Autogenic training implies that individuals have the ability to regulate their psychological systems - the power to control various bodily functions (Seaward, 2012, p. 487). Autogenic training is a very simple, and effective therapy when combating stress. Performing this exercise worked as described, it helped me calm down exponentially as I focused on certain body parts. Throughout the whole semester no other technique effected me as much as autogenic training. This sort of technique can be used in just about any situation, from something more instant like someone getting ready to sleep, and calming oneself down during a stressful time. Or even, over a long period of time, as autogenic training has been shown to positively affect most aspects of people's life when practiced over a long period of time.
The purpose of of autogenic training is to reprogram the mind so as to override the stress response when physical arousal is not appropriate (Seaward, 2012, p. 488). Beliefs related to the regulation of bodily functions began
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G Snider and E. R. Oetting titled “AUTOGENIC TRAINING AND THE TREATMENT OF EXAMINATION ANXIETY IN STUDENTS”, a group of 12 college students who exemplified signs of high stress during exams were monitored for a period of three weeks. The were given surveys on their opinion regarding examination in college, and how they affect their stress levels. Since they all exemplified high stress levels in regards to examinations, they all volunteered to practice Autogenic training in order to lessen effects of stress. They were encouraged to report in and have their experiences documented. The results were surprising, their examination grades improved, their sleeping habits and their digestion functions also stabilized. They also experienced “better disciplined in their studies”, “more relaxed”, and “less anxious” (pg. 113). The general result of using autogenic training in the treatment of examination anxiety has been very
During studying students are experiencing varieties of emotions. Test anxiety and emotional reactivity to test outcome are one of most frequent and the strongest stressors for students during their college days (Pekrun, Goetz, Titz, & Perry, 2002). Various studies have shown that test anxiety correlate negatively with cumulative grades-point average (Diener, Schwarz, & Nickerson, 2011), academic performance (& Elliot, Pekrun, & Maier, 2009) and students’ health (Conley & Lehman, 2012). Test anxiety and emotional reactivity of test outcome can be influenced by both situational and trait factors (Putwain, Woods, & Symes, 2010). Previous research have shown that achievement goals (Putwain et al., 2010; Putwain & Daniels, 2010; Putwain & Symes, 2012), neuroticism (Chammorro-Premuzic, Ahmetoglu, & Furnham, 2008), perfectionism (Stoeber, Feast, & Hayward, 2009), locus of control (Davis & Davis, 1972) , and even a birth order (Saranson, 1969) are related with test anxiety. Above-mentioned studies suggest that beside situational factors, experience of test anxiety also depend on students’ individual characteristics.
...ransports them to all tissues of the body. Adrenaline excites the heart to increases muscle strength, like the reaction that comes from anxiety. Noradrenaline constricts blood vessels and helps transmit nerve signals. These chemicals are vital to many autonomic activities. Although the autonomic nervous system acts automatically, it is possible to have control of some autonomic functions. Biofeedback is teaching a person to control body functions like reducing heart rate. The benefits are that it can be used to relieve headache by moving blood away from the head to lessen pressure or by lowering high blood pressure. The fact that the body’s automatic functions can be affected by the mind greatly contributes to the understanding of the autonomic nervous system. In conclusion, the nervous system is an important part of science because understanding it can help save lives. Millions were saved from heart attacks, strokes, etc. from treating the nervous system. Understanding about the nervous system is also necessary for psychologists, physicians, and neurologists. Future experiments of the nervous system can benefit the human race by producing cures for presently incurable diseases.
