Stress studies and evaluations

Page 1

Short term stressors (Kiecolt-Glaser et al)

Procedure: Natural experiment to test if exams have a negative effect on immune functioning using NK cell activity, on medical students. Took blood samples one month before the exam and during the exam period itself, and they also took questionnaires of other life stressors.

Results: NK cell activity reduced in the second sample suggesting stressors reduce immune system functioning.

Ongoing stressors: relationship stress (Kiecolt-Glaser et al)

Procedure: Tested impact of conflict on wound healing by measuring how quickly blister wounds healed on the arms of married couples.

Results: Wounds healed slower when discussions were conflicting rather than supportive.

Life changes (Rahe et al)

Procedure: Used a military version of SRRS on men on navy ships, they filled in the questionnaire noting all life events over the past six months and an illness score was calculated.

Results: Positive correlation between SRRS score and illness score.

Evaluation:

Quality of the event that is crucial, with unscheduled changes being the most harmful

Most research into life changes is correlational, which does not show cause

Life changes are different for different people

Daily hassles (Bouteyre et al)

Procedure: Relationship between daily hassles and mental health of students going from school to university.

Results: 41% of students suffered depressive symptoms

Evaluation:

Most data into daily hassles is correlational

Amplification effect

Accumulation effect

Daily hassles vs. life changes (Flett)

Procedure: Students read a scenario of a person who experienced a life event or daily hassle, and rate how much support they would get

Results: More support when suffering a life event

Conclusion: Negative influence of daily hassles may be due to lack of social support

Daily uplifts (Gervais)

Procedure: Asked nurses to keep diaries for a month, recording daily hassles and uplifts at work and rating their own performance

Results: Daily hassles decrease job performance, uplifts counteracted hassles and improved performance.

Workload and control (Marmot et al)

Procedure: Civil servants given questionnaire on workload and job control, they were also checked for cardiovascular disease.

Results: 5 years later, those who reported low job control and were more likely to develop heart disease, but other factors such as workload did not seem to be associated.

Evaluation:

Advancement of technology means research rapidly becomes out of date

Low job control may be stressful for one person but not another - Schaubroeck found some workers were less stressed by having no control and had higher immune system functioning in low control situations

Work underload may also be a factor

Type A behaviour (Friedman and Rosenman)

Procedure: 3000 men examined for signs of CHD and personalities assessed by interview e.g interviewer might speak slowly

Results: After 8.5 years, twice as many Type A participants had died from cardiovascular disease (12%) and were more likely to smoke compared to Type B participants (6%)

Hardy personality (Kobasa)

Procedure: 800 business executives used SRRS to test hardiness

Results: 150 had high stress according to SRRS, some had low illness records, others had high ones.

Conclusion: Hardy personality encourages resilience

Evaluation:

Negative affectivity is people who foucs on negative aspects of life and therefore hardy personalities may just have low negative affectivity

Questionnaire - people may lie, social desirability

Strengths of SIT (Meichenbaum)

Procedure: Compared SIT to systematic desensitisation when dealing with their snake phobias

Results: Both were effective with treating the phobia, but SIT helped patients deal with a second, non-treated phobia; SIT can also help future stressful situations