EMOTIONS & STRESS

Sebastián
THEORIES OF EMOTION
DEFINITION

Emotions are experiential and subjective responses to certain

internal and external stimuli.

Emotion consists of three components: physiological, behavioral

and cognitive
JAMES-LANGE THEORY

Stimulus Physiological Experience of

Response Emotion
PROBLEMS WITH SUCH
THEORY
A given state of physiological arousal is common to many
emotions.

Physiological responses to external stimuli do not always elicit

emotions.
CANNON-BARD THEORY
Physiological
Arousal

Autonomic Nervous
System
Stimulus
Thalamus

Experience of
Emotion

Cerebral Cortex
TWO-FACTOR THEORY
(Schachter & Singer)

Physiological
Arousal
Experience of
Stimulus Emotion

Cognitive
Appraisal
“Some emotions (e.g.
“Typefear)
a quote
are felt
here.”
before being
cognitively appraised.”

– Zajonc, Le Doux, and Armony

–Johnny Appleseed
UNIVERSALITY OF BASIC EMOTIONS

Biological Basis Similar Emotions Across Cultures

Paul Ekman: Six Basic Emotions

 EVOLUTIONARY BASIS
Related to adaptive roles

enhance survival by serving as a useful guide

for quick decisions (fear)

enhance survival by encouraging one to fight

back against an intruder (anger)

influence individual behaviors within a social

context (embarrassment - social conformity)

provide a means for nonverbal communication

and empathy

consideration of emotions - choices

(imagination of emotional responses - decision-
making)
THE ROLE OF THE LIMBIC SYSTEM
amygdala is the conductor of the orchestra of our hypothalamus controls the physiological aspects of
emotional experiences and plays a key role in the emotion: largely through its modulating of the
identification and expression of fear and aggression endocrine system (via pituitary)
EMOTIONS, MEMORY, DECISION-MAKING,
AND THE AUTONOMIC NERVOUS SYSTEM
Emotional experiences can be stored as memories that can be
recalled by similar circumstances.

When memories are formed, the emotions associated with these

memories are often also encoded.

Similar circumstances to a traumatic event can lead to recall of

the memory of the experience, referred to as “flashback”.
prefrontal cortex controls approach and avoidance behaviors (behavioral aspects of emotion)
THE ROLE OF ANS

SNS - Arousal

PNS - Calming

Physiological Index: heart rate,

finger temperature, skin
conductance, and muscle activity
STRESS
CAUSES & MEASURES
Caused by: levels of anxiety + body’s reaction to thought
processes

Forms: negative & positive (eustress)

STRESSORS: CHALLENGING

Life-changing events: death of a loved one, a divorce, a wedding,

or the birth of a child;

Manageable stressors: holidays, traffic jams, and other nuisances.

The definition of stressors is subjective

Determination of a stressor depends on its appraisal (individual

interpretation)

negative + uncontrollable events > negative + controllable

Stressors can be transient or chronic

The physiological response to stress is related to what is referred

to as a fight-or-flight response (Hans Selye)
PHYSIOLOGY & EFFECTS ON
HEALTH

arousal

alertness

energy
SELYE, 1936: GENERAL ADAPTATION SYNDROME

Alarm The arousal of the SNS, resulting in the release of various

stimulatory hormones (corticosterone) — immediate action

The PNS rebounds to baseline (stressor relents)

Resistance
The stress continues to the exhaustion (stressor persists)

Immune system impaired —> susceptibility to illness

Exhaustion
RICHARD LAZARUS: A COGNITIVE THEORY

HOW WE
RESPOND TO
STRESS
evaluates
FIRST whether the
APPRAISAL event appears to
be stressful
assess whether
SECOND the individual
APPRAISAL can handle the
stress
TYPES OF BEHAVIOR PATTERNS RESPONDING
TO STRESS
Type-A pattern of behavior: competitiveness, a sense of urgency, and elevated
feelings of anger and hostility;

Type-B pattern of behavior: low level of competitiveness, low preoccupation with

time issues, and a generally easygoing attitude.
FRIEDMAN & ROSENMAN,
1974

Psychometric test

Example: ‘Has your partner or friend ever told you that you eat too
fast?’

Simplistic A-B — CDH (fail to determine which factor)

A LONGITUDINAL STUDY…

3000 healthy men

39-59 years old

Followed up throughout 9 years

257 men died

70% Type A died

Susceptibility to stress-related diseases (CHD)

STRESSFUL LIFE EVENT APPROACH
(THE ENGINEERING MODEL)

Holmes & Rahe, 1967

Rahe et al., 1970

Psychological measures
(self-report questionnaires)
STRESS AT WORK
2001, Higher Education
Funding Council of England,
3-year study of occupational
stress

main causes: long hours, job

security (employment), work
relationship, access to
resources, communications

Chandola et al., 2008:

biological & behavioral factors
linking work stress with CHD
THE WHITEHALL II STUDY & ITS
RESULTS

Large sample, 35-55 year-olds, 1985-2030 (2-5 years)

Self-report questionnaires + clinical data

Results: work stress is a high risk factor for CHD

OTHER FACTORS

Cultural Differences

Nature vs. Nurture

Reductionist vs. Holistic Approach

PHYSIOLOGICAL MEASURES
Wang et al, 2005: fMRI, mental arithmetic task, self-report, saliva samples

Ventral right prefrontal cortex plays a key role in the central stress
response

Salivary cortisol — biomarker of psychological stress

EVANS & WENER (2007)

Seating density (train) — stress

(travel)

Salivary cortisol/self-reported stress

Evaluations:

Psychometric tests — social desirability bias

Individual difference in stress thresholds

Physiological measure — time-consuming & costly

MANAGEMENT
STRESS MANGAGE:
MEDICATION

SSRI (Prozac): elevate mood

Benzodiazepines: serotonin+,
GABA+
BIOFEEDBACK (BEHAVIORAL)

Electromyography

Voluntary control + operant

conditioning (shaping)

Research support for muscle

contraction headaches
(Budzynski et al., 1969, 15
samples)
GUIDED IMAGERY

Promote relaxation

Reach goals

Research support (Bridge, 1988,

breast cancer women)
CBT: STRESS INOCULATION TRAINING
(SIT)

Stressors are creative opportunities and puzzles to be solved rather than

obstacles.

Recognize thoughts that trigger a stressful experience

Intervention strategies training

THREE PHASES OF SIT
(MEICHENBAUM, 1985)
SELF-STATEMENTS EXAMPLES