PSYA2 - Stress Studies
Stress
- Created by: amy morgan
- Created on: 30-12-11 16:16
Holmes and Rahe - SRRS
Nat exp, Vol samp, Ind grps
-5000 medical records and identified 43 life changes
-396 participants rated stress factor compared to marriage at 50
- High SRRS score - greater chance of illness
- Chance of becoming ill within two years:
- 50% if more than 200
- 80% if more than 300
- Both positive and negative life changes cause stress.
- Weakened immune system due to release of stress hormones
-> Mundane Realism
-> Evaluation Apprehension
-> Population Validity
-> Psychological Harm
Rahe et al - NAVY
Nat exp, Vol samp, Ind grps
- 2500 Navy personnel did SRRS over last 6 months
- Followed up over seven months of tour
- Stress related illness recorded and rated for severity
- SRRS scores compared to illness score
- Weak but significant correlation
- Personell with top 30% significantly more illness than others
- 80% more chance of illness if over 300
- Weakened immune system due to realease of stress hormones
-> Population Validity
-> Evaluation Apprehension
-> Difficulty in establishing cause and effect
-> Informed Consent
Kanner - daily hassles and uplifts
Nat exp, Vol samp, Ind grps
- List of 117 daily hassles and uplifts
- 100 Californian participants rate those experienced in past month
- Hassles a more accurate predictor of psych illness compared to SRRS
- Those with high number of hassles most at risk of psych illness
- Uplifts had significant effect in increasing anxiety in women but not men
- Weakened immune system due to stress hormones
-> Difficulty in establishing cause and effect
-> Population Validity
-> Retrospective Self Report
-> Psychological Harm
Delongis et al
Nat exp, Vol samp, Ind grps
- completed daily hassles and uplifts every month for a year
- Also completed the SRRS
- Illness was recorded
- Daily hassles and uplifts could predict health:
- higher number of daily hassles = more at risk of developing stress related illness
- Higher number of daily uplifts = less at risk of developing psych illness
- Stronger correlation than SRRS
- Long term stress response weakens immune system
-> Difficulty in establishing cause and effect
-> Retrospective Self Report
-> Evaluation Apprehension
-> Informed Consent
Marmot - workplace stress
Nat exp, Vol samp, Ind grps
- 7,000 male and female civil service employees aged 35-55
- Followed for 5 years and all free from heart problems at start
- Level of control measured by self report questionnaire and independent assessments two times
- Recorded those who developed heat disease and other stress related illnesses
- Low grade employees (low demands+low control) - 4X more likely to die of heart attack than high grade (high demands+high control)
- Low grade employees (low demands+low control) also more likely to develop other stress related illnesses
- Low control is associated with high levels of stress
-> Experimenter Bias
-> Difficulty in establishing cause and effect
-> Informed Consent
Johansson - sawmill workers
Nat exp, Vol samp, Ind grps
- Compared stress levels in two groups of swedish sawmill workers:
:Finishers (high demands+low control) and cleaners (low demands+high control)
- Measured adrenaline and noradrenaline on work days and rest days
- Recorded absenteeism and stress related illness
- Adrenaline and Noradrenaline higher on work days
- Finishers had highest levels of stress hormones, highest absenteeism and highest number of stress illnesses
- Finishers showed highest biological stress response shown by the release of stress hormones
- Karasek argued low control and high demands is most stressful and creates job strain
->Ease of Operationalisation
-> Informed Consent
Friedman and Rosenhan - personality
Nat exp, Vol samp, Ind grps
- 3454 Californian men classed as Type A or Type B through structured interviewed:
- Asked a series of questions relating to type A and B, noted down behavioral signs of type A, and finally interrupted to observe reaction
- Then followed for 8.5 years and health and illness recorded
- During 8.5 years 257 men sufferent from CHD
- 69% were type A, 31% type B
- Type A more likely to suffer CHD as they create their own stress
- Increase heart rate and blood pressure due to release of stress hormones
-> Population Validity
-> Internal Validity
-> Right to withdraw
-> Psychological Harm
Kobassa - personality
Nat exp, Vol samp, Ind grps
- 800 middle class, white, male managers
- Completed 3 questionnaires: personality questionnaire, SRRS and measure of illness over three years
- Put into two groups, ill more than average and ill less than average
- Those who were ill less than average showed same cluster of personality factors: CONTROL, COMMITMENT and CHALLENGE
- This is known as hardiness and an individual is known as hardy and can cope with stress in a better way
-> Retrospective Self Report
-> Population Validity
->Informed Consent
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