Moreover, there is a strong psychological connection between one’s perception of themselves, and their strengths and weaknesses (Hubbard & Blyler, 2016). Since the human body instinctively reacts to anything perceived as a threat with the fight or flight response, it does not discriminate between an individual’s perception of an event, and the actual event that occurs (Bhattacharya & Bhattacharya, 2015; Grison, Heatherton & Gazzaniga, 2016). Therefore, something as simple as the fear of failing a test can provoke the same stress response within the body as encountering a bear. Indeed, conclusions established by Hubbard & Blyler (2016) indicated a significant relationship between stress and poor academic performance finding increases in absent mindedness, hyperactivity, and most importantly; difficulties with attentional control and working memory. In a similar study, Bhattacharya & Bhattacharya (2015) observed reductions in the effects of stress when students exhibited positive self-perceptions and confidence in their academic abilities. Combined, these studies suggest that the much of the stress associated with academics can be minimized by simply acknowledging its existence. By first recognizing the biological symptoms of stress, this author has begun to understand how influential the mindset and perceptions are for increasing academic
In recent years, it has become a well noted fact that the education system has become in many ways tougher, for better or for worse. Nevertheless, for anyone susceptible to an anxiety disorder, school often aggravates their symptoms. Today over 10 per-cent of European and American citizens suffer from an anxiety disorder, and it is an even greater number among young people (Points of View: FEAR NOT). As English-speaking countries move forward through time, testing becomes more stressful and more competitive, it should be expected that anxiety will increase. As well, according to Psychology Today the “[a]verage high school student [in the United States] has the same level of anxiety as the average psychiatric patient in the early 1950s” (Psychology Today: How Big a Problem is Anxiety Today). This is logical considering that a similar study done in 2010 concluded that high school and college students were more than five times as likely to develop either depression or an anxiety disorder than a student fifty years ago (Psychology Today: The Decline of Play and the Rise of Children's Mental Disorders?). This excessive rise exemplifies the amount of stress students have. As the years pass, it is becoming increasingly evident that anxiety disorder is prevalent among a majority...
The degree of stress and the desire to make the changes will determine the level of change that will take place. If a student wants to change the amount of stress in their life, they have to be willing to work and manage their time properly, even if it means sacrificing hours from a job or a night out with friends to study for a test or write a paper. Many students feel an increase in stress and anxiety when writing a paper, meeting a deadline, or studying for an exam. This can cause twitching, trembling, muscle tension, headaches, sweating, irritability, fatigue, and even dry mouth (Anxiety, Stress, and Tension). When talking about stress, there are many things that can influence a student. The five main topics that influence a student’s well being are attitude, physical well being, physical activity, support systems, and relaxation (World Book on Health, 235). Attitude: The attitude of a student can influence whether a situation or emotion is stressful or not. A student with a negative attitude will ...
National Health Ministries (2006). Stress & The College Student. The University of Illinois at Chicago. http://www.uic.edu/depts/wellctr/docs/Stress%20and%20the%20College%20Student.pdf
...ife and we all thrive under a certain amount of stress. Deadlines, competitions, examinations, confrontations and even our frustrations and sorrows add depth and enrichment to our lives. Our goal is not to eliminate stress but to learn how to manage it and how to use it to help us. Feelings of stress and anxiety are inevitably going to develop in students. Teachers should be able to identify symptoms and sources of stress and anxiety in students. They should be aware of various strategies that can be applied to minimize the detrimental effects of stress and anxiety. Their focus should be on the development of coping mechanisms in students so that they are able to channelize their stresses and anxieties productively. Every teacher is required to find the optimal level of stress for each student which will motivate but not overwhelm individual for maximal benefit.
Studies have shown that many college students are not able to handle the stress while in school, which hinders the ability for the brain to act in a normal way (Shahrokh and Hales, 2003). If a person is unable to deal with the stress that one is being faced with, it will have negative consequences in terms of causing several psychological disorders (Canby et al., 2014). Entering post-secondary education is a completely new environment for students, as it can be tough for many to adjust to the new surroundings. There are many factors that cause stress when students enter college, as it can include having the ability to deal with lower marks (Struthers et al., 2000) and having to create a new social life. Once and if a social life is established, it can cause more stress among students because it can lead into peer pressure that results in risky behavior. In particular, peer pressure can cause alcoholism or drug abuse (Seiffge-Krenke, 1990) or it can also cause unprotected sex. Not only does stress revolve around peer-pressure, but it can also be caused by headaches and lack of energy. If a student is constantly staying up late to finish assignments or to study, it can cause headaches from the lack of sleep; thus causing stress. With all the given factors, it can be hard to overcome these external factors which can ultimately lead to stress among
A name for the stress and anxiousness that commonly occur in students before they take exams.
