Deck 14: Health

Question 1

Which of the following statements is supported by research in health and well-being?

A) Divorce is associated with decreased alcohol consumption and insomnia.
B) People can experience positive and negative emotions simultaneously.
C) Major life events contribute more to illness than does the accumulation of daily hassles.
D) Negative events produce more antibodies than do positive events.

Answer 1

People can experience positive and negative emotions simultaneously.

Question 2

The APA conducted a nationwide survey in 2017 that asked men and women to indicate the sources of stress in their lives. Which stressor was cited by 51 percent of the respondents?

A) Work-related issues
B) Health concerns
C) Violence and crime
D) Current political climate

Answer 2

Violence and crime

Question 3

In interviews with hospital patients, Holmes and Rahe (1967) found that illness was often preceded by a major life event. Their finding is consistent with the hypothesis that

A) stress is caused by change.
B) childhood trauma can exacerbate stress.
C) positive life events eliminate stress.
D) exposure to infection, rather than stress, produces physical illness.

Answer 3

stress is caused by change.

Question 4

According to the research by Susan Nolen-Hoeksema and Jannay Morrow (1991) with a group of Stanford University students, the distressing effects of a natural disaster are most likely to emerge among individuals who

A) were least distressed before the event.
B) are high in self-efficacy.
C) experienced the most danger during the event.
D) rely on emotion-focused coping.

Question 5

Compared to life in the year 1900, Americans today are more likely to die from

A) infectious diseases, such as pneumonia.
B) potentially preventable diseases, such as heart attacks and strokes.
C) natural disasters, such as hurricanes and floods.
D) accidents (excluding motor vehicle accidents).

Question 6

The process by which we make judgments about the demands of potentially stressful events as well as our ability to meet those demands is called

A) proactive coping.
B) problem-focused coping.
C) appraisal.
D) stress-and-coping process.

Question 7

All of the following are examples of microstressors except

A) traffic.
B) noisy neighbors.
C) natural disasters.
D) waiting in a long line.

Question 8

According to Lazarus and Folkman (1984), when faced with an event that may prove threatening, how we will experience the stress and what coping strategies we will use is determined by our subjective appraisal of the situation. The researchers were referring to the ________.

A) generalized tendency to expect positive outcomes
B) expectation that our behaviors can produce satisfying outcomes
C) thoughts, feelings, and behaviors we will employ to try to reduce the stress
D) cognitive and behavioral efforts to reduce stress by overcoming the source of the problem

Question 9

The incidence of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is

A) less severe among those prone to catastrophic thinking.
B) more among men than women.
C) common among military personnel, not the general citizenry.
D) higher three to six months after a soldier's return than immediately afterward.

Question 10

Following a terrible car accident, Ruby is anxious, socially withdrawn, has difficulty sleeping, and experiences flashbacks of the crash. Ruby is most likely suffering from

A) the illusion of invulnerability.
B) posttraumatic stress disorder.
C) a depressive explanatory style.
D) Type A behavior.

Question 11

The annual number of work hours in Japan has dropped to below average among developed countries as a result of the country's efforts to fight _______

A) learned helplessness.
B) ikigai .
C) karoshi.
D) PTSD.

Question 12

Efforts to reduce stress are known as

A) appraisal.
B) coping.
C) explanatory style.
D) adaptation.

Question 13

Sarah is stressed about her upcoming exam, so she goes to the gym to work out and feels less stressed afterward. Shine is also stressed about her exam, but she decides to budget extra time to study and hires a tutor, which makes her feel less stressed. Both Sarah and Shine are engaged in

A) coping.
B) appraisal.
C) learning helplessness.
D) adaptation.

Question 14

Analyzing national surveys that were conducted from 1983 to 2009, Sheldon Cohen and Denise Janicki-Deverts (2012) found that more stress is consistently reported by

A) men than women.
B) those who are retired rather than employed.
C) minority respondents than whites.
D) people in general who are older and more educated.

Question 15

Marla studies the link between psychological stress and physical health. Marla is most likely a(n)

A) forensic psychologist.
B) health psychologist.
C) industrial/organizational psychologist.
D) social worker.

Question 16

Health psychology

A) is one of the oldest subfields in all of psychology, including psychoanalytic and behavioral psychology.
B) recognizes the clear distinction between biological and psychological factors.
C) is the application of psychology to the promotion of physical health and prevention and treatment of illness.
D) focuses primarily on mental health and psychological well-being.

