Riya and Kabir face the same board examination. Riya feels only mild tension, while Kabir feels intense stress and falls ill. A psychologist says that Selye's General Adaptation Syndrome model alone cannot explain this difference. Which of the following statements about the criticism of Selye's model are correct?
(A) Selye's model has been criticised for assigning a very limited role to psychological factors in stress.
(B) Researchers have reported that the psychological appraisal of events is important for the determination of stress.
(C) How people respond to stress is substantially influenced by their perceptions, personalities and biological constitutions.
(D) Researchers have reported that the physical intensity of events is important for the determination of stress.
Choose the correct answer from the options given below:
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → A, B and C only
(A) Selye's model has been criticised for assigning a very limited role to psychological factors in stress. — Correct. Selye studied mainly the bodily pattern of stress, so his model gives psychological factors a very limited role. This is why it cannot explain why Riya and Kabir react so differently.
(B) Researchers have reported that the psychological appraisal of events is important for the determination of stress. — Correct. Appraisal is how a person judges an event. The same examination can be judged a mild challenge by one student and a threat by another.
(C) How people respond to stress is substantially influenced by their perceptions, personalities and biological constitutions. — Correct. Response to stress depends on the person: perceptions, personalities and biological constitutions. This accounts for two different reactions to one event.
(D) Researchers have reported that the physical intensity of events is important for the determination of stress. — Incorrect. The criticism points to the psychological appraisal of events. Here the event is the same for both students, yet their stress differs.
NCERT (2026-27): “General Adaptation Syndrome … |