Conflict, Stress, and Coping

Anxiety - the feeling that something is wrong and disaster is imminent A. Typically accompanied by nervous behavior B. Not the same as fear, fear is appropriate C. severe attacks can cause rapid heartbeat, fatigue, breathlessness, chest pains, and headaches

Frustration – emotional response to the inability to reach a goal Most are minor but can build up Can be caused by conflict

Conflict – a problem that demands a choice between two alternatives Approach-approach – two attractive alternatives Approach-avoidance – conflict with good and bad features Avoidance-avoidance – two bad alternatives Double approach-avoidance – two choices with both bad and good alternatives

Stress - physical strain that results from demands or changes in the environment A. arises when we have to readjust B. frustration, conflict, anxiety can all lead to stress C. any kind of change - positive or negative causes stress D. good stress - can keep the body going and moving to a new goal - good stress leading to something desirable is called eustress. E. bad stress - confusion, inability to make decisions and avoidance of people and eventually physical / psychological illness is distress.

Physical changes with Stress A. fight or flight reaction - the body’s reaction to a crisis, the organism is mobilized to either fight or run away B. parts of a human that respond to emotional stress 1. higher brain - controls our thinking 2. lower brain - controls our basic bodily functions 3. adrenal glands - cause excitement in order to »prepare the body for an emergency (3 examples) psychological change (mental issues) –a. anticipating having an operation –b. going out on a first date with someone new –c. death of a loved one *higher brain assumes that threat and danger exist, signals the lower brain about the emergency, which secretes a special chemical called stress hormone, which signal the adrenal glands to send adrenaline to the body. (muscles tense. heart beats faster and liver sends out more sugar to be used by muscles)

Stress and Personality 1. unrelieved tension - bottling up your feelings too much isn’t good for you. a. find a happy median - drop things that aren’t important and take a stand on things that really matter. (pick your battles) 2. general adaptation syndrome - overall process by which we adjust to various levels of stress (3 parts) a. alarm reaction - preparation for an attack b. stage of resistance - trying to restore balance c. exhaustion - giving up *stress, frustration, conflict and anxiety are different but all interact.

Personality Types Type A - personality type associated with people who are always operating at full speed, are impatient, and are filled with distress. 1. increases risk of developing an illness associated with life stress (heart problems, chronic high blood pressure) 2. distrust other people 3. angry most of the time Type B - personality type associated with people who are open to change, are flexible, enjoy life, and have low levels of stress

Managing everyday stress - we can respond to everyday stress in 2 ways positively - transformational coping 1. creating something good out of something bad 2. we admit our anger 3. we address the problem more logically 4. we adjust our priorities 5. we explore solutions negatively - regressive coping 1. we sleep too much 2. we avoid or deny the problems 3. we take out our anger on family and friends 4. we may adopt destructive habits like drinking *most of us, when faced with stress, rely on both strategies - withdraw from the problem for a while, tackle the problem, retreat, try a number of solutions

Coping with Stress A. control - if an event can be predicted or at least partially controlled the negative effects are reduced dramatically. B. some people and cultures find strength through strong spiritual or religious beliefs, they believe some higher power is in control

Coping with Stress self-concept - the images we have of ourselves 1. large gap between our self-image and others’ image of us may cause a problem that can get worse if we keep ignoring it. 2. depressed people are usually both more negative and more accurate about their self-concepts than non depressed people are. 3. self-esteem - degree to which we think we are worthwhile

Coping with stress Active Cognitive 1,6,7,10,11,15,20,21,23,26,29 Active behavioral 2,3,5,8,12,13,17,18,22,25,28,31,32 Avoidance 4,9,14,16,19,24,27,30