Question 17

Stress is widely viewed as

A) an unpleasant state of arousal.
B) synonymous with anxiety.
C) a permanent mental state.
D) inescapable on a daily basis.

Question 18

Getting married, surviving a tornado, and dealing with a long, congested commute to work are all

A) major life events.
B) catastrophes.
C) daily hassles.
D) stressors.

Question 19

Imagine that an earthquake occurs in Missouri soon after a hurricane strikes Florida and a flood strikes South Dakota. Jorge, a psychiatrist with a specialty in dealing with suicidal individuals, is ready to be dispatched to one of these locations to offer assistance. Based on the suicide rates that follow major disasters, Jorge will be needed

A) equally in all three locations.
B) more in Missouri and Florida than in South Dakota.
C) more in Florida and South Dakota than in Missouri.
D) more in Missouri and South Dakota than in Florida.

Question 20

Anything that causes an unpleasant state of arousal that arises when we perceive that the demands of a situation threaten our ability to cope effectively is known as a(n)

A) stressor.
B) alarm reaction.
C) explanatory style.
D) resistance.

Question 21

Regina learns that hostility is a factor in the development of high blood pressure, so she now tries to suppress her anger. Consequently, her blood pressure will most probably

A) decrease.
B) increase.
C) stabilize.
D) change erratically.

Question 22

High levels of hostility have been found to predict

A) extreme forms of health-conscious behaviors.
B) greater use of emotion-focused coping.
C) more intense cardiovascular responses to events.
D) lowered blood pressure in intense social situations.

Question 23

Animal and human studies show that when females are isolated, unsupported, and in social distress, they exhibit elevated levels of the hormone _______.

A) cortisol, which, in turn, increases their tendency to seek out social contact.
B) oxytocin, which, in turn, increases their tendency to seek out social contact.
C) cortisol, which, in turn, increases their preparation for "fight or flight."
D) oxytocin, which, in turn, increases their preparation for "fight or flight."

Question 24

What is not a reason for why socioeconomic status is negatively associated with the experience of daily hassles?

A) Low-income neighborhoods are more crowded than high-income neighborhoods.
B) People from low SES backgrounds have fewer medical resources.
C) Low-income families are more likely to have a poor diet.
D) Children in low-income families have few opportunities for physical exercise.

Question 25

Selye's (1936) general adaptation syndrome includes all of the following stages except

A) alarm.
B) exhaustion.
C) recovery.
D) resistance.

Question 26

Sapolsky (2004) argues that for humans, from an evolutionary perspective, psychological stress is a(n)

A) recent invention.
B) adaptive benefit.
C) long-term selection advantage.
D) immunological response.

Question 27

Studying railroad commuters who traveled regularly from their homes in suburban New Jersey to work in Manhattan, Evans and Wener (2006) found that the longer their commute was,

A) the sloppier they were at a simple proofreading task.
B) the less stress they reported feeling from their subjective point of view.
C) the lower was their level of cortisol over the long term.
D) the fewer were their tangible resources to meet daily challenges.

Question 28

Gurjit is easily angered when threatened and he hates it when his coworkers are not prepared. In addition, he is always in a rush and feels that he has to be the best employee in the company. Gurjit's personality can be said to most consistently exhibit

A) optimism.
B) hardiness.
C) self-focused depression.
D) Type A personality.

Question 29

Caleb has a Type A personality. The aspect of his behavior that is likely to place him at greatest risk for coronary heart disease is his

A) hostility.
B) competitive orientation.
C) impatience.
D) workaholism.

Question 30

Upfront efforts to ward off or modify the onset of a stressful event are referred to _____ coping.

A) problem-focused
B) emotion-focused
C) proactive
D) active

Question 31

Bernie is about to be attacked by the class bully and thus is under stress. According to the general adaptation syndrome, Bernie can expect

A) his digestive functions to accelerate.
B) his stress to impede his ability to defend himself.
C) higher levels of adrenaline in his bloodstream.
D) local immunological defenses to be activated immediately.

Question 32

Sanchez is very driven, competitive, and seems to lack patience when things are not going his way. His is a behavior pattern that is

A) depressive explanatory.
B) compulsive.
C) coronary-prone.
D) sociopathic.

Question 33

When females are isolated, unsupported, and in social distress, they

A) become more nurturing and affiliative than men.
B) exhibit heightened fight-or-flight response.
C) show greater symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder.
D) display greater Type A behavior patterns.

Question 34

Married couples who are financially strained are more likely to experience

A) high levels of satisfaction, but low levels of commitment.
B) high levels of commitment, but low levels of satisfaction.
C) illusions of invulnerability in their relationship.
D) more distress and conflict in their relationship.

