Getting Started
Why do some people seem to thrive under pressure while others crumble? How can final exams lead to a campus-wide cold? Health psychology is the field that explores these questions, focusing on the intricate, two-way relationship between our minds and our physical bodies. It examines how our behaviors, thoughts, and feelings influence our physical health, and conversely, how our physical state affects our mental processes.
What You Should Be able to Do
Explain the role of health psychology in understanding physical wellness.
Describe how stress can be both beneficial and harmful to behavior and health.
Compare different models of how people react to stressful situations.
Contrast the primary strategies people use to cope with stress.
Key Developments & Analysis
Baseline & Context: The Nature of Stress
At its core, stress is the process of appraising and responding to events, known as stressors, that we perceive as threatening or challenging. The critical element is our cognitive appraisal—how we interpret the event. This appraisal determines whether we experience the stressor as a positive or negative force. When we view a stressor as a motivating challenge we can overcome, we experience eustress. This positive form of stress can sharpen focus, boost performance, and create a sense of fulfillment, such as the excitement before an athletic competition. In contrast, when we view a stressor as an overwhelming and debilitating threat, we experience distress. This negative form of stress can impair functioning and, if prolonged, lead to serious physical and psychological consequences.
Change Processes: Universal and Alternative Responses
Our bodies undergo predictable physiological changes when confronted with a prolonged stressor.
The General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS) is a model describing this universal, three-stage bodily response. In the initial alarm stage, the sympathetic nervous system is activated, mobilizing the body for immediate action. In the resistance stage, the body remains on high alert, releasing hormones to help cope with the stressor. If the stressor persists, the body enters the exhaustion stage, where its resources are depleted, leaving it vulnerable to illness, collapse, and in extreme cases, death.
The Tend-and-Befriend Theory offers an alternative model for stress response. It proposes that some people, instead of reacting with a "fight-or-flight" response, react by protecting and caring for their offspring (tending) and seeking out social connections for support (befriending). This pattern helps reduce the physiological stress response and builds social resources for coping.
Stability vs. Change: Individual Coping Styles
While physiological responses to stress can be universal, the behavioral and cognitive strategies we use to manage stress—our coping styles—show significant individual differences. These styles represent relatively stable patterns in how we approach problems, though we can change our approach depending on the context.
Problem-focused coping is a strategy aimed at changing the stressor or the situation to remove the stress. It involves seeing the stressor as a problem to be solved through direct action, such as studying for a difficult test, creating a budget to manage financial strain, or talking directly to a person with whom you are in conflict.
Emotion-focused coping is a strategy aimed at managing the emotional distress caused by a stressor, rather than changing the stressor itself. This is often used when a situation feels uncontrollable. Examples include seeking emotional support from friends, distracting oneself with a hobby, or using relaxation techniques to calm down.
Data & Organization Tools
Process Sequence: The General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS)
| Stage | Key Characteristics | Potential Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Alarm | Sympathetic nervous system activation; heart rate increases; resources are mobilized. | Body is primed for "fight-or-flight." |
| 2. Resistance | Body remains physiologically aroused; hormones are released to maintain response. | Coping with the stressor, but at a high physical cost. |
| 3. Exhaustion | Bodily reserves are depleted; physiological systems begin to break down. | Increased vulnerability to disorders and diseases. |
Evidence Bank
Health Psychology: The subfield of psychology focused on how psychological factors influence the promotion and maintenance of health, as well as the prevention and treatment of illness.
Stress: The process by which we perceive and respond to stressors, which are events appraised as threatening or challenging.
Stressor: A specific event, condition, or stimulus that triggers a stress response.
Eustress: A positive and motivating form of stress that can improve performance and well-being (e.g., preparing for a wedding).
Distress: A negative and debilitating form of stress that can lead to physical and psychological harm (e.g., experiencing a job loss).
General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS): Hans Selye's three-stage model (alarm, resistance, exhaustion) describing the body's predictable physiological response to prolonged stress.
Tend-and-Befriend Theory: A model proposing that in response to stress, some people react by nurturing others and building social alliances.
Problem-Focused Coping: A coping strategy that involves attempting to alleviate stress directly by changing the stressor or the way we interact with that stressor.
Emotion-Focused Coping: A coping strategy that involves attempting to alleviate stress by avoiding or ignoring a stressor and attending to emotional needs related to the stress reaction.
Hypertension: Abnormally high blood pressure, a chronic medical condition to which prolonged stress is a significant risk factor.
Skill Snapshots
Mechanism Pairs
Cause → Effect: Prolonged exposure to a stressor → The body enters the exhaustion phase of GAS, heightening susceptibility to disorders.
Cause → Effect: Appraising an event as a manageable challenge → The experience of eustress, which can motivate behavior and improve performance.
Cause → Effect: Seeking social connection during a crisis → The tend-and-befriend response is activated, buffering the physiological effects of stress.
Perspective Contrasts
GAS vs. Tend-and-Befriend: The GAS model describes a universal physiological sequence of alarm and resistance, while the Tend-and-Befriend model describes an alternative behavioral response focused on social affiliation and caregiving.
Problem-Focused vs. Emotion-Focused Coping: Problem-focused coping targets the external source of the stress for removal or change, whereas emotion-focused coping targets the internal feelings of distress for management and relief.
Eustress vs. Distress: Both are responses to stressors, but eustress results from appraising a stressor as a positive challenge, while distress results from appraising it as a negative threat.
Change Track
Baseline: An individual begins a new, highly demanding job, introducing a significant and ongoing stressor.
Change 1 (Resistance): For the first few months, the individual is in the resistance phase of GAS, working long hours with high energy but feeling constantly "on edge."
Change 2 (Coping): The individual uses problem-focused coping by taking a time-management course and emotion-focused coping by starting a weekly yoga class.
Persistence (Exhaustion): If these coping strategies fail and the workload remains intense, the individual's bodily resources may become depleted, leading to burnout, frequent illness, and hypertension.
Common Misconceptions & Clarifications
Misconception: All stress is harmful and should be avoided.
Clarification: Stress is a normal part of life. Eustress, or positive stress, is essential for motivation, growth, and peak performance. The key is how we appraise and manage the stressors we face.
Misconception: The body's response to stress is purely psychological.
Clarification: The stress response is a deeply physiological process involving the nervous and endocrine systems. The General Adaptation Syndrome outlines a predictable sequence of bodily changes that have real consequences for physical health.
Misconception: Problem-focused coping is always the superior strategy.
Clarification: The best coping strategy depends on the nature of the stressor. For uncontrollable stressors (e.g., the death of a loved one), emotion-focused coping is often more adaptive and necessary for psychological well-being.
Misconception: Everyone responds to stress with "fight-or-flight."
Clarification: While "fight-or-flight" is a fundamental stress response, the tend-and-befriend theory highlights an alternative, equally important response pattern centered on caregiving and social connection.
One-Paragraph Summary
Health psychology reveals the powerful connection between our mental processes and physical well-being, particularly in the context of stress. Stress is not merely an event but a process of appraisal, which can lead to either motivating eustress or debilitating distress. The body reacts to prolonged stress through a predictable physiological sequence known as the General Adaptation Syndrome, though some individuals may exhibit a tend-and-befriend response focused on social connection. To manage stress, people employ either problem-focused coping to change the situation or emotion-focused coping to manage their internal reactions. Understanding these processes is critical, as chronic, unmanaged stress can deplete the body's resources and heighten susceptibility to serious diseases like hypertension.