Psychological stress
In psychology, stress is a feeling of emotional strain and pressure.[1] Stress is a type of psychological pain. Small amounts of stress may be beneficial, as it can improve athletic performance, motivation and reaction to the environment. Excessive amounts of stress, however, can increase the risk of strokes, heart attacks, ulcers, and mental illnesses such as depression[2] and also aggravation of a pre-existing condition.
For other kinds of stress, see Stress.
Psychological stress can be external and related to the environment,[3] but may also be caused by internal perceptions that cause an individual to experience anxiety or other negative emotions surrounding a situation, such as pressure, discomfort, etc., which they then deem stressful.
Hans Selye (1974) proposed four variations of stress.[4] On one axis he locates good stress (eustress) and bad stress (distress). On the other is over-stress (hyperstress) and understress (hypostress). Selye advocates balancing these: the ultimate goal would be to balance hyperstress and hypostress perfectly and have as much eustress as possible.[5]
The term "eustress" comes from the Greek root eu- which means "good" (as in "euphoria").[6] Eustress results when a person perceives a stressor as positive.[7]
"Distress" stems from the Latin root dis- (as in "dissonance" or "disagreement").[6] Medically defined distress is a threat to the quality of life. It occurs when a demand vastly exceeds a person's capabilities.[7]
Causes[edit]
Neutrality of Stressors[edit]
Stress is a non-specific response.[5] It is neutral, and what varies is the degree of response. It is all about the context of the individual and how they perceive the situation. Hans Selye defined stress as “the nonspecific (that is, common) result of any demand upon the body, be the effect mental or somatic.”[5] This includes the medical definition of stress as a physical demand and the colloquial definition of stress as a psychological demand. A stressor is inherently neutral meaning that the same stressor can cause either distress or eustress. It is individual differences and responses that induce either distress or eustress.[8]
Types of stressors[edit]
A stressor is any event, experience, or environmental stimulus that causes stress in an individual.[9] These events or experiences are perceived as threats or challenges to the individual and can be either physical or psychological. Researchers have found that stressors can make individuals more prone to both physical and psychological problems, including heart disease and anxiety.[10]
Stressors are more likely to affect the health of an individual when they are "chronic, highly disruptive, or perceived as uncontrollable".[10] In psychology, researchers generally classify the different types of stressors into four categories: 1) crises/catastrophes, 2) major life events, 3) daily hassles/microstressors, and 4) ambient stressors. According to Ursin (1988), the common factor between these categories is an inconsistency between expected events ("set value") and perceived events ("actual value") that cannot be resolved satisfactorily,[11] which puts stress into the broader context of cognitive-consistency theory.[12]
Measurement[edit]
Modern people may attempt to self-assess their own "stress-level"; third parties (sometimes clinicians) may also provide qualitative evaluations. Quantitative approaches such as Galvanic Skin Response[25] or other measurements giving results which may correlate with perceived psychological stress include testing for one or more of the several stress hormones,[26] for cardiovascular responses,[27] or for immune response.[28] There are some valid questionnaires to assess stress level such as, Higher Education Stress Inventory (HESI) is a valid questionnaire used in many communities for assessment the stress level of college students.[29][30]
There are many (psycho-)physiological measurement methods that correlate more or less well with psychological stress (mental or emotional) and are thus used as a possible indicator.[31][32][33][34][35][36][37][38][39]
In the physiological domain of oculomotor function alone, several physiological responses are suspected to detect different stress situations in a person-specific and objective manner (not by means of a survey). For example, via eye movement and gaze behavior,[40][41][42] via pupil behavior[43][44][45][46] and via eyelid blink behavior (Blinking).[47][48][40][49][50]
Social impact[edit]
History[edit]
Prior to the introduction of the concept "stress" in the psychological sense c. 1955,[102][103] people already identified a range of more nuanced ideas to describe and confront such emotions as worry, grief, concern,[104] obsession, fear, annoyance, anxiety, distress, suffering and passion.[105]
By the 19th century, the popularisation of the nascent science of neurology made it possible to group some undifferentiated combination of one or more of these with an informal diagnosis such as "nerve strain".[106]
"Stress" has subsequently become a mainstay of pop psychology.[107][108] Though stress is discussed throughout history from many distinct topics and cultures, there is no universal consensus over describing stress.[109] This has led to multiple kinds of research, looking at the different aspects of psychological stress and how it changes over a lifespan.[109]