Frequently Asked Questions
Chapter 47: Stress, Coping, and Adaptation

What are examples of physical, physiological, and psychosocial stressors?

Examples of physical stressors are a broken bone, a laceration, or a gun shot wound. Examples of physiological stressors are hypertension, hyperglycemia, or hypokalemia. Examples of psychosocial stressors are divorce, grief, or graduation from school.

Why are positive events considered to be stressors?

Positive events can be stressors because they cause a person to make some changes. For example, the birth of a baby is usually seen as positive, but requires the parents and even extended family to adapt and face new challenges.

What are the five common types of stressors?

The five common types of stressors are physiological, psychological, cognitive, environmental, and sociocultural. Physiological stressors include maturation, trauma, illness, poor nutrition, sleep disturbances, hunger, discomfort, and pain. Psychological stressors include worry, fear, anger, and happiness. Cognitive stressors include thoughts, perceptions, and interpretation of events. Environmental stressors include extreme temperatures, air pollution, noise pollution, crowding, and time pressures. Sociocultural stressors include job loss or promotion, changes in interpersonal relationships, interpersonal conflict, living conditions, and the loss of a loved one.

What are the characteristics common to all crises?

The characteristics common to all crises are the suddenness of the precipitating event, the identifiable specificity of the precipitating event, the overwhelming or life-threatening nature of the situation, the inability of the experiencing person(s) to resolve the situation with usual coping skills, and the need for intervention to achieve equilibrium.

What are the differences between problem-focused, cognitively-focused, and emotion-focused coping mechanisms?

Problem-focused mechanisms involve direct efforts to cope with stress by thinking through the situation and applying a solution. Cognitively-focused mechanisms are attempts to control the meaning of a problem and neutralize it, for example, by redefining the problem to make it less intense. Emotion-focused mechanisms are the use of ego-defense mechanisms such as denial or projection.

What are possible reasons that people resist change?

People resist change due to conformity with the group, differences in beliefs and values from those who advocate a change, habit, satisfaction with the status quo, secondary gains of not changing, threats to satisfaction of basic needs, fear, and unrealistic goals.

What are some self-care strategies to coping with stress?

Self-care strategies to coping with stress are using high priority goals to make decisions, making personal health a priority, knowing your own responses to stress, evaluating your own responses to stress, using strategies that maintain balance and self-control, refocusing priorities when overwhelmed, networking with others, maintaining an openness to new ideas, managing time effectively, recognizing one’s own limitations, and affirming self-esteem and accomplishments.