Cognitive · 1984
Transactional model of stress
Stress emerges from the appraisal a person makes of the relationship between their resources and the demands of the environment.
Lazarus and Folkman's transactional model redefines stress as a dynamic process of interaction between person and environment, rather than an external stimulus or an isolated internal response. The core of the model is cognitive appraisal, through which the individual evaluates whether a situation is relevant, threatening, challenging or irrelevant, and whether they have the resources to cope with it. Stress appears when the person perceives that demands exceed their resources or place their well-being at risk. Following this appraisal, coping strategies are activated, which may be oriented towards modifying the situation (problem-focused coping) or towards regulating the emotional response (emotion-focused coping). The model also includes the process of continuous reappraisal, in which the person adjusts their interpretation according to experience and the results of coping. This approach introduces a processual, contextual and constructive view of stress, in which the meaning attributed to the situation is decisive, and it lays the foundations for numerous later developments in health psychology, cognitive behavioural therapy and models of emotional regulation.
Core ideas
-
Stress is a relational process, not an isolated stimulus or response
The transactional model defines stress as the result of a dynamic relationship between person and environment, in which each influences the other. This breaks with earlier models that understood it as a property of the stimulus or as an automatic physiological reaction, placing the focus on the appraised interaction between demands and resources. (Lazarus & Folkman, 1984).
-
Cognitive appraisal determines the experience of stress
Stress depends fundamentally on how the person interprets the situation, not only on its objective characteristics. The primary appraisal defines whether there is threat or challenge, and the secondary appraisal whether sufficient resources exist, together shaping the intensity and quality of the stress. (Lazarus & Folkman, 1984).
-
The meaning attributed to the situation is the core of the process
Two people may face the same event and experience completely different levels of stress because of differences in the attribution of meaning. The model places appraisal as the central mechanism organising the emotional, cognitive and behavioural response. (Lazarus, 1999).
-
Coping is an adaptive process, not a fixed technique
Coping is not reducible to particular strategies, but involves a dynamic process of adjustment between person and situation. The effectiveness of coping depends on its fit with the context rather than on its form, which introduces the concept of flexibility as the key to adaptation. (Lazarus & Folkman, 1984).
-
Coping has two broad functions
The model distinguishes between problem-focused coping, oriented towards modifying the situation, and emotion-focused coping, oriented towards regulating internal experience. Both are functional depending on the degree of perceived control over the stressor. (Lazarus & Folkman, 1984).
-
Continuous reappraisal regulates adaptation
The process of reappraisal makes it possible to update the interpretation of the situation in the light of experience, generating a dynamic loop of adjustment. This continuous reappraisal explains why stress can decrease, increase or be transformed over time. (Lazarus, 1999).
-
Perceived misfit between demands and resources generates stress
Stress emerges when the person perceives that the demands of the environment exceed their capacities or threaten their well-being. This misfit is subjective and depends on cognitive appraisal, not only on objective reality. (Lazarus & Folkman, 1984).
-
Perceived resources matter as much as real ones
The secondary appraisal depends not only on objective resources, but on the person's perception of them. Underestimating resources can generate high stress even in manageable contexts, while overestimating them can support effective coping. (Lazarus, 1999).
-
Flexibility in coping is key to adaptation
The capacity to alternate between different coping strategies according to context is one of the most robust predictors of adaptation to stress. Rigidity in coping maintains the problem even when the strategies are themselves valid. (Lazarus & Folkman, 1984).
-
Stress can be modulated through meaning
Modifying the way a situation is interpreted can significantly reduce the stress response without any need to change the environment. This makes appraisal a central point of intervention in psychotherapy and health psychology. (Lazarus, 1999).
Influences
- Cognitive psychology
- Cognitive appraisal theory
- Psychology of emotion
- Health psychology
- Person–environment interactionism
Key references
- Lazarus, R. S. (1966). Psychological Stress and the Coping Process.
- Lazarus, R. S., & Folkman, S. (1984). Stress, Appraisal, and Coping.
- Lazarus, R. S. (1999). Stress and Emotion: A New Synthesis.