The transactional model of stress is associated with which concept in the following list?

• A. Stress as stimulus
• B. Stress as transaction
• C. Stress as response
• D. Stress as process including internal and external demands and resources

Answer: (B)

The idea being tested is that stress arises from a dynamic interaction between the person and their environment, rather than from a single stimulus or a simple physiological/psychological reaction. In this transactional view, how a person appraises the situation (is it threatening, do I have resources to cope) and the coping resources available shape whether stress occurs and how intense it feels. Because this model centers on the ongoing exchange between individual and context, the label used to describe it is “stress as transaction.” The option that describes the process as including internal and external demands and resources aligns with this perspective, but the standard term most closely capturing the model is the transaction itself. The other ideas—seeing stress as a stimulus or as a pure response—don’t reflect this interactive, appraisal-based process.