Chapter 4: Understanding Stress

Test Bank

Multiple Choice

1. According to research cited in the text (Ptacek, Smith, & Zanas, 1992), relationships account for one-______ of the stressful events that college students experience.

A. fifth

B. quarter

C. third

D. half

Learning Objective: 4-1: Describe different sources of stress.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Relationships

Difficulty Level: Easy

2. The amount of time that doctors and nurses spend providing direct patient care is ______ correlated with the level of stress that they experience.

A. negatively

B. not

C. positively

D. variably

Learning Objective: 4-1: Describe different sources of stress.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Understanding the Scientific Method

Difficulty Level: Medium

3. Rhonette is African American. She states that the results of the 2016 presidential election is a significant source of stress for her. She is not alone; nearly ______ of African Americans feel similarly.

A. 45%

B. 55%

C. 70%

D. 90%

Learning Objective: 4-1: Describe different sources of stress.

Cognitive Domain: Application

Answer Location: Environmental Factors

Difficulty Level: Medium

4. Which choice BEST expresses the proportion of Americans who report elevated fear as a result of the increasing regularity of mass shootings over the past decade?

A. a few

B. a sizeable minority

C. most

D. nearly all

Learning Objective: 4-1: Describe different sources of stress.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Cataclysmic Events

Difficulty Level: Medium

5. People who viewed extensive media coverage of the 2012 Boston Marathon bombing were ______ times more likely to experience high stress than were people who viewed little media coverage of the event.

A. 2

B. 4

C. 7

D. 9

Learning Objective: 4-1: Describe different sources of stress.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Cataclysmic Events

Difficulty Level: Easy

6. Holmes and Rahe’s Social Readjustment Rating Scale (SRRS) measures ______.

A. the severity of PTSD

B. major life events

C. appraisal strategies

D. locus of control

Learning Objective: 4-2: Compare methods of measuring stress.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Major Life Events

Difficulty Level: Easy

7. Which statement does NOT accurately state a limitation of the Social Readjustment Rating Scale (SRRS)?

A. The SRRS lacks sociocultural generality.

B. The scale includes only relatively minor events.

C. The SRRS includes a mix of positive, negative, and ambiguous events.

D. SRRS scores do not correlate with negative health outcomes.

Learning Objective: 4-2: Compare methods of measuring stress.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Major Life Events

Difficulty Level: Hard

8. In the 1990s, Alanis Morissette sang that “a traffic jam when you’re already late” is ironic. Although it actually may not be ironic, this situation is indeed a(n) ______.

A. major life event

B. cataclysm

C. uplift

D. hassle

Learning Objective: 4-2: Compare methods of measuring stress.

Cognitive Domain: Application

Answer Location: Daily Hassles and Uplifts

Difficulty Level: Medium

9. Ellen receives a large tip from a customer. Ellen has experienced a(n) ______.

A. uplift

B. hassle

C. major life event

D. cataclysm

Learning Objective: 4-2: Compare methods of measuring stress.

Cognitive Domain: Application

Answer Location: Daily Hassles and Uplifts

Difficulty Level: Medium

10. The number of daily hassles a person experiences is MOST likely ______ associated with the risk of brief ailments such as headaches and colds.

A. positively

B. negatively

C. not

D. perfectly

Learning Objective: 4-2: Compare methods of measuring stress.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Daily Hassles and Uplifts

Difficulty Level: Hard

11. Brendan must give an oral presentation in 10 min, at the start of his class. In response to this “threat” ______.

A. Brendan’s parasympathetic nervous system becomes active

B. norepinephrine is secreted

C. Brendan’s pupils constrict

D. the activity of Brendan’s digestive system increases

Learning Objective: 4-3: Summarize models of the stress response.

Cognitive Domain: Application

Answer Location: Cannon’s Fight-or-Flight Response

Difficulty Level: Hard

12. Which sequence correctly orders the stages of the general adaptation syndrome, from first to last?

A. alarm 🡪 exhaustion 🡪 resistance

B. alarm 🡪 resistance 🡪 exhaustion

C. resistance 🡪 alarm 🡪 exhaustion

D. resistance 🡪 exhaustion 🡪 alarm

Learning Objective: 4-3: Summarize models of the stress response.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: General Adaptation Syndrome

Difficulty Level: Easy

13. Abdul has just discovered his term paper is due tomorrow when he thought it was due next week. According to Hans Selye, Abdul will MOST likely experience the ______ stage of the general adaptation syndrome.

A. alarm

B. resistance

C. exhaustion

D. appraisal

Learning Objective: 4-3: Summarize models of the stress response.

Cognitive Domain: Application

Answer Location: General Adaptation Syndrome

Difficulty Level: Medium

14. ______ most men, women tend to favor a ______ response to a stressful event.

A. Like; fight-or-flight

B. Like; tend-and-befriend

C. Unlike; fight-or-flight

D. Unlike; tend-and-befriend

Learning Objective: 4-3: Summarize models of the stress response.

Cognitive Domain: Analysis

Answer Location: The Role of Individual Differences

Difficulty Level: Medium

15. A person’s initial assessment of an event as challenging or stressful is called ______ appraisal, whereas their assessment of how to respond to the event is called ______ appraisal.

A. reactive; transactional

B. primary; secondary

C. transactional; reactive

D. secondary; primary

Learning Objective: 4-3: Summarize models of the stress response.

Cognitive Domain: Analysis

Answer Location: The Role of Appraisal

Difficulty Level: Medium

16. ______ is NOT an effect of sympathetic nervous system activity.

