Personality Factors and Stress

Main ideas and lessons (personality, culture/ethnicity, and stress)

• Personality is key to stress responses.

  • Personality refers to stable individual differences in how people think, feel, and behave.
  • It develops through a mix of:
    • Nature (genetic components)
    • Nurture (environmental influences across time)
  • Personality traits are shaped by genetic makeup plus lived experiences such as:
    • values, attitudes, personal memories
    • social relationships
    • habits and skills learned through exposure and modeling others
    • culture and ethnic background, which influence thinking and behavior

• People appraise the same event differently, so it becomes stress or not.

  • In stressful situations, what matters is how the person interprets/appraises the event cognitively and emotionally.
  • Example given: a teacher insult (“none of you are good…”) may:
    • infuriate one person
    • make another cry
    • leave a third unaffected
  • If someone thinks “I can handle this”, they move toward planning/adaptive coping.
  • If someone thinks “Oh God, what will happen,” they may spiral into anxiety and withdraw/avoid.

• Genetics and temperament influence arousal and coping speed.

  • Some people show heightened arousal genetically and adapt more slowly.
  • Others are genetically predisposed to be calmer and adapt more comfortably.

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Personality-related factors linked to stress (with definitions and implications)

1) Locus of Control (internal vs external)

• Definition: the degree to which individuals believe they can control what happens to them.

• Internal locus of control

  • Belief: “I can bring about change.”
  • After failure, the person tends to interpret outcomes as controllable (e.g., “I went wrong; I need to correct it.”)
  • Generally:
    • less disrupted by external stressors
    • more likely to take corrective measures
  • Possible disadvantage (noted):
    • during chronic stress, taking blame internally without relief may contribute to physiological problems, especially when nothing improves (“no outburst,” ongoing responsibility).

• External locus of control

  • Belief: “Outside events control me.”
  • After failure, outcomes are attributed to environment (e.g., “the teacher/conditions were unfair.”)
  • Generally: more influenced by external stressors.

• Connection to learned helplessness (Seligman)

  • Even if control exists, chronic stress and external attribution can lead to believing: “I can do nothing.”
  • Example described (Australian Aboriginal context): accounts from the Kuda/Kuda tribe where an external authority figure pointing a bone is believed to cause progressive illness and death—used as an illustration of external control producing internal bodily changes.

• Research claims mentioned

  • Better learning and outcomes when people believe success depends on skill more than luck.
  • Less stress in aversive situations when people believe they have personal control.

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2) Self-esteem

• Definition: self-perception of one’s abilities/skills/overall quality, shaping thoughts and behaviors.

• Higher self-esteem

  • More confidence in social interactions and public situations.

• Lower self-esteem

  • More stress in social/public contexts due to fear of evaluation.
  • Seen as predicting:
    • stress
    • chronic disease

• Related cognitive appraisal theory (Lazarus & Folkman, 1984)

  • Stress involves two appraisal stages:
    • Primary appraisal: determine threat nature/level
    • Secondary appraisal: determine coping resources/abilities to manage it
  • Example: Tiger charging
    • Primary: “Tiger is coming” → stress response begins
    • Secondary: “Do I have resources (e.g., skills/equipment)?”
      • If equipped: alert but not panicked
      • If not equipped: more stress/panic

• Coping resources and depletion (Schneiderman, as described)

  • People with low self-esteem may believe they don’t have coping resources, even if they do.
  • Not using resources can create a vicious cycle:
    1. “I’m no good”
    2. avoid participation
    3. others exclude you / opportunities pass
    4. “See, nobody takes me”
    5. stress increases and resources further shrink

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3) Personality types and stress (Type A/B/C/D)

The video frames these as patterns linked to stress-related health outcomes.