Doing things like eating right and getting the required hours of sleep each night is an important thing to do in order to stay healthy. (Gwen K. Packard, pg. 134) Although exercising can be dreadful, it is an excellent way to stay healthy and a great way to relieve our stress. ‘’When you are under stress, your body reacts with a fight – or – flight response which involves increasing your heart rate, blood pressure, and musc...
Bio-Psychologists study the principles of biology as it relates to the comprehension of psychology in the field neuroscience that underlies ones emotions, ideology, and actions (Brittanica). Based upon the conduction of research, the relationship between the brain and ones behavior extends to the physiological process in one’s intellect. Scientists are cognizant that neurotransmitters function as a significant role in mood regulation and other aspects of psychological problems including depression and anxiety. A biological perspective are relevant to psychology in three techniques including: the comparative method, physiology, and the investigation of inheritance (Saul Mc. Leod).
Nowadays, stress is a major burden in the daily life of the average student, and it seems harder and harder to tackle it and eliminate all the factors that cause it. Students find it hard to concentrate on studying since there are a lot of deadlines and exams causing additional pressure. Stress in the form of anxiety and worry about past or future study-related experiences disturbs one’s well-being and students are not doing well anymore (Schutz & Davis, 2000).
The psychologist B. F Skinner believed that “changes in behavior are the result of an individual’s response to events (stimuli) that occur in the environment” (All About Operant Conditioning, 2006, Para 2). The following paper will discuss a learning situation in which an exercise routine is thought. The paper will evaluate the application of instrumental conditioning to this learning situation. As part of the analysis the learning situation will be described, the paper will compare and contrast the concepts of positive and negative reinforcement as related to learning situation, and explain the role of reward and punishment in learning an exercise routine. Finally, the paper will explain which form of instrumental conditioning would be most effective in teaching someone an exercise routine. Instrumental conditioning is the learning procedure that believes that “the organism must act in a certain way before it is reinforced; that is, reinforcement is contingent on the organism’s behavior” (Hergenhahn & Olson, 2005, pg 23). The major contributors of Instrumental conditioning are B.F Skinner, John Watson, and Edward Thorndike. These three theorists believed that “learning is the result of the application of consequences; that is, learners begin to connect certain responses with certain stimuli” (Huitt & Hummel, 1997, Para 1). In society the behaviors individuals manifest are learned behaviors which are learned through some form of conditioning.
The human body has different ways of responding to stress; one quick responding nerve-hormonal system involving adrenaline, another long-lasting system involving cortisol, and perhaps others. These systems not only determine the intensity of our anxiety reactions but also our attitudes, energy level, depression, and physical health after the stressful events are over. As individuals, our nervous systems differ; however, according to Richard Dienstbier at the University of Nebraska, we may be able to modify our unique physiological reactions by learning coping skills. The genetic, constitutional, and intrauterine factors influence stress. Some of us may have been born "nerv...
As a result people suffer from psychological disorders. Although anxiety is not so serious, people experience it everywhere and constantly within all cultures. But the educational system is worried about students’ anxiety which can be intolerable for some. Academic anxiety during education is the most important kind of anxiety in teenage. It threatens student psychological health and affects their efficiency, aptitude, personality formation and social identity. Academic anxiety is a general expression which refers to a social phobia or social anxiety in which the person falters in their function and cannot confront situations assessing themselves, such as examinations. This anxiety is functional and different studies show that 10%-30% of students are involved. In fact, academic anxiety is a self-obsession which is characterized by feelings of self-inferiority, regarding their abilities and students often tend toward negative cognitive assessment, lack of concentration, undesirable physiological reactions, such as increase of heart rate, cold fingers, drop in blood pressure and lower educational performance. This anxiety is related to students competition with their classmates and reduction in standards of educational performance, assignments, examinations and high rigidity, ability to study and worry about the future. It seems that in our country fear of low