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Psychology 12
Chapter 12
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Health psychology | The subfield of psychology that investigates the relationship between people's behaviors and their health. |
| Stress | Any event or environmental stimulus (stressors) that we respond to because we perceive it as challenging or threatening. |
| Life event | A change in one's life, good or bad, that requires readjustment. |
| Daily hassles | The everyday irritations and frustrations that individuals face. |
| Conflict | Having to choose between two or more needs, desires, or demands. |
| Approach-approach conflict | A situation in which a person must choose between two likable events. |
| Avoidance-avoidance conflict | A situation in which a person must choose between two undesirable events. |
| Multiple approach-avoidance conflict | A situation that poses several alternatives that each have positive and negative features. |
| Primary appraisal | Our initial interpretation of an event as either irrelevant, positive, or stressful. |
| General adaptation syndrome (GAS) | The general physical responses we experience when faced with a stressor. |
| Alarm reaction | The first phase of the general adaptation syndrome, characterized by immediate activation of nervous and endocrine systems. |
| Resistance stage | The second phase of the general adaptation syndrome, in which the nervous and endocrine systems continue to be activated. |
| Exhaustion stage | The third phase of the general adaptation syndrome, in which bodily resources are drained, and wear and tear on the body begins. |
| Psychoneuroimmunology | Field of study that investigates the connections among psychology (behaviors, thoughts, emotions), and the nervous system, and immune system functioning. |
| Immunosuppression | The reduction in activity of the immune system. |
| Coping | The behaviors that we engage in to manage stressors. |
| Problem-focusing coping | Behaviors that aim to control or alter the environment that is causing stress. |
| Emotion-focused coping | Behaviors aimed at controlling the internal emotional reasons of stressors. |
| Cognitive reappraisal | An active and conscious process in which we alter our interpretation of a stressful event. |
| Defensive mechanisms | unconscious emotional strategies that are engaged in to reduce anxiety and maintain a positive self-image. |
| Biofeedback | An electronic device that measures and records bodily changes so that an individual can monitor and control these changes more effectively. |
| Progressive relaxation training | A stress management technique in which the person learns how to systematically tense and relax muscle groups in the body. |
| Social support | Having close and positive relationships with others. |
| Guided imagery | A technique in which you focus on a pleasant, calming image to achieve a state of relaxation when you feel stressed. |
| Meditation | Mental exercises in which people consciously focus their attention to heighten their awareness and bring their mental processes under more control. |
| Type A personality | A personality that is aggressive, ambitious, and competitive. |
| Type B personality | A personality characterized by flexibility, and an easygoing manner. |
| Type C personality | A personality that is cautious, serious, sensitive to criticism, and results oriented, and that suppresses negative emotions such as anger. |
| Learned helplessness | A passive response to stressors based on exposure to previously uncontrolled, negative emotions. |
| Hardy personality | A personality high in the traits of commitment, control, and challenge, that appears to be associated with a strong stress resistance. |
| Health-defeating behaviors | Behaviors that increase the chance of illness, disease, or death. |
| Health-promoting behaviors | Behaviors that decrease the chance of illness, disease, or death. |