Psychology

Running  Head:  STRESS  GENERATION  IN  DEPRESSIVE  AND  ANXIETY  DISORDERS                                                                                        1  

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stress Generation in Depressive and Anxiety Disorders: Outline

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One of the major aspects that has brought a tremendous revolution in the field of abnormal

psychology is stress generation and how it leads to depressive and anxiety disorders. Stress

STRESS  GENERATION  IN  DEPRESSIVE  AND  ANXIETY  DISORDERS                                                                                                                                        2    

generation can be explained with both the stress causation theory and stress continuation theory.

Moreover, episodic life stress is caused by depression that an individual experiences over a short

period of time (Eberhart & Hammen, 2009). This paper presents a comprehensive essay outline

on stress generation in depressive and anxiety disorders based on a research case study that was

conducted to determine how depressive and anxiety disorders affect stress generation.

The article journal first examines the two theories that explains stress generation that are

fundamental in abnormal psychology using interviewed based measures of episodic life stress as

well as interpersonal and non-interpersonal chronic life stress. The two theories include:

a) Stress causation theory

According to this theory, various symptoms of depression causes stress overtime. An individual

can exhibit episodic life stress. For example, the presence of anxiety, fear and loneliness. These

episodic life stress results from depression and therefore cause stress to the individual. Moreover,

chronic life stress can also occur if the depression causes stress after a long period of time. Stress

causation theory gives an explanation of the existence of stress from the occurrence of symptoms

of depression. According to the stress causation theory, individuals can develop chronic life

stress due to the presence of different symptoms of depression such as mood changes, aggressive

behavior and solitary life (Flynn, 2010).

b) Stress continuation theory

The stress continuation theory argues that the relationship between depression and stress takes

place due to the continuity of stress over time. When the symptoms of depression such as

aggression and anxiety persist over a long period of time, an individual is likely to experience

stress. The occurrence of depression in relation to the stress therefore results in the presence of

STRESS  GENERATION  IN  DEPRESSIVE  AND  ANXIETY  DISORDERS                                                                                                                                        3    

traumatic conditions and longtime stress. Therefore there is this theory posits that depression

does not results in long term life stress.

Other major aspects in stress and anxiety disorder that has been examined include:

a) Neuroticism

Neuroticism is a personality based condition that is characterized by the presence of

aggressiveness, anxiety and fear. An individual with neuroticism often experiences episodic and

chronic life stress and is likely to experience trauma due to the traits that are exhibited by the

condition. Neuroticism is a major risk factor in both stress and anxiety disorders. According to

Uliaszek (2011), the personality trait has a great impact on episodic life stress and chronic life

stress. Hence an individual who experiences the excessive anxiety or fear in different situations

is likely to develop depression. The depression will thus lead to a stress and anxiety disorder

after a long period of time. There is an interrelationship between life stress, neuroticism and

disorder. This is because, the symptoms of neuroticism such as excessive anxiety and fear results

into a depression that subsequently lead to life stress and finally a disorder among individuals.

b) Extraversion

Extraversion is a personality trait that dictates the socialization level of a person. The personality

trait is exhibited through the desire to interact and socialize with other people. An extravert is

therefore an individual who likes socializing with others. Extraversion also has a great impact on

depression.

People who are experiencing high levels of depression are likely to record lower levels of

extraversion. This is because depressive symptoms such as trauma, fear and loneliness will

trigger change the personality of the person. Such symptoms will affect the emotion of the victim

STRESS  GENERATION  IN  DEPRESSIVE  AND  ANXIETY  DISORDERS                                                                                                                                        4    

and hence he or she will not develop a social trait. Such individuals are likely to spend time in

lonely places as they also develops trauma. Extraversion therefore is a major factor in stress and

disorder generation and continuity. Individuals experiencing a reduced extraversion will tend to

withdraw from social life such as friends and family. Low levels of extraversion is also likely to

develop into social phobias that contributes to depressive and anxiety disorders.

Anxiety disorders

The article also described anxiety disorders and their role in stress generation. Anxiety disorder

refers to a condition that is characterized by feelings of fear and anxiety due to the occurrence of

daily life. Depression and neuroticism has a major impact in the generation of anxiety disorders.

This is because the symptoms that are exhibited in neuroticism such as loneliness and trauma

usually trigger depression in the victim. The presence of depressive conditions will further lead

to stress disorders.

Different anxiety disorders such as social phobia occur due to chronic life stress in which an

individual experiences extreme stress almost daily in his or her life. Using the research from the

Youth Emotion Project, the article gives a comprehensive analysis of the relationship between

anxiety disorders and depression and stress generation. The study examined different forms of

stress generation and how they relate to various symptoms of depression. Depression was found

to have a major impact on the occurrence of anxiety disorders. Moreover, individuals who have

experienced anxiety disorder based symptoms such as social phobia are likely to develop a

chronic life stress.

Findings and counterarguments

STRESS  GENERATION  IN  DEPRESSIVE  AND  ANXIETY  DISORDERS                                                                                                                                        5    

The study was conducted to demonstrate how stress is generated in both depressive and anxiety

disorders using interviews and DSM-IV diagnosis. The results found out that the generation of

stress is not specific to depressive disorder but it can also take place in neuroticism and anxiety

disorders. This research has shown a relationship between stress generation and anxiety

disorders. Through the stress continuation and stress causation theories that explain stress

generation, it becomes clear that stress generation is dependent in other variables such as the

occurrence of depression and anxiety disorders (Smith, 2016).

There are different symptoms that are exhibited by depressed individuals that can be used to

explain the relationship between depression and major life stress. For example, people who are

depressed usually develops fear of different situations, loneliness and aggressive behavior among

others. These symptoms acts as the foundation for the development of either episodic or chronic

life stress. Such victims are likely to develop episodic life stress.

Moreover, such people are also likely to experience chronic life stress, a condition that occurs for

a very long time almost daily in the life of an individual. Neuroticism and extraversion also plays

a critical role in stress generation. Neuroticism leads to the development of various symptoms

such as anxiety and fear. These personality characteristics can immediately or gradually results

in depression and subsequent life stress.

In summary, the journal article has effectively examined the various factors that contributes to

stress generation. Through comprehensive analysis of stress continuation and stress causation

theories, the paper has presented the relationship between stress generation and anxiety

disorders.

References

STRESS  GENERATION  IN  DEPRESSIVE  AND  ANXIETY  DISORDERS                                                                                                                                        6    

Eberhart, N. K., & Hammen, C. L. (2009). Interpersonal predictors of

Stress generation. New York: McGraw Hill Press Flynn, M., Kecmanovic, J., & Alloy, L. B.

(2010). An examination of Integrated cognitive-interpersonal vulnerability to depression: The

role Of rumination, perceived social support, and interpersonal stress generation.

Cognitive Therapy and Research, 34, 456–466 Smith. M.,(2016). Anxiety Disorders and Anxiety

Attacks. Retrieved from:http://www.helpguide.org/articles/anxiety/anxiety-attacks-and-anxiety-

disorders.htm

Uliaszek, A. A., Zinbarg, R. E., Mineka, S., Craske, M. G., Griffith, J. W., Sutton, J. M.,

Epstein,A., & Hammen, C. (2011). A Longitudinal Examination of Stress Generation in

Depressive and Anxiety Disorders. Journal of Abnormal Psychology. Advance online

Publication. doi: 10.1037/a0025835