Physical Disorders and Health Psychology
Chapter 9: Physical Disorders and Health Psychology
• psychosomatic medicine- psych factors affect physical function
• behavioral medicine- applied to prevention, diagnosis and treatment of medical problems
• health psychology- psych factors that are important to the maintenance and promotion of health o psych and social factors:
• (1) affect biological processes
• (2) long-standing behavior patterns put ppl at risk for certain disorders o 50% of deaths from top 10 leading causes in US can be traced to lifestyle behaviors
• poor eating habits, smoking, lack of exercise,
• General Adaption Syndrome (GAS)- Selye o alarm- response to immediate danger or threat o resistance- mobilize coping mechanisms to respond o exhaustion- body suffers permanent damage
• chronic stress may cause permanent body damage and contribute to disease
• stress= physiological response to stressor
• HPA Axis o hypothalamus- pituitary gland- adrenal gland o important for stress o cortisol= stress hormone
• baboon case study o dominant males have less stressful lives due to predictability + controllability o lower males experience stress from bullying, higher cortisol levels o sense of control important
• stress, anxiety, depression related o similar underlying physiological processes o self-efficacy: sense of control and confidence that one can cope with stress or challenges
• stress can lead to decreased immune system functioning o increased rates of infectious diseases, mono, colds, flu,
• Immune system o eliminates antigens- foreign maerials, bacteria, viruses, parasites o 2 main parts:
• humoral→ B cells, antibodies neutralize antigens
• cellular→ T cells, destroy viral infections + cancerous processes o white blood cells do most of the work (leukocytes) o microphages= first line of defense
• autoimmune disease o immune system overactive, attacks body cells
• rheumatoid arthritis- too many suppressor T cells, body subject to invasion by antigens
•
• psychosomatic medicine- psych factors affect physical function
• behavioral medicine- applied to prevention, diagnosis and treatment of medical problems
• health psychology- psych factors that are important to the maintenance and promotion of health o psych and social factors:
• (1) affect biological processes
• (2) long-standing behavior patterns put ppl at risk for certain disorders o 50% of deaths from top 10 leading causes in US can be traced to lifestyle behaviors
• poor eating habits, smoking, lack of exercise,
• General Adaption Syndrome (GAS)- Selye o alarm- response to immediate danger or threat o resistance- mobilize coping mechanisms to respond o exhaustion- body suffers permanent damage
• chronic stress may cause permanent body damage and contribute to disease
• stress= physiological response to stressor
• HPA Axis o hypothalamus- pituitary gland- adrenal gland o important for stress o cortisol= stress hormone
• baboon case study o dominant males have less stressful lives due to predictability + controllability o lower males experience stress from bullying, higher cortisol levels o sense of control important
• stress, anxiety, depression related o similar underlying physiological processes o self-efficacy: sense of control and confidence that one can cope with stress or challenges
• stress can lead to decreased immune system functioning o increased rates of infectious diseases, mono, colds, flu,
• Immune system o eliminates antigens- foreign maerials, bacteria, viruses, parasites o 2 main parts:
• humoral→ B cells, antibodies neutralize antigens
• cellular→ T cells, destroy viral infections + cancerous processes o white blood cells do most of the work (leukocytes) o microphages= first line of defense
• autoimmune disease o immune system overactive, attacks body cells
• rheumatoid arthritis- too many suppressor T cells, body subject to invasion by antigens
•