BPCG 173
PSYCHOLOGY FOR HEALTH AND WELLBEING
BPCG 173 Free Solved Assignment
BPCG 173 Free Solved Assignment July 2021 & Jan 2022
Assignment A
Q 1 Describe the nature and sources of stress.
Ans: Nature of stress:
Stress as such is like salt and pepper and a life without stress would be without motivation, as stress often motivates us to work in a certain direction.
Thus, without any stress in life, any individual will not be motivated to perform or carry our varied activities. As more salt than required can make food taste bad.
In a similar manner, stress beyond optimal level can have a negative effect on the individual and will interfere with his/her day to day functioning.
Types of Stress: Stress can be categorized into different types as follows:
1) Eustress: Stress can be good stress that is explained as ‘Eustress’. Eustress can be defined as “good stress, caused by a positive response to a desired stressor, such as a wedding or a new job.
2) Neustress: When stress is not helpful nor harmful, it can be described as ‘Neustress’.
3) Distress: This is the third category of stress that most people commonly relate stress with. ‘Distress’ occurs when the arousal experienced by the individual is very high or very low. BPCG 173 Free Solved Assignment
Symptoms of Stress: Stress can have an impact on various aspects of life that include behavior, cognition, emotions as well as physical health.
Though stress will have a different effect on different individuals and each individual will react to stress in a different way, there are certain symptoms that can be related with stress.
These are discussed as follows:
1) Physical symptoms: The physical symptoms of stress include low levels of energy, stomach upset, headaches and migraines, pain and aches, chest pain, rapid heartbeats, lack of sleep and so on.
2) Emotional symptoms: The emotional symptoms include, displaying frustration, getting irritated or agitated easily, feelings of worthlessness, feeling lonely and even depressed.
3) Psychological symptoms: The cognitive symptoms related to stress include worrying constantly, experiencing racing thoughts, lack of organisation in thinking, forgetting, not able to focus, lack of judgment or poor judgment and also pessimism.
4) Behavioral symptoms: The behavioural symptoms of stress include deterioration in performance effectiveness, indulgence in substance use, prone to accidents, nervous mannerism, impaired speech and so on.
Sources of stress:
As we have developed a clear idea about the concept and nature of stress, we will now move on to the sources of stress. BPCG 173 Free Solved Assignment
As such, the sources of stress can be categories in to three main sources, namely, Frustration, Conflict of motives and Pressure.
Frustration: Frustration can be described as occurring when a goal oriented behaviour of an individual is thwarted.
As stated by Mangal “a wide range of environmental obstacles, both physical and social and the internal factors in the form of personal limitations, biological conditions and psychological barriers may lead to frustration of our needs, motives and efforts”.
Conflict of Motives: The next source is conflict of motives that can cause stress as an individual has to choose between alternatives and decision making in this regard can lead to stress.
Conflict of motives can be of four different types, approach approach conflict, avoidance – avoidance conflict, approach – avoidance conflict and double approach – avoidance conflict.
i) Approach-approach conflict: In this type of conflict the individual has to choose between two goals that are positive and are similar.
ii) Avoidance avoidance conflict: The next type of conflict of motives is avoidance- avoidance conflict.
Here again there are two goals that are similar but as opposed to approach- approach conflict, the goals here are negative. BPCG 173 Free Solved Assignment
iii) Approach avoidance conflict: Here there is a single goal which is both positive and negative.
For example, an individual taking up a job abroad may be excited about the opportunity but also has to face the fact that he/she will have to stay away from the family.
iv) Multiple approach avoidance conflict: It may so happen that the conflicts faced by us are quite complex and they are combinations of approach and avoidance conflicts.
Pressure: Pressure is yet another source of stress that can be external or internal.
External pressures are result of demands from the environment, responsibilities and obligations that are mainly social in nature as well as demands and expectations of the significant persons in our lives.
Q 2 Discuss the illness related to food, diet and obesity.
