excessive job demands and workload with little decision making latitude or job controllymphocyteswhite blood cells that circulate in the body’s fluids and are especially important in the body’s immune responsenegative affectivitytendency to experience distressed emotional states involving anger, contempt, disgust, guilt, fear, and nervousnessoptimismtendency toward a positive outlook and positive expectationsperceived controlpeoples’ beliefs concerning their capacity to influence and shape outcomes in their livespositive affectstate or a trait that involves pleasurable engagement with the environment, the dimensions of which include happiness, joy, enthusiasm, alertness, and excitementpositive psychologyscientific area of study seeking to identify and promote those qualities that lead to happy, fulfilled, and contented livesprimary appraisaljudgment about the degree of potential harm or threat to well-being that a stressor might entailpsychoneuroimmunologyfield that studies how psychological factors (such as stress) influence the immune system and immune functioningpsychophysiological disordersphysical disorders or diseases in which symptoms are brought about or worsened by stress and emotional factorsrelaxation response techniquestress reduction technique combining elements of relaxation and meditationsecondary appraisaljudgment of options available to cope with a stressor and their potential effectivenessSocial Readjustment Rating Scale (SRRS)popular scale designed to measure stress; consists of 43 potentially stressful events, each of which has a numerical value quantifying how much readjustment is associated with the eventsocial supportsoothing and often beneficial support of others; can take different forms, such as advice, guidance, encouragement, acceptance, emotional comfort, and tangible assistancestage of exhaustion third stage of the general adaptation syndrome; the body’s ability to resist stress becomes depleted; illness, disease, and even death may occurstage of resistancesecond stage of the general adaptation syndrome; the body adapts to a stressor for a period of timestressprocess whereby an individual perceives and responds to events that one appraises as overwhelming or threatening to one’s well-beingstressorsenvironmental events that may be judged as threatening or demanding; stimuli that initiate the stress processType Apsychological and behavior pattern exhibited by individuals who tend to be extremely competitive, impatient, rushed, and hostile toward others Type Bpsychological and behavior pattern exhibited by a person who is relaxed and laid back