U5.1 Introduction to Health Psychology
Master AP Psych 5.1: stressors vs. stress response, Selye's General Adaptation Syndrome, how stress harms cardiovascular and immune health, and problem- vs. emotion-focused coping.
What you'll do in this lesson
A voice-first session with the Crimsora tutor on U5.1 Introduction to Health Psychology, then targeted practice and FRQs — with the tutor adapting to where you get stuck.
What this lesson covers
Why do final exams give you a racing heart, and why can chronic stress actually make you sick? Health psychology answers these questions by studying how thoughts, behaviors, and stress interact with physical and mental well-being.
In this lesson you'll learn to separate the stressor (the trigger) from the stress response (your body's reaction), trace Hans Selye's three-stage General Adaptation Syndrome, and connect prolonged stress to heart disease, weakened immunity, and mood problems. Finally, you'll compare coping strategies that reduce harm. These distinctions show up constantly on the exam, so precision matters.
In this lesson you'll learn to separate the stressor (the trigger) from the stress response (your body's reaction), trace Hans Selye's three-stage General Adaptation Syndrome, and connect prolonged stress to heart disease, weakened immunity, and mood problems. Finally, you'll compare coping strategies that reduce harm. These distinctions show up constantly on the exam, so precision matters.
Stressors vs. the Stress Response
A key AP distinction is between the event and the reaction to it. A stressor is any external or internal event that we perceive as threatening or challenging — an exam, a breakup, a traffic jam, or even happy events like a wedding. The stress response is the body's physiological and psychological reaction to that stressor.
Stress itself is best defined as the process by which we appraise and respond to events. Notice the word appraise: whether something becomes stressful depends on how you interpret it. Richard Lazarus described primary appraisal (Is this threatening?) and secondary appraisal (Can I cope with it?). Two students facing the same test may have very different stress responses depending on appraisal.
The acute stress response is driven by the sympathetic nervous system and the release of stress hormones like cortisol and adrenaline (epinephrine). This produces the classic fight-or-flight reaction: increased heart rate, dilated pupils, and rerouted blood flow. Psychologists also recognize a tend-and-befriend response, often observed as a tendency to seek social support under stress.
Exam questions often give a scenario and ask you to label which part is the stressor versus the response — read carefully.
Stress itself is best defined as the process by which we appraise and respond to events. Notice the word appraise: whether something becomes stressful depends on how you interpret it. Richard Lazarus described primary appraisal (Is this threatening?) and secondary appraisal (Can I cope with it?). Two students facing the same test may have very different stress responses depending on appraisal.
The acute stress response is driven by the sympathetic nervous system and the release of stress hormones like cortisol and adrenaline (epinephrine). This produces the classic fight-or-flight reaction: increased heart rate, dilated pupils, and rerouted blood flow. Psychologists also recognize a tend-and-befriend response, often observed as a tendency to seek social support under stress.
| Concept | Definition | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Stressor | The triggering event | Upcoming AP exam |
| Appraisal | Interpretation of the event | "I can handle this" vs. "I'll fail" |
| Stress response | Body/mind reaction | Racing heart, worry |
Selye's General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS)
Hans Selye studied how bodies react to prolonged stress and proposed the General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS), a three-stage model describing the body's adaptive response over time. He argued the pattern is general — the body reacts similarly regardless of the specific stressor.
The first stage is alarm reaction. The sympathetic nervous system activates, adrenaline surges, and resources mobilize — heart rate and blood pressure spike as the body prepares to defend itself. Resistance temporarily drops before the body gears up.
The second stage is resistance. The body remains highly aroused, coping with the ongoing stressor. Cortisol stays elevated, temperature and blood pressure remain high, and the body draws on reserves to maintain the fight. If the stressor persists too long, these reserves deplete.
The third stage is exhaustion. The body's resources are drained, making the person more vulnerable to illness, and in extreme cases, collapse or death. This stage explains the link between chronic stress and disease.
A common misconception is that GAS applies only to psychological threats — Selye actually developed it studying physical stressors in lab animals. On the exam, memorize the three stages in order and recognize that exhaustion is when health breaks down.
The first stage is alarm reaction. The sympathetic nervous system activates, adrenaline surges, and resources mobilize — heart rate and blood pressure spike as the body prepares to defend itself. Resistance temporarily drops before the body gears up.
The second stage is resistance. The body remains highly aroused, coping with the ongoing stressor. Cortisol stays elevated, temperature and blood pressure remain high, and the body draws on reserves to maintain the fight. If the stressor persists too long, these reserves deplete.
The third stage is exhaustion. The body's resources are drained, making the person more vulnerable to illness, and in extreme cases, collapse or death. This stage explains the link between chronic stress and disease.
| Stage | What happens | Key feature |
|---|---|---|
| Alarm | SNS activates, adrenaline released | Mobilizing resources |
| Resistance | Sustained high arousal, high cortisol | Coping with stressor |
| Exhaustion | Reserves depleted | Increased illness risk |
Stress and Health: Cardiovascular, Immune, and Mental Effects
Chronic stress does more than feel bad — it measurably damages health. The field studying this mind-body link is psychoneuroimmunology, the study of how psychological processes, the nervous system, and the immune system interact.