A. Increased heart rate

B. Increased digestion

C. Pupil dilation

D. Blood flow to the muscles

Learning Objective: 4-4: Explain the physical consequences of stress on different body systems.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Nervous System

Difficulty Level: Medium

17. Adrenaline is to cortisol as ______ is to ______.

A. hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis; sympathetic adrenomedullary (SAM) system

B. adrenal gland; pancreas

C. adrenal gland; thymus

D. sympathetic adrenomedullary (SAM) system; hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis

Learning Objective: 4-4: Explain the physical consequences of stress on different body systems.

Cognitive Domain: Analysis

Answer Location: Endocrine System

Difficulty Level: Hard

18. The familiar heart rate and blood pressure measures that open every doctor visit are assessments of the health of the ______ system.

A. cardiovascular

B. endocrine

C. immune

D. nervous

Learning Objective: 4-4: Explain the physical consequences of stress on different body systems.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Cardiovascular System

Difficulty Level: Easy

19. Stress may impair the production of disease-fighting white blood cells called ______.

A. leukocytes

B. lymphocytes

C. blastocysts

D. hemocytes

Learning Objective: 4-4: Explain the physical consequences of stress on different body systems.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Immune System

Difficulty Level: Easy

20. T cell is to B cell as ______ is to ______.

A. thymus; bone marrow

B. digesting foreign cells; destroying damaged cells

C. destroying damaged cells; digesting foreign cells

D. bone marrow; thymus

Learning Objective: 4-4: Explain the physical consequences of stress on different body systems.

Cognitive Domain: Analysis

Answer Location: Immune System

Difficulty Level: Hard

21. Dr. Navarre investigates the link between coping strategies and immune system functioning during stressful situations. Dr. Navarre is BEST described as a ______.

A. psychoneuroimmunologist

B. medical psychologist

C. psychophysiologist

D. neuropsychologist

Learning Objective: 4-4: Explain the physical consequences of stress on different body systems.

Cognitive Domain: Application

Answer Location: Psychoneuroimmunology

Difficulty Level: Medium

22. Chau is a recent immigrant from Vietnam. Now living in small shrimping community in southwestern Louisiana, she is struggling to learn English and feels confused and alone. Chau is especially vulnerable to ______ stress.

A. reactive

B. acculturative

C. secondary

D. post-traumatic

Learning Objective: 4-5: Describe effects of stress on well-being, memory and cognition, and behavior.

Cognitive Domain: Application

Answer Location: Psychological Well-Being

Difficulty Level: Medium

23. Over ______ of the people living near a nuclear power plant in Japan experienced at least some symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder during a major 2011 earthquake.

A. one-half

B. two-thirds

C. three-quarters

D. four-fifths

Learning Objective: 4-5: Describe effects of stress on well-being, memory and cognition, and behavior.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

Difficulty Level: Medium

24. Which correlation coefficient might a researcher find between cortisol levels and scores on a measure of working memory capacity?

A. –.35

B. .05

C. .25

D. .55

Learning Objective: 4-5: Describe effects of stress on well-being, memory and cognition, and behavior.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Memory and Cognition

Difficulty Level: Hard

25. Lorena suffers from major depressive disorder. All else being equal, Lorena’s chances of experiencing a cardiac event are increased by ______. She ______ reduce this risk if she exercises extensively.

A. 15%; can

B. 15%; cannot

C. 30%; can

D. 30%; cannot

Learning Objective: 4-5: Describe effects of stress on well-being, memory and cognition, and behavior.

Cognitive Domain: Application

Answer Location: Behavioral Choices

Difficulty Level: Medium

True/False

1. Stressor is to stress as stimulus is to response.

Learning Objective: 4-1: Describe different sources of stress.

Cognitive Domain: Analysis

Answer Location: Preview

Difficulty Level: Medium

2. Only negative events cause stress.

Learning Objective: 4-1: Describe different sources of stress.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Relationships

Difficulty Level: Easy

3. Merely checking the notifications on one’s phone frequently is likely to increase one’s stress.

Learning Objective: 4-2: Compare methods of measuring stress.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Daily Hassles and Uplifts

Difficulty Level: Easy

4. Resistance is the first stage in the general adaptation syndrome.

Learning Objective: 4-3: Summarize models of the stress response.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: General Adaptation Syndrome

Difficulty Level: Easy

5. People are MOST vulnerable to illness in the alarm stage of the general adaptation syndrome.

Learning Objective: 4-3: Summarize models of the stress response.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: General Adaptation Syndrome

Difficulty Level: Medium

6. The parasympathetic nervous system slows digestion.

Learning Objective: 4-4: Explain the physical consequences of stress on different body systems.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Nervous System

Difficulty Level: Easy

7. Both B cells and T cells are white blood cells.

Learning Objective: 4-4: Explain the physical consequences of stress on different body systems.

Cognitive Domain: Comprehension

Answer Location: Immune System

Difficulty Level: Medium

8. Depression increases the risk of a heart attack as much as obesity does.

Learning Objective: 4-5: Describe effects of stress on well-being, memory and cognition, and behavior.

Cognitive Domain: Knowledge

Answer Location: Psychological Well-Being

Difficulty Level: Easy

Essay

1. Sigmund Freud famously said that “love and work are the cornerstones of our humanness.” How does contemporary research on the sources of stress lend credence to Freud’ statement?

Learning Objective: 4-1: Describe different sources of stress.

Cognitive Domain: Analysis

Answer Location: Relationships

Difficulty Level: Medium

2. Define psychoneuroimmunology. Explain how this field reflects the biopsychosocial rather than the biomedical model of health. Making explicit reference to the model of stress and disease developed in the text, suggest at least two ways that psychoneuroimmunologists could pay increased research attention to the social component of the biopsychosocial model of health.

Learning Objective: 4-4: Explain the physical consequences of stress on different body systems.

Cognitive Domain: Analysis

Answer Location: Psychoneuroimmunology

Difficulty Level: Hard