Question 35

A pattern of behavior characterized by extremes of competitive striving for achievement, a sense of time urgency, hostility, and aggression is called

A) Type A personality.
B) Type B personality.
C) depressed explanatory style.
D) dispositional pessimism.

Question 36

The leading cause of death in the United States for both men and women is

A) cancer.
B) heart disease.
C) diabetes.
D) suicide.

Question 37

Which of the following statements concerning personality and coronary heart disease is true ?

A) Individuals with a Type B personality are more likely to have coronary heart disease than those with Type A personalities.
B) Observations of a person's behavior are a better indicator of Type A personality than self-reports.
C) People who have lots of anger and suppress it are less likely to develop high blood pressure than those with anger who express it.
D) The most toxic personality ingredient associated with coronary heart disease is competitiveness.

Question 38

As a symptom of experiencing burnout at work, women are more likely to show ____ , while men are more likely to show ____.

A) depersonalization; learned helplessness
B) learned helplessness; emotional exhaustion
C) depersonalization; emotional exhaustion
D) emotional exhaustion; depersonalization

Question 39

Prolonged response to job stress resulting in emotional exhaustion, cynicism, disengagement, and lack of personal accomplishment is known as

A) general adaptation syndrome.
B) PTSD.
C) burnout.
D) learned helplessness.

Question 40

While walking home alone late at night, Winona suddenly hears footsteps behind her. Her heart starts to pound, her breathing quickens, and adrenaline begins to course through her body. Within the framework of the general adaptation syndrome, Winona is in the ____ stage.

A) alarm
B) exhaustion
C) recovery
D) resistance

Question 41

The study of the connections among the brain, behavior, psychological states, the immune system, health, and illness is called

A) immunology.
B) psychocardiology.
C) psychoneuroimmunology.
D) social psychology.

Question 42

Ralph has had a stressful month. His girlfriend dumped him, he failed three exams, and someone stole his car. According to Abramson et al.'s (1989) notion of hopelessness, Ralph's reactions to these events depend on his

A) outlook.
B) perspective.
C) attributions.
D) self-esteem.

Question 43

Which of the following is not a method used to observe operations in the immune system?

A) Determine the lymphocyte count in a blood draw.
B) Extract blood, add cancerous tumor cells, and measure effectiveness of natural killer cells.
C) Inject a foreign agent in the skin and measure the amount of swelling.
D) Swab the inside of a cheek and measure the level of cortisol.

Question 44

Stress may weaken the immune system in part by

A) allowing production of lymphocytes in the bloodstream.
B) shrinking adrenal glands, enlarging lymph nodes.
C) increasing unhealthy behaviors.
D) alternating periods of physical exertion and rest.

Question 45

Monty studies hard for math, but never seems to "get it." Week after week, he fails his math tests. By the end of the year, Monty does not even try to study for math. Monty is demonstrating

A) problem-focused coping.
B) hardiness.
C) learned helplessness.
D) self-efficacy.

Question 46

Hardy people have the following characteristics except

A) commitment.
B) concentration.
C) control.
D) challenge.

Question 47

In an experiment that tested the effects of negative emotions on the immune system, experimenters gave each participant a blister using a vacuum pump. Which of the following participants took the longest to heal?

A) Participants who had financial problems
B) Participants who had recently undergone a major life stressor
C) Participants who ate an unhealthy diet
D) Participants who had anger-control problems

Question 48

Based on research concerning the link between stress and illness, which of the following individuals is most likely to actually contract a cold if exposed to a cold virus?

A) Craig, who has a Type B personality
B) Charlotte, who is happily married, but just had an argument with her husband
C) Sam, who has been unemployed for two months
D) Miranda, who got a speeding ticket on her way home from work

Question 49

Penelope tends to be hostile and angry much of the time. She recently had an argument with her best friend, Daisy, who is much more easygoing. Would it be advisable for Daisy to bring up the debated subject again, perhaps after a significant period of time has elapsed?

A) Yes, because Penelope, having a strong fight-or-flight response, will have gained perspective in the meantime.
B) No, because Penelope, having a hostile nature, will exhibit intense cardiovascular reactions even long after the argument by just being reminded of it.
C) Yes, because Penelope, being high in hostility, is likely to not remember events in ways that will trigger the same level of anger.
D) No, because Penelope is not exposed to uncontrollable events and will become, in many ways, like a depressed individual.

Question 50

Which of the following statements concerning the link between stress and illness is true ?

