| background stressors (“daily hassles”) | Everyday annoyances, such as being stuck in traffic, that cause minor irritations that may have long-term ill effects if they continue or are compounded by other stressful events (Module 34)
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| cataclysmic events | Strong stressors that occur suddenly, affecting many people at once (e.g., natural disasters) (Module 34)
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| coping | The efforts to control, reduce, or learn to tolerate the threats that lead to stress (Module 34)
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| defense mechanisms | Unconscious strategies people use to reduce anxiety by concealing its source from themselves and others (Module 34)
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| general adaptation syndrome (GAS) | Atheory developed by Selye that suggests that a person's response to stress consists of three stages: alarm and mobilization, resistance, and exhaustion (Module 34)
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| hardiness | A personality characteristic associated with a lower rate of stress-related illness, consisting of three components: commitment, challenge, and control (Module 34)
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| health psychology | The branch of psychol-ogy that investigates the psychological factors related to wellness and illness, including the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of medical problems (Module 34)
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| learned helplessness | A state in which people conclude that unpleasant or aversive stimuli cannot be controlled—a view of the world that becomes so ingrained that they cease trying to remedy the aversive circumstances, even if they actually can exert some influence (Module 34)
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| orgasm | The peak of sexual excitement during which rhythmic muscular contractions occur in the genitals (Module 34)
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| personal stressors | Major life events, such as the death of a family member, that have immediate negative consequences which generally fade with time (Module 34)
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| posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) | Aphenomenon in which victims of major catastrophes reexperience the original stress event and associated feelings in vivid flashbacks or dreams (Module 34)
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| psychophysiological disorders | Medical problems influenced by an interaction of psychological, emotional, and physical difficulties (Module 34)
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| social support | A mutual network of caring, interested others (Module 34)
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| stress | The response to events that are threatening or challenging (Module 34)
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| uplifts | Minor positive events that make one feel good (Module 34)
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| Type A behavior pattern | A pattern of behavior characterized by competitiveness, impatience, tendency toward frustration, and hostility (Module 35)
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| Type B behavior pattern | A pattern of behavior characterized by cooperation, patience, noncompetitiveness, and nonaggression (Module 35)
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| reactance | A disagreeable emotional and cognitive reaction that results from the restriction of one's freedom and that can be associated with medical regimens (Module 36)
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| subjective well-being | An approach by which people evaluate their lives in terms of both their thoughts and emotions (Module 36)
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