COPING WITH STRESS

COPING WITH STRESS Allie Surina U.S.: Western Kentucky University 苏爱丽 美国：西肯塔基大学

Previous Lecture Topics: • Types of stress • Stress responses & GAS process • Psychological stress • Perceived control to moderate stress • Stress-related ulcers, neuron death, cardiac disease & cancer

Current Lecture Topics: • 4 Psychological Mediators of Stress • Stress & Depression • Stress in Fetuses • Changing Cultural Stress

COPING WITH STRESS • The goal is NOT to have zero challenges, but to balance them • We like certain types of stressors, we call them “stimulation” • Can you think of something that is both stressful and exciting?

4 WAYS TO COPE WITH STRESS • Outlet for frustration • Sense of predictability and of control • Perception that life is getting better over time • Social support

(Sapolsky, 2004)

COPING WITH STRESS • Research: Outlets for Frustration (Jay Weiss) • Rats receive mild shocks – Stage of Resistance stress response - heart rate up, glucocorticoid secretion up, ulcers – Rats that can gnaw on wooden bar, or eat, or drink, or run on wheel had fewer ulcers – Some rats could run to another rat and bite it!

• Baboons attack bystanders after losing a fight

(Sapolsky (2004), Weiss (1971))

COPING WITH STRESS (Weiss) Sense of Predictability and Control • Rats that heard warning bell before shock had fewer ulcers • Rats that had food delivered at intermittent intervals normal, but random delivery resulted in cortisol increases • Rats that had bar to avoid shocks - even if lever didn’t work, had reduced stress • People & loud noises – one person has button to press to stop noise - results: less hypertensive whether button is pressed or not (Sapolsky (2004), Weiss (1971))

COPING WITH STRESS Sense of Predictability and Control • Rodin & Langer, 1977 did a nursing home experiment. • Divided residents into two groups, A and B • Group A made own decisions on when to watch movies, which plants to water, when to see visitors • Group B had all decisions made for them. • Only 1.5 years later, Group A was more cheerful happy, AND ONLY 1/2 AS MANY HAD DIED!

(Sapolsky (2004))

COPING WITH STRESS Social Support • Primates were monitored after exposure to a stressor – among strangers, stress response worse – among friends, better (measured by glucocorticoids)

• People who performed stressful tasks had lower stress responses with a friend present (Sapolsky, 2004)

COPING WITH STRESS Perception of Life Improving/Worsening • Rat experiment: Rats were given shocks • Day 1 Experiment – Rat #1: 10 shocks per hour – Rat #2: 50 shocks per hour

• Day 2 Experiment – All rats get 25 shocks per hour

• Results: Rats that had increase in shocks became hypertensive (Sapolsky (2004), Weiss (1971))

STRESS & FEELING BAD • Shively, Register and Clarkson (2009) researched monkeys • The neurotransmitter dopamine binds to receptors linked to sensation of pleasure. • High-ranking monkeys had pleasure areas of brain brightly lit in PET scan • Low-ranking monkeys had pleasure areas of brain not bright in scan • Low social position in hierarchy related to low dopamine receptor binding (Shively, Register & Clarkson, 2009 )

STRESS & FEELING BAD • Humans must deal with both being lowranking or poor, and also FEELING lowranking or poor • Doctors have noticed consistently lower health outcomes for people in high-stress, poor neighborhoods. • Chronic stress leads to high cholesterol and abdomen weight gain.

(Shively, Register & Clarkson, 2009 )

STRESS IN FETUSES • Dutch researcher Rosenboom found that people born during Dutch Hunger Winter had poor health • Fetuses exposed to stress hormones in mothers’ blood • Permanent maladaptive way of handling stress • More likely to have depression, poor cardiovascular health (Goldman et al., 2008)

CHANGING STRESS CULTURES • Stanford researcher Robert Sapolsky studied baboon stress in Africa for over 30 years • After 10 years, baboons were poisoined with turbuculosis • Only aggressive “Type A” males died. • Remainder of group were gentle • 20 years later, group still has low stress and has kept same gentle culture. • In one generation, they changed their “nature.” Can we? (Sapolsky, 2004)

References Gabrieli, John, Intro to Psychology, Fall 2011 (MIT OpenCourseWare: Massachusetts Institute of Technology), http://ocw.mit.edu/courses/brain-and-cognitivesciences/9-00sc-introduction-to-psychology-fall-2011/ (Accessed 12/10/2012). License: Creative commons BY-NC-SA Goldman, L., Heminway, J., Sapolsky, R. M., Blackburn, E. H., Shively, C. A., Marmot, M., Epel, E., ... Warner Home Video (Firm). (2008). Stress: Portrait of a killer. Washington, DC: National Geographic. Harmeling, Michael, Psychology, (Waterford High School), http://www2.waterforduhs.k12.wi.us/staffweb/harmeling/Psychology/Stress%20and% 20Health%20Chapter/Module%2012_lecture.ppt (Accessed 12/10/2012). Sapolsky, R. M. (2004). Why Zebras Don't Get Ulcers: The Acclaimed Guide to Stress, Stress-Related Diseases, and Coping-Now Revised and Updated. Holt Paperbacks. Shively, C. A., Register, T. C., & Clarkson, T. B. (2009). Social stress, visceral obesity, and coronary artery atherosclerosis: product of a primate adaptation. American journal of primatology, 71(9), 742-751. Weiss, J. M. (1971). Effects of coping behavior in different warning signal conditions on stress pathology in rats. Journal of Comparative and Physiological Psychology; Journal of Comparative and Physiological Psychology, 77(1), 1.