A) Stress can increase vulnerability to short-term illnesses, like colds, but does not affect the course of more serious long-term diseases such as cancer.
B) Stress can influence whether or not a person contracts a particular illness, but not the duration or outcome of that illness.
C) Stress increases susceptibility to coronary heart disease and cancer, but not colds and other minor infections.
D) Stress can influence both short-term and long-term illnesses, including colds, coronary heart disease, and cancer.

Question 51

Which of the following statements best characterizes the relationship between stress and illness?

A) Stress increases the number of lymphocytes in the bloodstream, which diminishes the body's ability to fight off disease.
B) Stress increases levels of adrenaline and other hormones that suppress immune cell activity and increase susceptibility to illness.
C) Stress increases the negative attributions that people make, and negative attributions can become self-fulfilling prophecies.
D) Under high levels of stress, people tend to sleep too much, which weakens the immune system and makes illness more likely.

Question 52

The habitual tendency to attribute negative events to causes that are stable, global, and internal is characteristic of

A) hardiness.
B) optimism.
C) Type A behavior style.
D) a depressive explanatory style.

Question 53

After an extraordinarily stressful six months at work, Mahmoud expected some let up in the pressure. However, with the launch of a new project he found himself deluged with more work and, as a consequence, felt his stress mount. He is most likely to enter the ________ stage.

A) alarm
B) exhaustion
C) resistance
D) resolution

Question 54

If Maurice has a depressive explanatory style, then he is likely to attribute his failures to factors that are

A) stable, global, and internal.
B) stable, global, and external.
C) unstable, situational, and internal.
D) unstable, situational, and external.

Question 55

Research in Israel on resilience in the face of terrorism and violence indicates that ____ tend to be more resilient than ____.

A) members of ethnic majority groups; members of the ethnic minority
B) women; men
C) less educated people; more educated people
D) poor people; richer people

Question 56

Which of the following has been demonstrated in research concerning the impact of stress on the immune system?

A) Individuals deprived of sleep for long periods of time exhibit a weakened immune system.
B) Recently divorced or widowed individuals show increased functioning of their immune systems.
C) Both positive and negative events weaken the immune system.
D) Stress weakens the immune systems of rats, but not humans.

Question 57

According to Seligman (1975), depression results primarily from

A) hedonic adaptation.
B) learned helplessness.
C) Type B personality.
D) general adaptation syndrome.

Question 58

Psychological stress has been implicated as a factor in a wide variety of illnesses. This can be explained by the fact that stress

A) can be experienced as either positive or negative.
B) compromises the body's immune system.
C) cannot be treated and thus escalates.
D) promotes an illusion of invulnerability to disease.

Question 59

Lucille lives in a nursing home where she is able to choose her daily activities. Peggy lives in a nursing home where the staff schedules all her activities. Research suggests that compared to Peggy, Lucille will be

A) happier, but less active.
B) more active, but not happier.
C) happier and more active.
D) just as happy and active.

Question 60

Research by Sbarra and colleagues (2011) showed that relative to their married counterparts, people who were divorced at the start of the prospective studies were later 23% more likely to die early from all causes of death during follow-up assessments. This risk was most elevated for ____________

A) men and those younger than 65 years of age.
B) women and those younger than 65 years of age.
C) men and those older than 65 years of age.
D) women and those older than 65 years of age.

Question 61

Cognitive and behavioral efforts to reduce the distress produced by a stressful situation are called ____ coping.

A) problem-focused
B) emotion-focused
C) proactive
D) reactive

Question 62

Which of the following has not been revealed by research on the relationship between optimism and health?

A) Optimists are more likely than pessimists to make a quicker and fuller recovery from coronary artery bypass surgery.
B) A positive correlation exists between hopelessness and mortality.
C) Optimism can have negative consequences when it leads people to believe that they have control over uncontrollable events.
D) Optimists are more likely than pessimists to take an emotion-focused approach to dealing with stress.

Question 63

When Ayanna passes a class, she thinks her success is due to her hard work. When she fails a class, she thinks her failure is due to a lack of hard work. These perceptions reflect a sense of ____ and make it ____ likely that Ayanna will get sick.

A) learned helplessness; more
B) burnout; more
C) commitment; less
D) control; less

Question 64

Although Heloise would like to quit smoking, she is convinced that she is addicted and will never be able to stop. With respect to smoking, Heloise

A) will benefit from emotion-focused coping.
B) is low in self-efficacy.
C) thinks like Pollyanna, the heroine created by writer Eleanor Porter.
D) prefers to engage in problem-focused coping.

