NATURE, TYPES AND SOURCES OF STRESS
While waiting to cross the road on a busy
Monday morning, you may be temporarily
stressed. But, because you are alert,
vigilant and aware of the danger, you are
able to cross the road safely. Faced with
any challenge, we put in additional efforts
and mobilise all our resources and the
support system to meet the challenge. All
the challenges, problems, and difficult
circumstances put us to stress. Thus, if
handled properly, stress increases the
probability of one�s survival. Stress is like
electricity. It gives energy, increases
human arousal and affects performance.
However, if the electric current is too high,
it can fuse bulbs, damage appliances, etc.
High stress too can produce unpleasant
effects and cause our performance to
deteriorate. Conversely, too little stress
may cause one to feel somewhat listless
and low on motivation which may lead us
to perform slowly and less efficiently. It is
important to remember that not all stress
is inherently bad or destructive. �Eustress�
is the term used to describe the level of
stress that is good for you and is one of
a person�s best assets for achieving peak
performance and managing minor crisis.
Eustress, however, has the potential of
turning into �distress�. It is this latter
manifestation of stress that causes our
body�s wear and tear. Thus, stress can be
described as the pattern of responses an
organism makes to stimulus event that
disturbs the equilibrium and exceeds a
person�s ability to cope.
Nature of Stress
The word stress has its origin in the Latin
words �strictus�, meaning tight or narrow
and �stringere�, the verb meaning to
tighten. These root words reflect the
internal feelings of tightness and
constriction of the muscles and breathing
reported by many people under stress.
Stress is often explained in terms of
characteristics of the environment that are
disruptive to the individual. Stressors are
events that cause our body to give the
stress response. Such events include
noise, crowding, a bad relationship, or the
daily commuting to school or office. The
reaction to external stressors is called
�strain�
Stress has come to be associated with
both the causes as well as effects. However,
this view of stress can cause confusion.
Hans Selye, the father of modern stress
research, defined stress as �the nonspecific
response of the body to any
demand� that is, regardless of the cause of
the threat, the individual will respond with
the same physiological pattern of reactions.
Many researchers do not agree with this
definition as they feel that the stress
response is not nearly as general and nonspecific
as Selye suggests. Different
stressors may produce somewhat different
patterns of stress reaction, and different
individuals may have different
characteristic modes of response. You may
recall the case of an opening batsman
mentioned earlier. Each one of us will see
the situation through our own eyes and it
is our perception of the demands, and our
ability to meet them, which will determine
whether we are feeling �stressed� or not.
Stress is not a factor that resides in the
individual or the environment, instead it is
embedded in an ongoing process that
involves individuals transacting with their
social and cultural environments, making
appraisals of those encounters and
attempting to cope with the issues that
arise. Stress is a dynamic mental/cognitive
state. It is a disruption in homeostasis or
an imbalance that gives rise to a
requirement for resolution of that
imbalance or restoration of homeostasis.
The perception of stress is dependent
upon the individual�s cognitive appraisal of
events and the resources available to deal
with them. The stress process, based on
the cognitive theory of stress propounded
by Lazarus and his colleagues, is described
in Figure given below.
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