|
Hans Selye, endocrinologist, world-famous pioneer and popularizer of research on "biological stress" in human individuals and groups (b at Vienna, Austria 26 Jan 1907; d at Montréal 16 Oct 1982). Educated in Prague, Paris and Rome, he joined the staff of McGill in 1932. He became the first director of the Institute of Experimental Medicine and Surgery at U de M (1945) and guided its activities until his 1976 retirement. In 1977 he founded the International Institute of Stress, based in his own home.
His theorizing about a General Adaptation Syndrome, based on much experimentation on rats, provoked much controversy. Briefly put, his model suggests that all stimuli are "stressors" that produce a general response of "stress" in the affected person. (Selye later claimed that he was hampered by his inadequate English and "should have called my syndrome the 'strain syndrome.'") For Selye, "stress plays some role in the development of every disease" and is "the non-specific response of the body to any demand made upon it." This process, which he called the General Adaptation Syndrome, has 3 phases: alarm, resistance and exhaustion. Failure to "cope adequately" with stressors results in and is displayed by "diseases of adaptation" (eg, high blood pressure, gastric and duodenal ulcers, various mental disorders). Later, Selye spoke of 2 major types of "stress": "pleasant or curative stress" ("eustress") and "unpleasant or disease-producing stress" ("distress"). He also had earlier flirted with the idea that an entire "nation" could experience a General Adaptation Syndrome, whereby, in a situation of mass "frustration" and insecurity, "the incidence of all stress diseases will increase." A prolific author and lecturer, he strove to make his ideas accessible to the general public in writings such as The Stress of Life (1956; rev ed 1976); Stress Without Distress (1974), and his autobiography, The Stress of My Life (1977; 2nd ed 1979). He received many honours, including some 20 honorary degrees, and was a Companion of the Order of Canada. Selye's overly "biological" focus ignored or underestimated the role played by the person's psychology and culture in shaping and affecting the body's physiology, and his theoretical model has now been superseded by the "cognitive" models of stress and coping put forward by psychologist Richard Lazarus (U of Calif, Berkeley) and others.
 Selye, HansSelye's theories on stress inspired a new approach to medicine (courtesy Library and Archives Canada/PA-11671).
Author
D. PAUL LUMSDEN
|
|
|
|
 |
|
| Time waits for no man… and neither do trains... |
|
| Pierre Elliott Trudeau, politician, writer, constitutional lawyer, prime minister of Canada 1968-79 and 1980-84 (b at ... |
|
|
| Few countries were affected as severely as Canada by the worldwide Depression of the 1930s. It is estimated that ... |
|
|
| Louis Riel, Métis leader, founder of Manitoba, central figure in the NORTH-WEST REBELLION (b at Red River ... |
|
|
| The Group of Seven was founded in 1920 as an organization of self-proclaimed modern artists. The original members - ... |
|
|
| Sir John Alexander Macdonald, lawyer, businessman, politician, first prime minister of Canada (b at Brunswick Place, ... |
|
|
| Few countries were affected as severely as Canada by the worldwide Depression of the 1930s. It is estimated that ... |
|
|
| John Ware, "Nigger John," horseman, rancher (b near Georgetown, SC 1845; d near Brooks, Alta 11 Sept 1905). ... |
|
|
| Créditistes, Québec party involved in federal politics. For nearly 2 decades before its 1958 formation ... |
|
|
| Julia Verlyn LaMarsh, "Judy," lawyer, politician, broadcaster, novelist (b at Chatham, Ont 20 Dec 1924; d at ... |
|
Browse the rich visual resources of The Canadian Encyclopedia through thematic galleries of Canadian Art, History, Nature, People, and Science and Technology.
Illustrations, lively text, animations, sounds and games help make learning about Canadian history, art, geography, architecture and other topics entertaining as well as informative.
The ultimate test of your knowledge of Canada, trivial and otherwise. You can choose from more than 60 dynamic quizzes with visual or text clues. Your scores depend on the speed with which you answer and the number of clues you need. Results are sent to you by email and high scores are posted on the site.
This unique resource includes more than 6000 events from Canadian and world history. It can be searched by era, subject, keyword or date. To find out what happened on your birthday, select the month and day of your birth.
This selection of the 100 "greatest" events in Canadian history was made by editor in chief James H. Marsh to draw attention to events that have left an indelible memory in the minds of later generations.
| THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF MUSIC IN CANADA |
|
| Morse Code (Les Maîtres, 1967-70). Montreal instrumental and vocal rock group whose members included Raymond Roy (drums), Michel Vallée (bass guitar), and Jocelyn Julien (guitar). Christian Simard (keyboards, voice) ... |
|
|
