UConn Psych 2300 Final Exam
questions with complete solutions
2025/2026
What is stressor? - ANS ✔✔Event that creates demand
What is stress response? - ANS ✔✔Person's reactions to demands
What are the two components of state of stress? - ANS ✔✔Stressor and stress response
What influences states of stress? - ANS ✔✔How we judge events and our capacity to react to
them effectively
What happens when we view a stressor as threatening? - ANS ✔✔Arousal and fear, and often at
play in psychological disorders
What is Diathesis-Stress Model? - ANS ✔✔People who experience a large number of stressful
events are particularly vulnerable to the onset of anxiety and other psychological disorders
What are the psychological stress disorders triggered by traumatic stressors? - ANS ✔✔Acute
stress disorder, PTSD
What are the symptoms of trauma and stressor related disorders? - ANS ✔✔Heightened
arousal, anxiety, and mood disturbance, and memory difficulties
What factors interact to produce or worsen a physical illness? - ANS ✔✔Biological,
psychological, and sociocultural factors
,What is fight/flight response? - ANS ✔✔Walter Cannon's response to stress
What are the two pathways associated with hypothalamus? - ANS ✔✔Autonomic nervous
system pathway (ANS) and Hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal pathway (HPA)
What are the functions of sympathetic pathway? - ANS ✔✔Dilates pupil, inhibits salivation,
relaxes bronchi, accelerates heartbeat, inability to digest, stimulated glucose release, relaxes
bladder
What are the functions of parasympathetic pathway? - ANS ✔✔Contracts pupil, stimulates
salivation, constricts bronchi, stimulates digestive activity, stimulates bladder, contracts bladder
What is the stress hormone? - ANS ✔✔Cortisol
How is cortisol detected? - ANS ✔✔Using saliva
What is Acute stress disorder? - ANS ✔✔A psychological stress disorder triggered by traumatic
stressors
What happens when we are faced by stressors? - ANS ✔✔Hypothalamus signals pituitary gland
to release stress hormones into bloodstream
What is trait anxiety? - ANS ✔✔General level of arousal and anxiety
What is situation/state anxiety? - ANS ✔✔Sense of which situations are threatening
, What is acute stress disorder? - ANS ✔✔Symptoms begin within 4 weeks of event and last for
less than a month
What is PTSD? - ANS ✔✔Symptoms may begin either shortly after the event, or months or years
afterward
What are the symptoms of acute stress disorder and PTSD? - ANS ✔✔Reexperiencing the
traumatic event, avoidance, reduced responsiveness, dissociative amnesia, increased arousal,
anxiety, and guilt
What triggers Trauma and stressor related disorder? - ANS ✔✔Any age; ratio of women to men
is 2:1, after trauma, 20% of women and 8% of men develop disorders, people with low income
are twice as likely to develop this, some events are more likely to cause disorders (combat,
disasters, victimization, etc)
What is combat & stress disorder? - ANS ✔✔Soldiers experience distress during and after
combat, shell shock (WWI), combat fatigue (WWII), 29% of Vietnam combat veterans suffered
acute or PTSD stress disorder, 22% had some stress symptoms, 10% still experiencing problems
What are disasters & stress disorders? - ANS ✔✔Natural or man-made disasters can cause
stress disorders
What are some examples of natural/accidental disasters? - ANS ✔✔earthquakes, floods,
tornados, fires, airplane crashes, car accidents
What percentage of victims of physical/sexual assault develop PTSD? - ANS ✔✔⅓
What is the lifetime risk of women being raped? - ANS ✔✔1 in 5
questions with complete solutions
2025/2026
What is stressor? - ANS ✔✔Event that creates demand
What is stress response? - ANS ✔✔Person's reactions to demands
What are the two components of state of stress? - ANS ✔✔Stressor and stress response
What influences states of stress? - ANS ✔✔How we judge events and our capacity to react to
them effectively
What happens when we view a stressor as threatening? - ANS ✔✔Arousal and fear, and often at
play in psychological disorders
What is Diathesis-Stress Model? - ANS ✔✔People who experience a large number of stressful
events are particularly vulnerable to the onset of anxiety and other psychological disorders
What are the psychological stress disorders triggered by traumatic stressors? - ANS ✔✔Acute
stress disorder, PTSD
What are the symptoms of trauma and stressor related disorders? - ANS ✔✔Heightened
arousal, anxiety, and mood disturbance, and memory difficulties
What factors interact to produce or worsen a physical illness? - ANS ✔✔Biological,
psychological, and sociocultural factors
,What is fight/flight response? - ANS ✔✔Walter Cannon's response to stress
What are the two pathways associated with hypothalamus? - ANS ✔✔Autonomic nervous
system pathway (ANS) and Hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal pathway (HPA)
What are the functions of sympathetic pathway? - ANS ✔✔Dilates pupil, inhibits salivation,
relaxes bronchi, accelerates heartbeat, inability to digest, stimulated glucose release, relaxes
bladder
What are the functions of parasympathetic pathway? - ANS ✔✔Contracts pupil, stimulates
salivation, constricts bronchi, stimulates digestive activity, stimulates bladder, contracts bladder
What is the stress hormone? - ANS ✔✔Cortisol
How is cortisol detected? - ANS ✔✔Using saliva
What is Acute stress disorder? - ANS ✔✔A psychological stress disorder triggered by traumatic
stressors
What happens when we are faced by stressors? - ANS ✔✔Hypothalamus signals pituitary gland
to release stress hormones into bloodstream
What is trait anxiety? - ANS ✔✔General level of arousal and anxiety
What is situation/state anxiety? - ANS ✔✔Sense of which situations are threatening
, What is acute stress disorder? - ANS ✔✔Symptoms begin within 4 weeks of event and last for
less than a month
What is PTSD? - ANS ✔✔Symptoms may begin either shortly after the event, or months or years
afterward
What are the symptoms of acute stress disorder and PTSD? - ANS ✔✔Reexperiencing the
traumatic event, avoidance, reduced responsiveness, dissociative amnesia, increased arousal,
anxiety, and guilt
What triggers Trauma and stressor related disorder? - ANS ✔✔Any age; ratio of women to men
is 2:1, after trauma, 20% of women and 8% of men develop disorders, people with low income
are twice as likely to develop this, some events are more likely to cause disorders (combat,
disasters, victimization, etc)
What is combat & stress disorder? - ANS ✔✔Soldiers experience distress during and after
combat, shell shock (WWI), combat fatigue (WWII), 29% of Vietnam combat veterans suffered
acute or PTSD stress disorder, 22% had some stress symptoms, 10% still experiencing problems
What are disasters & stress disorders? - ANS ✔✔Natural or man-made disasters can cause
stress disorders
What are some examples of natural/accidental disasters? - ANS ✔✔earthquakes, floods,
tornados, fires, airplane crashes, car accidents
What percentage of victims of physical/sexual assault develop PTSD? - ANS ✔✔⅓
What is the lifetime risk of women being raped? - ANS ✔✔1 in 5