For the cardiovascular system, persistent stress raises blood pressure and contributes to the buildup of plaques in arteries, increasing risk of coronary heart disease. Research on personality found that people with a Type A pattern — competitive, hard-driving, easily angered, and impatient — face higher heart-disease risk than relaxed Type B individuals. The toxic ingredient appears to be chronic anger and hostility.
Stress also suppresses the immune system. Elevated cortisol reduces the activity of disease-fighting lymphocytes, so stressed people heal wounds more slowly and catch infections like colds more easily. This does not mean stress causes diseases like cancer, but it can weaken the body's defenses.
Mentally, chronic stress is linked to anxiety, depression, and difficulty concentrating. Prolonged cortisol exposure can affect brain regions involved in memory and mood regulation.
A common misconception students make is claiming stress directly causes illnesses like AIDS or cancer. On the exam, describe stress as increasing vulnerability or worsening outcomes, not as a direct cause. Correlational evidence links stress to poorer health, but researchers are careful about causal claims.
For the cardiovascular system, persistent stress raises blood pressure and contributes to the buildup of plaques in arteries, increasing risk of coronary heart disease. Research on personality found that people with a Type A pattern — competitive, hard-driving, easily angered, and impatient — face higher heart-disease risk than relaxed Type B individuals. The toxic ingredient appears to be chronic anger and hostility.
Stress also suppresses the immune system. Elevated cortisol reduces the activity of disease-fighting lymphocytes, so stressed people heal wounds more slowly and catch infections like colds more easily. This does not mean stress causes diseases like cancer, but it can weaken the body's defenses.
Mentally, chronic stress is linked to anxiety, depression, and difficulty concentrating. Prolonged cortisol exposure can affect brain regions involved in memory and mood regulation.
A common misconception students make is claiming stress directly causes illnesses like AIDS or cancer. On the exam, describe stress as increasing vulnerability or worsening outcomes, not as a direct cause. Correlational evidence links stress to poorer health, but researchers are careful about causal claims.
Coping Strategies
Coping refers to how we manage stress, and psychologists distinguish two broad approaches. Problem-focused coping attacks the stressor directly by changing the situation — for example, making a study schedule, talking to a professor, or fixing a broken relationship. It works best when you feel you have control over the source of stress.
Emotion-focused coping manages your emotional reaction rather than the stressor itself — for example, seeking comfort from friends, exercising, or reframing the situation. It works best when the stressor feels uncontrollable, such as grieving a loss you cannot change.
A related concept is perceived control. People who feel in control of their circumstances experience less stress and better health; a lack of control raises stress hormones and blood pressure. Learned helplessness, discovered by Martin Seligman, describes the passive resignation that develops when repeated uncontrollable bad events teach a person that nothing they do matters.
Other health-protective factors include social support, aerobic exercise, adequate sleep, and relaxation techniques like meditation. On the exam, be ready to classify a described strategy as problem- or emotion-focused and to explain why one might be more effective in a given scenario.
Emotion-focused coping manages your emotional reaction rather than the stressor itself — for example, seeking comfort from friends, exercising, or reframing the situation. It works best when the stressor feels uncontrollable, such as grieving a loss you cannot change.
A related concept is perceived control. People who feel in control of their circumstances experience less stress and better health; a lack of control raises stress hormones and blood pressure. Learned helplessness, discovered by Martin Seligman, describes the passive resignation that develops when repeated uncontrollable bad events teach a person that nothing they do matters.
| Strategy | Focus | Best when | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| Problem-focused | Change the stressor | You have control | Making a study plan |
| Emotion-focused | Change your reaction | Situation uncontrollable | Talking to a friend |
Key terms
- Stressor.
- An event or situation, external or internal, that a person appraises as threatening or challenging.
- Stress response.
- The body's physiological and psychological reaction to a stressor, including fight-or-flight arousal.
- General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS).
- Selye's three-stage model of the body's response to sustained stress: alarm, resistance, and exhaustion.
- Cortisol.
- A hormone released during stress that mobilizes energy but, when chronically elevated, suppresses immune function.
- Psychoneuroimmunology.
- The study of how psychological factors, the nervous system, and the immune system interact to affect health.
- Type A personality.
- A behavior pattern marked by competitiveness, impatience, and hostility, associated with higher coronary heart-disease risk.
- Problem-focused coping.
- Reducing stress by directly addressing and changing the stressor itself.
- Emotion-focused coping.
- Reducing stress by managing one's emotional response rather than changing the stressor.
