Chapt 2 Review Questions (STRESS)

[Last update: 2/19/04]

Hales, D. (2004). Chapter 2: Personal Stress Management In An Invitation to Health (3/e) (pp. 27 - 42). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth/Thomson.

  1. What Is Stress? Define stress (Selye's definition). What is a stressor? Are all stressors detrimental to health? What is good stress called? What is bad stress called? 
  2. What Causes Stress? What are the three stages of Selye's general adaptive response? (ANS: Alarm, Resistance, Exhaustion). How does T/F: Stress is a relationship between demands and the resources to deal with them. 
  3. Is Stress Hazardous to Physical Health? What is the hormone producing system in your body called? Provide the names of two stress hormones. Stress may adversely affect several different physiologic systems. Name three.
  4. Is Stress Hazardous to Psychological Health? T/F: Traumatic psychological events can cause feelings of sadness, tension, anger, and serious psychological symptoms such as depression, anxiety, and panic attacks. 
  5. Stress and the Student. Are stress levels in college students higher or lower than the rest of the population? Are stress levels in college students increasing or decreases compared to in the past? Are men or women college students more likely to experience clinically significant anxiety? List examples of common stressors for college students. (ANS: See class activity and list on p. 32).
  6. Test Stress. List strategies for preventing exam-related stress. What does the phrase "a self-fulfilling prophesy" mean to you? According to the book, is there a correlation between stress-linked symptoms (such as anxiety and depression) and ethnicity? Do minority students share common stressors?
  7. Other Personal Stressors. Are people spending more less time at work than ever before? Are people enjoying work more or less than before? Can a job be therapeutic? Is work inherently stressful, or is it your attitudes about work the true threat? Does your body have an impact on your emotions? According to the book, what is the prevalence of learning disabilities in college students? (ANS: 1 in 10). List examples of difficulties encountered by people with learning disabilities. 
  8. Societal Stressors. Can discrimination cause distress? According to the book (p. 36), has intolerance increased or decreased on campus in the last decade? Is the deliberate use of force to injure a leading cause of death in young people?
  9. Stress Survival (pp. 37-39). T/F: Some people respond to stress with self-destructive behavior. What do we call a psychological device that helps us cope with personal problems? (ANS: a defense mechanism). T/F: The key to coping with stress is your perception and response to the stressor. What is reframing? Of the suggestions on pp. 37 - 39, what is your favorite method of gaining stress control?  
  10. What can help me relax? (This section discusses selected methods of relaxation, such as progressive relaxation, visualization, mediation, mindfulness, and biofeedback. Although these techniques can be helpful to some individuals, response vary. Healthy methods of relaxing are individualized. Be wary of instant cures. I am not going to hold you responsible for this section but do want to note that the author forgot to mention one of the best proven method of relations: physical exercise.)
  11. Time Management. Although many experts offer methods to make the most of time, do a large percentage of these succeed? For you, which of the eight checked recommendations on pp. 40-41 are specifically useful to you? What is "putting things off to tomorrow" called? Does procrastination relieve or increase distress? Do procrastinators receive higher or lower grades in college than students who do not procrastinate? How does a "To Do" list help with daily time-management? List the three most common types of procrastination.