Ans: The illness related to food:
Food has a relevant impact on our day to day functioning, the way we look and behave and feel. BPCG 173 Free Solved Assignment
Food has five main components that are necessary for metabolic process of our body. These five components are discussed as follows:
Carbohydrates: Carbohydrates constitute sugars, both simple and complex sugars
Lipids: These constitute the saturated and polyunsaturated fats, and cholesterol. These are also a source of energy. Some of the sources of lipids are butter and cooking oils.
Proteins: Proteins are made up of amino acids that are organic molecules and they are important for our development as well as functioning mainly because they play a role in synthesis of new cell material.
Vitamins: These can be termed as chemicals that are organic. They not only play a role in regulation of metabolism but in physiological functioning as well.
Minerals: Minerals constitutes calcium, phosphorus, potassium, sodium, iron, iodine, and zinc, that are inorganic in nature. These also play an important role in physiological functioning and development.
The illness related to diet:
Diet in this context can be explained as what we eat. And what we eat is determined by a number of factors.
Some of these factors have been discussed as follows:
Inborn processes: In born processes can determine our preference for certain types of food. The chemicals in our brains may play a role in what we eat and often pleasure centres are activated when fatty foods are consumed.
Environmental factors: These include exposure to food, culture, Socioeconomic Status, accessibility to junk and fast foods, influence of media and so on.
Ability to manage and control ones food buying and eating habits: This is also an important factor that determines what kind of food we buy and eat.
It is necessarily a skill as we determine the food that we eat based on whether it is nutritious or not and thus make healthy choices. BPCG 173 Free Solved Assignment
The illness related to obesity:
An unhealthy diet can lead to numerous health related issues including atherosclerosis, hypertension, diabetes and even cancer.
Though yet another aspect of unhealthy diet that makes us susceptible to health related problems is obesity. There are various factors that can be associated with obesity, these are discussed as follows:
1 The type of food that we eat can be associated with our weight gain. Frequent indulgence in junk food and sugary treats can lead to obesity.
2 The number and the size of fat cells also determine obesity. Thus, a moderately obese person will have larger size of fat cells and an extremely obese person will have both large amount as well as size of fat cells.
3 Obesity also has genetic basis and obese parents are more likely to have obese children. The metabolism rate (rate at which the calories are burned) is also determined by genes and persons with obesity have lower rate of metabolism.
4 Every individual has a ‘set point that determines his/ her weight range (thus indicating that obesity could also be attributed to the ‘set point’, that could be of higher weight range in individuals with obesity). BPCG 173 Free Solved Assignment
5 Obesity can also be attributed to stress as it not only has an impact on one’s metabolism but also influences eating habits.
6 Obesity leads to slow metabolism, which in turn works in order to maintain the increased weight.
Assignment II
Q 3 Define health and describe the cross cultural perspectives on health.
Ans:Health: Many studies have been conducted to understand what common people think and understand by health.
In a study done by Bauman, she asked people to explain ‘what does being healthy mean for them?’ Majority of the participants reported either of the following three types of responses:
1) Health means a ‘general sense of wellbeing.
2) Health is identified with ‘the absence of symptoms of disease’.
3) Health can be seen in the things that a person who is physically fit is able to do’.
Cross-cultural perspectives on health:
The way in which health is defined or perceived may vary based on culture. In this sub section of the unit, we will try to understand varied cross cultural perspectives on health.
Western Perspective: Culture never remains constant. It changes with time. Therefore, cultural conception about health also changes with time.
For instance, ancient Greek culture believed in the role of four humors in our health and investigated health as a whole. BPCG 173 Free Solved Assignment
Eastern Perspective on Health: Eastern perspective refers to the viewpoint of eastern civilisation such as India and China on health and its related issues.
The basic premise of all eastern civilisations is that health is more than just an absence of disease or its symptoms.
If you are healthy, then you will experience happiness, wellbeing, satisfaction with life, be able to function optimally as a member of your social community and, will be able to set goals and achieve them.