Worked example
Maria has an important recital in three months. At first her heart pounds and she feels a surge of energy whenever she thinks about it. Over the following weeks she practices daily and stays intensely focused, though she feels constantly on edge. A week before the recital she gets sick with a bad cold and feels completely drained. Using Selye's GAS model, explain each phase, and identify one problem-focused coping strategy Maria used.
Start by identifying the stressor: the upcoming recital is the triggering event, and Maria's reactions are the stress response.
Apply the three GAS stages in order. The alarm reaction appears first: her pounding heart and surge of energy reflect sympathetic nervous system activation and adrenaline release as her body mobilizes resources.
Next is the resistance stage: over the following weeks she remains highly aroused and "on edge" while coping with the ongoing demand. Cortisol stays elevated as she sustains intense focus and daily practice, drawing on her reserves.
Finally, exhaustion sets in a week before the recital. Her resources are depleted, her immune system is weakened, and she catches a cold — illustrating how prolonged stress increases vulnerability to illness through suppressed immune function.
For coping, Maria's daily practice is a problem-focused strategy: she directly addresses the stressor (unpreparedness) by changing the situation. A full-credit answer names the stages in correct order, ties exhaustion to reduced immunity, and correctly labels practicing as problem-focused rather than emotion-focused.
Apply the three GAS stages in order. The alarm reaction appears first: her pounding heart and surge of energy reflect sympathetic nervous system activation and adrenaline release as her body mobilizes resources.
Next is the resistance stage: over the following weeks she remains highly aroused and "on edge" while coping with the ongoing demand. Cortisol stays elevated as she sustains intense focus and daily practice, drawing on her reserves.
Finally, exhaustion sets in a week before the recital. Her resources are depleted, her immune system is weakened, and she catches a cold — illustrating how prolonged stress increases vulnerability to illness through suppressed immune function.
For coping, Maria's daily practice is a problem-focused strategy: she directly addresses the stressor (unpreparedness) by changing the situation. A full-credit answer names the stages in correct order, ties exhaustion to reduced immunity, and correctly labels practicing as problem-focused rather than emotion-focused.
Practice questions
Which sequence correctly represents the stages of Selye's General Adaptation Syndrome?
- Resistance, alarm, exhaustion
- Alarm, resistance, exhaustion
- Exhaustion, resistance, recovery
- Appraisal, alarm, resistance
Answer: Alarm, resistance, exhaustion
Selye's model begins with the alarm reaction (sympathetic activation and adrenaline), moves to resistance (sustained high cortisol while coping), and ends in exhaustion (depleted reserves and greater illness risk). The other options scramble the order or add stages Selye did not propose.
A student learns that a required class was canceled and she must retake it next year — an outcome she cannot change. She copes by going for daily runs and confiding in friends. Identify her coping style and explain why it is well suited to this situation.
Answer: She is using emotion-focused coping, which is appropriate because the stressor is uncontrollable.
Emotion-focused coping manages one's emotional reaction rather than the stressor itself. Since the student cannot change the cancellation, directly attacking the problem is impossible, so regulating her feelings through exercise and social support is the more adaptive choice. Problem-focused coping is more effective when a person has actual control over the source of stress.
How does chronic stress increase a person's vulnerability to infectious illness? Reference a specific physiological mechanism.
Answer: Chronic stress keeps cortisol elevated, which suppresses lymphocyte activity and weakens immune defenses.
Prolonged stress sustains high cortisol levels that reduce the effectiveness of disease-fighting white blood cells (lymphocytes), slowing wound healing and making infections like colds more likely. Note that stress does not directly cause illness; it increases susceptibility, which is the careful, exam-appropriate way to phrase the link studied in psychoneuroimmunology.
FAQ
- What is the difference between a stressor and stress?
- A stressor is the specific event or situation that triggers a reaction, such as an exam or a deadline. Stress is the overall process of appraising and responding to that event, including your body's physiological arousal and your emotional reaction. The same stressor can produce very different stress levels depending on how a person appraises it.
- Does stress actually cause diseases like cancer or heart attacks?
- Stress does not directly cause these diseases, but it increases vulnerability and can worsen outcomes. Chronic stress raises blood pressure and contributes to artery damage linked to coronary heart disease, and it suppresses immune function. On the AP exam, describe stress as increasing risk or susceptibility rather than as a direct cause.
- When should I use problem-focused versus emotion-focused coping?
- Use problem-focused coping when you have control over the stressor and can change the situation, like organizing a study plan. Use emotion-focused coping when the stressor is uncontrollable, like grief, where managing your emotional response through support or exercise is more realistic and effective.
- Do I need to memorize the GAS stages in order for the exam?
- Yes. Questions frequently ask you to identify the stages in sequence — alarm, resistance, exhaustion — or to match a described scenario to the correct stage. Remember that exhaustion is when the body's resources deplete and illness risk rises, which connects GAS to the stress-and-health material.
Learn this with a teacher, not a page
The Crimsora tutor teaches U5.1 Introduction to Health Psychology live — explaining on a whiteboard, asking you questions, and adapting to where you get stuck.