The core idea
Richard Lazarus and Susan Folkman's work on stress emphasized that responses depend on how people interpret events. Jim Blascovich and Joe Tomaka developed this into the biopsychosocial model, in which people weigh the demands of a situation against their resources for meeting them. Challenge arises when resources appear sufficient. Threat arises when demands appear to exceed them.
Markers of threat and challenge
Both states involve engagement and increased heart activity, but the cardiovascular patterns are said to differ. Researchers typically measure these signals during a motivated task.
- Challenge: the heart pumps more blood and vessels relax, resembling efficient mobilization during exercise
- Threat: the heart still works harder, but vessels do not relax and may constrict
Evidence and caveats
Challenge states are generally associated with better performance in tasks ranging from academic tests to sport and surgery simulations. Interventions that encourage people to view arousal as helpful have shown promise. However, many studies are small, measures differ across laboratories, and self-reported appraisals do not always line up with the physiological markers. Whether challenge and threat are opposite ends of one dimension or partly separate states is still debated, and people can experience elements of both at once.
Further reading
- Lazarus, R. S., & Folkman, S. (1984). Stress, Appraisal, and Coping. Springer.
- Blascovich, J., & Tomaka, J. (1996). The biopsychosocial model of arousal regulation. Advances in Experimental Social Psychology, 28.
- Tomaka, J., Blascovich, J., Kelsey, R. M., & Leitten, C. L. (1993). Subjective, physiological, and behavioral effects of threat and challenge appraisal. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 65(2).