Everyone experiences stress. But the types of stress that people experience and the ways that people respond to them differ. Stress can take the form of major life events (like death of a parent), chronic, ongoing stress (like the COVID-19 pandemic) and daily hassles (like arguments). Stress is typically associated with worse mental and physical health, but the negative consequences of stress depend on the person and the situation. This talk will show some of my research that highlights for whom and under which circumstances well-being can be optimized in times of stress. I will show data from 515 adults in the U.S. and results of age differences in risk and resiliency factors for COVID-19-related stress. Another study focused specifically on healthcare professionals during the pandemic. We document significant challenges faced by these professionals compared to age-matched controls in terms of anxiety, depression, tiredness, concern for their own health, and coping. I will end the talk with results from a recent study where we showed the benefits of planning ahead for the future which helped to prevent stress. But when stress does happen, we show that trying to be mindful helps to avoid the negative emotional consequences of stress.
Shevaun D. Neupert is a Professor of Psychology at NC State. She earned her Ph.D. in Family Studies and Human Development with a minor in Statistics from the University of Arizona and completed her postdoctoral training at Brandeis University. Her work aims to promote health and well-being across the adult lifespan through psychological science. Her research interests include contextual and individual differences surrounding stressors and well-being outcomes (e.g., physical health, cognition, affect). Her research lab examines individual and daily characteristics that address the following question: For whom and under which circumstances are health and well-being optimized? She is a Fellow of the Gerontological Society of America and the American Psychological Association and currently serves as an Associate Editor for the Journal of Gerontology: Psychological Sciences.
Mental Health, Stress and Well-Being (Shevaun D. Neupert)
This video was originally produced for an audience of entering first-year and transfer students at NC State University as a part of an interdisciplinary experience. It is available for noncommercial reuse under a Creative Commons Attribution Noncommercial 4.0 License, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/.
Healthcare Professionals Paper (still under review)
We focused specifically on healthcare professionals during the pandemic. We document significant challenges faced by these professionals compared to age-matched controls in terms of anxiety, depression, tiredness, concern for their own health, and coping.
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC-BY 4.0)
