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Chapter 15
Stress and Health
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| stressors | specific events or chronic pressures that place demands on a person or threaten the person’s well-being |
| stress | the physical and psychological response to internal or external stressors |
| health psychology | the subfield of psychology concerned with ways psychological factors influence the causes and treatment of physical illness and the maintenance of health |
| chronic stressor | a source of stress that occurs continuously or repeatedly |
| fight-or-flight response | an emotional and physiological reaction to an emergency that increases readiness for action |
| general adaptation syndrome (GAS) | a three-stage physiological response that appears regardless of the stressor that is encountered |
| immune system | a complex response system that protects the body from bacteria, viruses, and other foreign substances |
| Type A behavior pattern | the tendency toward easily aroused hostility, impatience, a sense of time urgency, and competitive achievement strivings |
| post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) | a disorder characterized by chronic physiological arousal, recurrent unwanted thoughts or images of the trauma, and avoidance of things that call the traumatic event to mind |
| burnout | a state of physical, emotional, and mental exhaustion created by long-term involvement in an emotionally demanding situation and accompanied by lowered performance and motivation |
| repressive coping | avoiding situations or thoughts that are reminders of a stressor and maintaining an artificially positive viewpoint |
| rational coping | facing a stressor and working to overcome it |
| reframing | finding a new or creative way to think about a stressor that reduces its threat |
| relaxation therapy | a technique for reducing tension by consciously relaxing muscles of the body |
| relaxation response | a condition of reduced muscle tension, cortical activity, heart rate, breathing rate, and blood pressure |
| biofeedback | the use of an external monitoring device to obtain information about a bodily function and possibly gain control over that function |
| social support | the aid gained through interacting with others |
| psychosomatic illness | an illness produced by an interaction between mind and body |
| somatoform disorder | a psychological disorder in which the patient displays physical symptoms not fully explained by a general medical condition |
| hypochondriasis | a psychological disorder in which a person is preoccupied with minor symptoms and develops an exaggerated belief that the symptoms signify a life-threatening illness |
| sick role | a socially recognized set of rights and obligations linked with illness |
| self-regulation | the exercise of voluntary control over the self to bring the self into line with preferred standards |