Indian Perspective on Health: As culture plays a significant role in Indian life, it is important to understand the traditional Indian view on health.
The Sanskrit word for health is Swastha, ‘swa’ means ‘inner self’ and ‘-sth’ means ‘conscious’. Thus, in Indian tradition, being healthy has been considered equivalent to being conscious of your inner self..
Q 4 Describe type A personality and hostility as factors contributing to stress proneness.
Ans: Type A Personality as factors contributing to stress proneness:
Schafer describes personality as “person’s enduring set of habits of thinking, feeling and acting”. BPCG 173 Free Solved Assignment
Personality traits can be said to determine not only the way an individual reacts to stress but also how he/she will cope with the stressful situation.
Type A personality is often linked to high levels of stress as individuals with type A personality perceive stress as threatening and their reactions to stressful situations are intense and faster.
On the other hand, individuals with type B personality display lower stress reactivity.
Thus, individuals with type A personality are more prone to varied physical and psychological problems that may occur as a result of stress experienced by them.
Hostility as factors contributing to stress proneness:
Schafer described hostility as “cynicism towards others’ motives and values, easily and frequently aroused anger, and a tendency to express that anger towards others.”
Hostility in this context does not relate to anger that leads to violent behaviour. But this is the irritability and anger experienced by individuals who otherwise seem perfectly normal.
Such a hostility may be experienced in simple events in life, like someone spills tea on the office table, a family member does not fold clothes and they are left in the sitting chair and so on, for which individuals who are not hostile may barely react.
Such individuals often engage in blaming others, which in turn can make them express anger towards that individual, which could lead to aggressive behaviours directed towards that person. BPCG 173 Free Solved Assignment
Hostility is, thus, characterised by an attitude that is skeptical or cynical, recurring arousal of anger and manifestation of anger in terms of aggressive behaviour.
The long-term effect of such hostility is negative as it not only affects one’s health but can also affect one’s social relationships.
Links have been found between hostility and stress. Thus, hostility can also be termed as a factor that can make individuals more prone to stress.
Q 5 What is substance use?
Ans: Substance use:
The term “substance use” refers to the use of drugs or alcohol, and includes substances such as cigarettes,illegal drugs, prescription drugs, inhalants and solvents.
A substance use problem occurs when using alcohol or other drugs causes harm to you or to others. Substance use problems can lead to addiction.
Anyone, at any age or any stage of their life can have a substance use problem. It is important to know that no matter how you are feeling, you are not alone.
There is help out there. The links below contain useful information about a wide range of topics regarding substance use and its effects on yourself and the people around you.
Individual, family and small group counselling is available to people of all ages who are directly or indirectly affected by alcohol and other drug use by calling the 24-hour BC Alcohol and Drug Information and Referral Service.
Causes of substance use: BPCG 173 Free Solved Assignment
The exact cause of substance use disorder is not known. A person’s genes, the action of the drug, peer pressure, emotional distress, anxiety, depression, and environmental stress can all be factors.
Many who develop a substance use problem have depression, attention deficit disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, or another mental problem. A stressful or chaotic lifestyle and low self-esteem are also common.
Children who grow up seeing their parents using drugs may have a high risk of developing substance use problem later in life for both environmental and genetic reasons.
Commonly used substances include:
Opiates and other narcotics are powerful painkillers that can cause drowsiness, and sometimes intense feelings of well-being, elation, happiness, excitement, and joy.
These include heroin, opium, codeine, and narcotic pain medicines that may be prescribed by a doctor or bought illegally. BPCG 173 Free Solved Assignment
Assignment IIIQ 6 Holistic model of health.
Ans:Holistic model of health: In response to the various limitations of the medical model, many scholars came up with new models for health and illness.
One such model is known as the holistic model. The term Holistic medicine was first used by F. H. Hoffman in 1960. It refers to conceptualising health as a ‘whole’.
Guttmacher has suggested that holistic model considers health as equivalent to “a sense of wellbeing” and disease is not considered as a presence or absence of a pathogenic agent only.
