Quiz: Stress and Health — 32 questions

1. A student develops anxiety, poor concentration, and sleep problems after receiving a demanding assignment. What is the stress in this example?

A. The student’s physical, emotional, and cognitive reaction

B. The scale used to measure the assignment’s difficulty

C. The student’s judgment that the assignment was meaningful

D. The assignment that created the demanding situation

Answer: (A)

Explanation

Stress refers to the organism’s reaction to an event perceived as demanding, including emotional, cognitive, and physical responses. The assignment itself is the stressor, not the stress.

2. Two employees receive the same workplace change, but one views it as an opportunity and the other views it as a threat. What process explains their different responses?

A. Personal appraisal of the situation

B. Exposure to different physical stressors

C. Automatic activation of the same reaction

D. Measurement of their life change units

Answer: (A)

Explanation

Appraisal is the personal interpretation through which someone evaluates a situation as threatening, challenging, or meaningful. The workplace change is the shared event being interpreted, whereas appraisal explains the difference in meaning.

3. Which situation best illustrates eustress rather than distress?

A. Receiving a promotion that requires substantial adjustment

B. Developing sleep problems after repeated financial worries

C. Facing an unpleasant conflict that produces irritability

D. Experiencing an unpredictable disaster that creates fear

Answer: (A)

Explanation

Eustress is stress produced by a positive event that still demands substantial adjustment and may support wellbeing. The other situations describe unpleasant or threatening circumstances associated with distress.

4. Which event best fits the definition of a catastrophe?

A. A demanding examination that challenges one student

B. A planned move that requires adapting to a new home

C. A marriage that creates several new responsibilities

D. An unpredictable earthquake affecting a large population

Answer: (D)

Explanation

Catastrophes are large-scale, unpredictable stressors that create tremendous stress and a real sense of threat. Moves, examinations, and marriages can require adjustment but do not necessarily have the large-scale unpredictable character of catastrophes.

5. What does the Social Readjustment Rating Scale estimate?

A. Stress by counting daily annoyances rated during one week

B. Stress by measuring symptoms reported after a catastrophe

C. Stress by summing life change units from the previous year

D. Stress by comparing positive and negative emotions each day

Answer: (C)

Explanation

Holmes and Rahe’s scale estimates stress by adding life change units for major events during the previous twelve months. It is not a checklist of daily hassles or a direct measure of emotional symptoms.

6. A person receives a Social Readjustment Rating Scale score of 325. What does this score indicate?

A. A moderate level of daily irritation without medical significance

B. A high risk of soon experiencing illness or an accident

C. A confirmed diagnosis of a stress-related mental disorder

D. A low likelihood of experiencing health consequences soon

Answer: (B)

Explanation

A score of 300 or higher signals a high risk of physical illness, mental illness, or an accident occurring soon. The score indicates risk rather than confirming a diagnosis or guaranteeing a particular outcome.

7. Which example is a daily hassle rather than a catastrophe?

A. Waiting in a long line after a delayed bus

B. Losing a home during a large-scale flood

C. Surviving an unpredictable earthquake affecting a city

D. Living through a sudden attack on a community

Answer: (A)

Explanation

Daily hassles are small everyday annoyances such as delays, frustrations, and irritations. Earthquakes, floods, and attacks affecting communities are large-scale unpredictable stressors more consistent with catastrophes.

8. Which pattern correctly distinguishes the health effects predicted by major life events and daily hassles?

A. Major events predict emotional reactions, while hassles predict physical illnesses

B. Major events predict daily irritation, while hassles predict major accidents

C. Major events predict short-term symptoms, while hassles predict long-term effects

D. Major events predict long-term effects, while hassles predict short-term problems

Answer: (D)

Explanation

Major life events tend to predict long-term health effects, whereas daily hassles better predict short-term problems such as headaches, colds, and backaches. The alternatives reverse or replace this distinction with unsupported relationships.

9. Which sequence correctly describes Hans Selye's General Adaptation Syndrome?

A. Alarm, resistance, and exhaustion

B. Exhaustion, alarm, and restoration

C. Alarm, recovery, and resistance

D. Resistance, recovery, and alarm

Answer: (A)

Explanation

Hans Selye’s model describes stress as progressing through alarm, resistance, and exhaustion. The autonomic nervous system has two branches, but those branches are not the three stages of the General Adaptation Syndrome.

10. What occurs during the alarm stage of the General Adaptation Syndrome?

A. Sympathetic activation raises heart rate, blood pressure, and blood sugar

B. Resources become fully depleted and vulnerability to illness increases

C. Stress symptoms ease while the body maintains resistance to the stressor

D. Parasympathetic activation lowers heart rate and restores physiological balance

Answer: (A)

Explanation

During alarm, sympathetic activation and adrenal hormones provide rapid energy by raising heart rate, blood pressure, and blood sugar. Parasympathetic restoration is associated with recovery after stress rather than the alarm response.

11. A person remains exposed to a stressor for several days, but the initial symptoms become less intense while stress hormones continue supporting performance. Which stage is this?