Type A (time urgency, hostility, competitiveness)

• Key traits described:
  • Time urgency
  • Impatience, rushing, and tension/anguish
  • Avoids waiting in queues; cannot relax when idle
  • Restlessness (e.g., tapping, shaking knee, nodding, humming)
  • Multitasking; can become inattentive to others
  • Irritable/hostile tendencies: suspicious, distrustful, cynical, paranoid
  • Sarcastic communication, competitive “game to win”
  • Preoccupation with trivial errors; overly critical of self and others
• Health implication (as stated):
  • Linked to high stress and chronic conditions such as:
    • high blood pressure
    • heart disease
  • Also described as irritable/snappy.

Type B (opposite of Type A)

• Presented as less associated with stressful behavior than Type A.
• Advantage mentioned: less procrastination.

Type C (suppressed emotions)

• Key traits described:
  • Difficulty expressing emotions
  • Inhibits/suppresses emotions, especially anger
• Research link mentioned:
  • Wier (1995) linked type C to weakened immunological defenses and association with cancer patients.

Type D (“distress” personality)

• Key traits described:
  • Tendency to experience negative emotions (gloomy, anxious)
  • Inhibition of emotions
  • Avoidance of social contacts
• Implication mentioned:
  • Higher risk of emotional disorders like depression
  • Associated with cardiac disorders; Denol (2000) referenced in cardiac cases.

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4) Hardiness (resilience factor)

• Definition: protective personality trait that helps people deal with stress and “bounce back.”
• Research described (Maddi & colleagues, 1981):
  • Followed workers after downsizing (Illinois Bell company).
  • Some maintained health, happiness, and performance.
• Three hardiness beliefs (“commitment, control, challenge”):
  • Commitment: involvement/meaning in what one does; approach life with curiosity and purpose
  • Control: belief you can influence what happens in your life
  • Challenge: view adversity as an opportunity to grow/meet rather than as threat
• Overall conclusion in the video:
  • Optimistic, resilient outlook is linked to better health outcomes.

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Cultural and ethnic background and stress/resilience

• Culture shapes goals and stress exposure.

  • In some capitalist societies, competitiveness and achievement striving are emphasized.
  • In more traditional/communal or Oriental societies, family may provide protection.

• Social isolation in modern societies

  • Individuals may feel more isolated/withdrawn, and this relates to risk of depression where protective factors are perceived as lacking.

• Sociopolitical stressors

  • Racial discrimination is cited as a source of stress (North America/Europe and India).

• Protective factors vs perceived lack

  • The video emphasizes that both actual support and the perception of protective support matter.

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“Stress can cause more stress” (secondary stress loop)

• The video concludes that stressful responses can themselves become stressors.
• Example mechanism:
  • If a person feels stressed in one situation, the memory of that stress becomes a cue in future situations.
  • Each new social contact/context can trigger additional stress because it predicts further stress.
• Example given:
  • A highly moral person may impose stress by holding themselves to strict standards they can’t meet.

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Instructions / methodology-like content (coping direction)

While not a step-by-step program, the subtitles describe an adaptive vs maladaptive cognitive response path:

• Adaptive direction (less anxiety):

  • Tell yourself: “I can handle this.”
  • Resulting next step: planning and more effective coping.

• Maladaptive direction (more anxiety):

  • Tell yourself: “Oh God, what will happen?”
  • Resulting pattern: anxiety escalation and withdrawal/avoidance.

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Speakers / sources mentioned in the subtitles

• No specific on-camera speaker named

  • The video appears instructional/lecture-style (e.g., “hello everybody welcome back…”), but no presenter is named.

• Researchers/theorists referenced:

  • Lazarus & Folkman (1984) — cognitive appraisal (primary/secondary)
  • Schneiderman — low self-esteem coping resources and depletion (as referenced)
  • McDonald and Leod (2003) — low self-esteem outcomes (substance abuse, depression, poorer recovery; high self-esteem longevity/happiness)
  • Freudmen and Rosenmen — Type A/Type B patterns (as named in subtitles)
  • Wier (1995) — Type C and immunological defenses/cancer link (as referenced)
  • Denol (2000) — Type D and cardiac cases (as referenced)
  • Seligman — learned helplessness (as referenced)
  • Maddi and team (1981) — hardiness (commitment, control, challenge) study