Question 65

One limitation to the positive relationship between a sense of control and resiliency is that

A) setting control expectations too high can be harmful when outcomes are negative.
B) a personal sense of control often predicts oversensitivity to the needs and feelings of others.
C) it is much stronger in collectivist cultures than in individualistic cultures.
D) it tends to disappear when a person opts for emotion-focused coping rather than problem-focused coping.

Question 66

Within Carver et al.'s (1989) multidimensional framework, individuals who cope with stressful events by trying to find the good in the situation are relying on

A) mental disengagement.
B) restraint coping.
C) active coping.
D) positive reinterpretation.

Question 67

In their study of procrastination, Tice and Baumeister (1997) found that, compared to non-procrastinators, procrastinators tended to report

A) lower levels of stress throughout the semester.
B) higher levels of stress throughout the semester.
C) lower levels of stress early in the semester and higher levels late in the semester.
D) higher levels of stress early in the semester and lower levels late in the semester.

Question 68

The biological explanation for the correlation between optimism and physical health focuses on

A) risky behaviors and adrenaline.
B) alcohol consumption.
C) the immune system.
D) genetic heritability.

Question 69

Research suggests that procrastination is problematic. Nonetheless, a more controlling orientation epitomized by tackling tasks head-on can be problematic too in that it can

A) prevent problem-focused coping.
B) lead to Type B pattern of behavior.
C) disrupt the focusing of attention.
D) be physiologically taxing.

Question 70

Sue Ellen typically explains negative events using temporary, specific, external attributions. According to Seligman (1991), Sue Ellen could best be described as exhibiting

A) control.
B) hardiness.
C) commitment.
D) optimism.

Question 71

A 2001 study of 1,306 adult men from the Boston area found that ten years later optimism was ________ correlated with ________.

A) positively; emotion-focused coping.
B) positively; problem-focused coping.
C) negatively; coronary heart disease.
D) negatively; self-serving appraisal styles.

Question 72

Sean believes that he has a high sense of control over his own health, so when his kidney transplant unexpectedly fails, he is likely to

A) look at the bright side of life.
B) feel particularly depressed.
C) seek out the company of pessimistic patients.
D) exhibit a particularly strong immune response.

Question 73

Cognitive and behavioral efforts to alter a stressful situation are called ____ coping.

A) problem-focused
B) emotion-focused
C) proactive
D) restraint

Question 74

Janoff-Bulman's (1979) research indicates that self-blame may be adaptive in the long term when it is directed at one's ________ as opposed to one's ________.

A) behavior; character
B) past behavior; present behavior
C) emotion; behavior
D) attitude; circumstances

Question 75

What did Norman Cousins (1989) describe as the "biology of hope"?

A) Positive expectations can be self-fulfilling.
B) Positive expectations lead to optimism.
C) Negative expectations are inevitable.
D) When there's hope, there's life.

Question 76

According to Sarkar and colleagues (2009), heart disease patients were more likely to survive hospitalization when they

A) had high ratings of self-efficacy.
B) exhibited low dispositional optimism.
C) experienced subjective well-being.
D) made stable, global attributions.

Question 77

Frazier's (2003) research on blame, control, and coping among victims of rape indicates that

A) assigning blame to the rapist or self leads to less stress.
B) self-blame is only adaptive when it leads to feelings of future safety.
C) blaming the assailant is the faster way to recover from the trauma.
D) the most useful sense of control is over the past.

Question 78

Erin has been in a bad mood all day, and her wife Leslie is tired of dealing with it. Leslie suggests that Erin go engage in a specific task in the hopes that it will end the bad mood. Which of the following coping strategies comes close to Leslie's suggestion?

A) Mental disengagement
B) Behavioral disengagement
C) Positive reinterpretation
D) Restraint coping

Question 79

Neal knows that the Thanksgiving dinner with his in-laws, who do not particularly like him, will be stressful. He and Nicki, his wife, decide that there are certain topics they will just bluntly change should they be raised by the in-laws. They also decide that Nicki will, should her parents persist, state that family gatherings should be pleasant and pursuing certain issues will create such unpleasantness that she and Neal will leave. Neal and Nicki are best described as engaging in ____ coping.

A) problem-focused
B) emotion-focused
C) proactive
D) restraint

Question 80

A person's belief that he or she is capable of the specific behavior required to produce a desired outcome in a given situation is called

A) self-efficacy.
B) control.
C) hardiness.
D) internal explanatory style.