A. The resistance stage

B. The alarm stage

C. The exhaustion stage

D. The recovery stage

Answer: (A)

Explanation

The resistance stage occurs when continued stress hormones help the body cope while early alarm symptoms ease and resources gradually decline. The exhaustion stage begins later, when the body’s resources have been fully used.

12. What best characterizes the exhaustion stage of the General Adaptation Syndrome?

A. Reduced stress symptoms indicate that the body has restored balance

B. Fully depleted resources increase vulnerability to serious illness

C. Continued adaptation preserves resources despite prolonged stress

D. Initial sympathetic activation supplies additional energy for coping

Answer: (B)

Explanation

Exhaustion begins when the body’s resources are fully used, increasing risks such as high blood pressure, ulcers, weakened immunity, and extreme illness. Reduced early symptoms describe resistance rather than exhaustion.

13. What does psychoneuroimmunology study?

A. How infectious agents reproduce inside immune-system tissues

B. How psychological factors influence the immune system

C. How medications alter blood pressure during acute stress

D. How immune cells cause psychological disorders without environmental influences

Answer: (B)

Explanation

Psychoneuroimmunology examines how stress, emotion, learning, and behaviour affect immune functioning. General immunology studies the immune system but does not specifically require psychological factors.

14. How do short-lived and chronic stress generally differ in their effects on immunity?

A. Both forms strengthen immunity because stress hormones improve immune functioning

B. Both forms weaken immunity because any stress suppresses immune responses

C. Short-lived stress weakens immunity, whereas chronic stress can activate it

D. Short-lived stress can activate immunity, whereas chronic stress can weaken it

Answer: (D)

Explanation

Short-lived stress may temporarily activate immune responses, while ongoing chronic stress can weaken the immune system. The claim that any stress suppresses immunity overlooks the potentially activating effect of brief stress.

15. Why can psychological stress increase inflammation and the risk of inflammatory diseases?

A. Stress eliminates cortisol, causing immune cells to stop responding

B. Stress can make cortisol less effective at controlling inflammation

C. Stress prevents inflammatory processes from contributing to disease risk

D. Stress makes cortisol permanently suppress immune activity throughout the body

Answer: (B)

Explanation

Psychological stress can reduce cortisol’s effectiveness in controlling inflammation, allowing inflammation to increase and contributing to risks such as arthritis, heart disease, diabetes, and cancer. Stress does not necessarily eliminate cortisol or make it permanently suppressive.

16. What defines coronary heart disease?

A. Waxy plaque builds up inside the arteries supplying the heart

B. Insulin becomes less effective as body size and cytokine activity increase

C. A brief stress response temporarily increases immune-system activity

D. Cells divide uncontrollably, form tumours, and damage nearby organs

Answer: (A)

Explanation

Coronary heart disease involves the buildup of waxy plaque inside the heart’s arteries. Insulin resistance describes type 2 diabetes, while uncontrolled cell division describes cancer.

17. Which description best defines type 2 diabetes and the way stress can worsen it?

A. Cells divide uncontrollably, and stress causes tumours to form in organs

B. Immune responses become temporarily activated, and stress improves glucose control

C. Insulin resistance increases, and stress can intensify it through cytokines

D. Heart arteries become narrowed by plaque, and stress increases arterial pressure

Answer: (C)

Explanation

Type 2 diabetes involves insulin becoming less effective, and stress can worsen this resistance through increased cytokines. Plaque buildup describes coronary heart disease, whereas uncontrolled cell division describes cancer.

18. Which feature distinguishes cancer as a group of diseases?

A. Insulin becomes less effective as body size and cytokine levels increase

B. Cells divide uncontrollably, form tumours, and can damage organs

C. Stress hormones temporarily raise blood sugar to provide rapid energy

D. Waxy plaque accumulates inside arteries supplying the heart

Answer: (B)

Explanation

Cancer consists of diseases in which cells divide uncontrollably, form tumours, damage organs, and may cause death. Plaque buildup and insulin resistance describe coronary heart disease and type 2 diabetes, respectively.

19. Which situation best illustrates psychological pressure?

A. A supervisor requires an employee to finish an urgent report quickly

B. A runner misses a race because an injury prevents participation

C. A traveler must choose between two equally attractive destinations

D. A student cannot enter a desired program because of limited places

Answer: (A)

Explanation

Pressure arises when an outside demand creates an urgent expectation about how someone should behave. The other situations describe blocked goals or competing alternatives rather than an urgent external demand.

20. What psychological experience occurs when a desired goal is blocked or a felt need remains unmet?

A. Pressure

B. Persistence

C. Frustration

D. Conflict

Answer: (C)

Explanation

Frustration is produced by a blocked goal or an unmet need. Conflict instead involves incompatible goals or actions, while pressure concerns urgent external demands.

21. A musician cannot reach a performance goal because poor eyesight makes reading the score difficult; what type of frustration is this?

A. External frustration caused by a delayed opportunity

B. Pressure caused by an urgent outside demand

C. Conflict caused by two incompatible performance goals

D. Internal frustration caused by a personal characteristic

Answer: (D)

Explanation

The obstacle is a personal characteristic that prevents goal attainment, which defines internal frustration. External frustration would result from circumstances such as rejection, loss, failure, or delay outside the person.

