Predictable information may lower our stress-response while we are experiencing the stressor by letting us know what coping stratagies are best to use
Despite the similarity between the responses of humans and of other animals to a lack of predictability, I suspect that there they are not identical, and in an important way. The warning of impending shocks to a rat has little effect on the size of the stress-response during the shocks; instead, allowing the rat to feel more confident about when it doesnât have to worry reduces the ratâs anticipatory stress-response the rest of the time. Analogously, when the dentist says, âOnly two more times and then weâre done,â it allows us to relax at the end of the second burst of drilling.
But I suggest, although I cannot prove it, that unlike the case for the rat, proper information will also lower our stress-response during the pain. If you were told âonly two times moreâ versus âonly ten times more,â wouldnât you use different mental strategies to try to cope? With either scenario, you would pull out the comforting thought of âonly one more and then itâs the last oneâ at different times; you would save your most distracting fantasy for a different point; you would try counting to zero from different numbers. Predictive information lets us know what internal coping strategy is likely to work best during a stressor.
We often wish for information about the course of some medical problem because it aids our strategizing about how we will cope. A simple example: you have some minor surgery, and youâre given predictive informationâthe first post-surgical day, there is going to be a lot of pain, pretty constant, whereas by the second day, youâll just feel a bit achy. Armed with that information, you are more likely to plan on watching the eight distracting videos on day one and to devote day two to writing delicate haikus than the other way around. Among other reasons, we wish to optimize our coping strategies when we request the most devastating piece of medical information any of us will ever face: âHow much time do I have left?â
References
- Sapolsky, Robert. (2004). Why Zebras Donât Get Ulcers 13. Why Is Psychological Stress Stressful? (p. 366). New York, NY: Henry Holt and Company.
Metadata
Type:đ´ Tags: Biology / Neuroscience / Psychology / Neuropsychology Status:âď¸