Instead, according to the holistic model, a disharmony between social, psychological and spiritual dimensions of one’s life causes disease.
In this way, the holistic model puts responsibility for ill health on the individual also. This model also gives equal importance to the role of practitioners and patients.
Unlike biomedical model, it considers a practitioner as a mentor and role model, whose role is to motivate patients to be selfresponsible for their health instead of having blind faith in practitioners’ efficacy. BPCG 173 Free Solved Assignment
Q 7 Goals of coping.
Ans:Goals of coping:
As we now have a clear idea about the meaning and definition of coping, let us now discuss the goals of coping.
As was explained earlier, the main goal of coping is dealing with the stressor so that its impact on the individual is minimal.
Further, individual differences exist in the coping styles adopted by the persons. Also, different coping strategies may be effective in different situations.
Thus, during the coping process either internal resources or external resources are utilized by the individuals. Some of the major goals of coping are as follows:
1 To enhance the possibility of recovery by decreasing the negative environmental conditions.
2 To be able to adjust to the negative situation.
3 To maintain a self-image that is positive and maintain emotional balance.
4 To ensure positive interpersonal relationship.
Q8 Yoga.
Ans:Yoga: Yoga is a mind and body practice. Various styles of yoga combine physical postures, breathing techniques, and meditation or relaxation.
YogaTrusted Source is an ancient practice that may have originated in India.
It involves movement, meditation, and breathing techniques to promote mental and physical well-being. BPCG 173 Free Solved Assignment
There are several types of yoga and many disciplines within the practice. The six branches are:
Hatha yoga: This is the physical and mental branch that aims to prime the body and mind.
Raja yoga: This branch involves meditation and strict adherence to a series of disciplinary steps known as the eight limbs of yoga.
Karma yoga: This is a path of service that aims to create a future free from negativity and selfishness.
Bhakti yoga: This aims to establish the path of devotion, a positive way to channel emotions and cultivate acceptance and tolerance.
Jnana yoga: This branch of yoga is about wisdom, the path of the scholar.
Tantra yoga: This is the pathway of ritual, ceremony, or consummation of a relationship.
Q 9 Diabetes.
Ans:Diabetes: Diabetes is a disease that occurs when your blood glucose, also called blood sugar, is too high. BPCG 173 Free Solved Assignment
Blood glucose is your main source of energy and comes from the food you eat.
Insulin, a hormone made by the pancreas, helps glucose from food get into your cells to be used for energy. There are a few different types of diabetes:
Type 1 diabetes: Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease. The immune system attacks and destroys cells in the pancreas, where insulin is made.
It’s unclear what causes this attack. About 10 percent of people with diabetes have this type.
Type 2 diabetes: Type 2 diabetes occurs when your body becomes resistant to insulin, and sugar builds up in your blood.
Prediabetes occurs when your blood sugar is higher than normal, but it’s not high enough for a diagnosis of type 2 diabetes.
Gestational diabetes is high blood sugar during pregnancy. Insulin-blocking hormones produced by the placenta cause this type of diabetes.
Q 10 Hope theory.
Ans:Hope theory: Hope is positively correlated with optimism. Snyder has proposed that hope consists of two key aspects such as (a) the ability to plan pathways to desired goals despite obstacles, and (b) agency or motivation to use these pathways.
We can see that the ability to plan pathways is related to the positive future expectations as involved in dispositional optimism, whereas the agency is emphasized in optimistic explanatory style. BPCG 173 Free Solved Assignment
Thus, Snyder has combined these two elements of expectation and agency in his Hope Theory.
Hope is characterized by a goal-directed behavior. The individual faces an obstacle while working towards achieving a goal.
The individual will find ways to overcome the challenges, thus exploring the possible pathways and having a positive expectation regarding the effectiveness of the pathways.
Here, the thoughts focusing on personal agency, that is, how effective one will be in following the pathways to reach the goal, also plays a role.
BPCG 171 FREE SOLVED ASSIGNMENT 2021-22