Background
The Stresses of Life
Daily life is full of stressful events. On the job, in school, and at home, people experience many events that put pressure on them. College students are "stressed out" by papers and exams, while their professors feel the strain of too many papers to grade. Parents are worn out by the demands of raising children, and children struggle to meet their parents' expectations. Workers feel the pressure to perform, while the supervisors who evaluate their performance are themselves under pressure to increase productivity.Click the Play button to view some familiar examples of stressful situations.
Types of Stress
It's easy to recognize stress, but it's hard to define it because the word "stress" really has at least two distinct meanings. One type of stress is the external demands placed on us the events or forces in our environment that put pressure on us. Psychologists call these demands stressors.Another type of stress is our internal response to these stressors the thoughts and feelings of anxiety, tension, or frustration produced by our perception of the external stressors. Psychologists call this internal response strain.