Synonyms
Definition
Distress or uneasiness of mind caused by fear of danger or misfortune
Introduction
Anxiety is a normal human emotion that is experienced by all in different situations and in different measures. Anxiety is often confused with fear, but the two are not synonyms. Fear is an alarm response to present or imminent danger, whereas anxiety is a future-oriented mood state associated with preparation for possible, upcoming negative events (Barlow 2002). Anxiety evokes fight-or-flight response and energizes a human being both psychologically and physiologically to deal with a situation or challenge. However, excessive or continued anxiety, which is disproportionate to the threat, presents in absence of any threat, or persists even when the threat has waned, is unhealthy and can become a troublesome problem for many. Such anxiety states could be acute as well as chronic and could lead to impairment in social, occupational, and other important...
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References
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Somani, A. (2020). Anxiety. In: Shackelford, T., Weekes-Shackelford, V. (eds) Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Psychological Science. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16999-6_2501-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16999-6_2501-1
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