PSY 707 Chapter Notes - Chapter 1: Arnold Lazarus, Entropic Force, Psychosomatic Medicine
24 Apr 2015
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Stress is a generic term that can be substituted for apprehension/fear/anxiety, irritation/ embarrassment/grief & not limited to emotional experiences but physiological, behavioural & cognitive ones as well. Stress commonly has a negative connotation, it"s been traced as denoting concept of hardship but robert hooke proposed a principle, Homeostasis by walter cannon is the biological self-regulation process that enables the organism to adapt to life"s demands. Fight or flight is cannon"s term for the body"s physiological activation response when it prepares to fight off/flee from a threat. Gas (general adaptation syndrome) is a 3 stage model proposed by hans selye of the effects of chronic stress to health. Hans selye referred to distress as negative stress & eustress as positive stress, eg. wedding ceremony, participating in a sports competition it"s a challenge in a way that"s motivating, satisfying/even enjoyable. Taking both types of stress into account, selye defined stress as nonspecific responses the body makes to demands.