22. Which situation best represents psychological conflict?

A. Feeling rushed to submit an application before a deadline

B. Being unable to attend a concert because transportation fails

C. Choosing between accepting a demanding job and remaining in a familiar position

D. Continuing practice after an initial attempt does not succeed

Answer: (C)

Explanation

Conflict occurs when incompatible goals, desires, or actions compete and cannot all be satisfied at once. The other situations involve a blocked goal, an urgent outside demand, or persistence after frustration.

23. Which conflict pattern is generally the most stressful because both available alternatives are unpleasant?

A. Avoidance–avoidance conflict

B. Multiple approach–avoidance conflict

C. Approach–avoidance conflict

D. Approach–approach conflict

Answer: (A)

Explanation

Avoidance–avoidance conflict presents two unpleasant options, creating a highly stressful lose–lose choice. Approach–approach conflict instead involves two appealing goals and is usually easier to resolve.

24. A person wants one vacation destination because it is exciting but dislikes its cost, while another destination has different advantages and drawbacks; what pattern is illustrated?

A. Multiple approach–avoidance conflict involving several mixed-value goals

B. Approach–approach conflict involving two appealing goals

C. Approach–avoidance conflict involving one goal with mixed qualities

D. Avoidance–avoidance conflict involving two unpleasant options

Answer: (A)

Explanation

Several destinations each have attractive and unattractive qualities, which defines multiple approach–avoidance conflict. A standard approach–avoidance conflict concerns one goal with both positive and negative qualities.

25. What does Richard Lazarus's cognitive-mediation theory propose determines how stressful an event feels and which emotions follow?

A. The number of people observing the event

B. The physical intensity of the stressor

C. The length of time since the event occurred

D. The person's appraisal of the stressor

Answer: (D)

Explanation

Lazarus's theory holds that appraisal mediates the emotional response, determining how stressful the event feels and which emotions arise. The stressor is the event being evaluated, not the appraisal process itself.

26. Which appraisal evaluates whether a person has sufficient resources to manage a stressor?

A. Threat appraisal

B. Loss appraisal

C. Primary appraisal

D. Secondary appraisal

Answer: (D)

Explanation

Secondary appraisal assesses available coping resources and whether they can manage the stressor. Primary appraisal evaluates the stressor itself as a threat, challenge, or loss or harm.

27. Which coping response directly addresses a workplace stressor by changing its source?

A. Creating a plan to reduce the workload

B. Practicing breathing to lessen anxiety

C. Discussing feelings with a trusted friend

D. Reframing the situation as less threatening

Answer: (A)

Explanation

Problem-focused coping acts on the stressor itself by removing or reducing its source. Breathing, reframing, and emotional discussion primarily alter the person’s emotional response rather than the stressful condition.

28. When a person cannot control an impending medical procedure, which response best illustrates emotion-focused coping?

A. Seeking information about changing the procedure

B. Practicing acceptance to reduce distress

C. Negotiating with staff to alter the procedure

D. Requesting a different appointment time

Answer: (B)

Explanation

Emotion-focused coping changes how a person feels or reacts when the stressor cannot be controlled. The other responses attempt to modify the situation itself and therefore represent problem-focused coping.

29. What is the primary purpose of meditation as a stress-management technique?

A. To increase muscle tension and sharpen physical alertness

B. To refocus attention and counter physiological stress reactions

C. To analyze the practical source of a stressful situation

D. To produce sleep by generating predominantly delta-wave activity

Answer: (B)

Explanation

Meditation uses mental exercises to refocus attention, promote deep relaxation, and counter physiological stress reactions. Delta-wave activity is associated with actual sleep, while analyzing a stressor is not meditation’s defining purpose.

30. Which sequence correctly describes progressive muscle relaxation?

A. Imagine a peaceful setting and engage several senses

B. Focus on breathing while keeping every muscle relaxed

C. Tense each muscle group and then gradually release it

D. Recall a stressful event and examine its emotional meaning

Answer: (C)

Explanation

Progressive muscle relaxation deliberately tenses and then releases muscle groups, commonly beginning with the feet and moving upward. Imagining a peaceful setting describes visualisation, whereas the other responses do not use the defining tension-release process.

31. Which example best represents social support?

A. A neighbour helping someone recover after surgery

B. A person privately repeating a calming phrase

C. A person deliberately tensing and releasing muscles

D. A person imagining the sounds of a quiet beach

Answer: (A)

Explanation

Social support is help received through relationships, including practical assistance from neighbours, family, friends, or coworkers. The other examples are individual relaxation or meditation practices rather than relationship-based help.

32. Which outcome is associated with strong social support?

A. Reduced cognitive functioning during healthy ageing

B. Greater isolation and reduced access to emotional resources

C. More severe stress symptoms after imagining future threats

D. Lower mortality and improved management of illness-related symptoms

Answer: (D)

Explanation

Strong social support is associated with lower mortality, better symptom and pain management, improved cognitive functioning, healthier ageing, and longer life. Isolation is associated with losing protective relationship resources, while severe stress from imagined threats is unrelated to the stated social-support findings.