# Stress and Workload

> Managing stress, arousal, and workload in flight.

- **Subject:** 040 — Human Performance Limitations
- **Section:** 040-03 — Basic Aviation Psychology
- **Topic code:** 040-03-06
- **Last reviewed:** 2026-04-01
- **Author:** Pablo Asensio Martínez
- **HTML version:** https://pilotsyllabus.com/en/human-performance-limitations/basic-aviation-psychology/human-overload-and-underload/

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## Stress
The body's non-specific response to any demand.
*   **Stressor**: The external factor (Noise, Vibration, Divorce, Exams).
*   **Stress Response**: The internal/physiological reaction (Adrenaline, fight or flight).
    *   **Acute**: Short term, intense (Emergency).
    *   **Chronic**: Long term, persisting (Financial trouble, health issues). Dangerous as it drains reserves.

## Arousal (Yerkes-Dodson Law)

![Yerkes-Dodson Law](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/82/Yerkes-Dodson.PNG)

Performance relates to arousal (stimulation/alertness) in an inverted U-curve.
*   **Under-arousal (Boredom)**: Low performance, complacency, missed cues.
*   **Optimum Arousal**: Peak performance.
*   **Over-arousal (Panic)**: Performance drops sharply. Tunnel vision, regression to old habits, cognitive narrowing.

## Coping Strategies
*   **Action Coping**: Removing the stressor (Fixing the problem).
*   **Cognitive Coping**: Changing how you think about the stressor ("I can handle this").
*   **Symptom-Directed Coping**: Treating the symptoms (Alcohol, Drugs) - **Negative/Harmful**.

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Free study notes from pilotsyllabus.com. Not a substitute for training at an approved ATO.