4.2.2.3 Endocrine system and fight or flight Quiz: AQA Psychology, Unit 2

The 20 questions

1. Endocrine glands release their products into which system?

   • The bloodstream
   • The lymphatic vessels only
   • The synaptic cleft
   • The cerebrospinal fluid only

2. Which gland releases adrenaline during the fight-or-flight response?

   • The thyroid gland, at the neck
   • The adrenal medulla
   • The pancreas, beside the stomach
   • The adrenal cortex, the outer part

3. Which structure in the brain initiates the sympathetic response to threat?

   • The cerebellum
   • The corpus callosum
   • The hypothalamus
   • The medulla oblongata only

4. The pituitary gland is often described as the 'master gland' because it:

   • Stores all neurotransmitters for the brain and releases them when needed
   • Produces all the nerve impulses in the body that travel along the spinal cord
   • Controls voluntary movement of skeletal muscles through direct nerve connections
   • Controls the release of hormones from several other endocrine glands

5. Compared with the nervous system, the endocrine system's response is typically:

   • Faster and shorter lasting
   • Slower to start but longer lasting
   • Identical in speed and duration
   • Faster and more targeted to one neuron

6. Adrenaline's effect on the heart during fight or flight is to:

   • Slow the heart rate to conserve energy
   • Increase heart rate and the force of contraction
   • Stop the heart from beating temporarily
   • Have no effect because it acts only on the brain

7. During the fight-or-flight response, adrenaline helps the body by:

   • Slowing breathing to save oxygen for the brain during a crisis
   • Raising blood glucose levels so the muscles have energy
   • Increasing the rate of digestion in the stomach to prepare for a meal
   • Reducing the flow of blood to the skeletal muscles to conserve energy

8. Adrenaline increases the size of the pupils. This is best explained by:

   • Adrenaline reducing the size of the retina so less light reaches the cells
   • Adrenaline stimulating the radial muscles of the iris to contract
   • Adrenaline blocking the optic nerve so that signals from the eye are reduced
   • Adrenaline causing the lens of the eye to thicken and focus on near objects

9. In a fight-or-flight response, which change would the body make to the airways?

   • They dilate, allowing more air into the lungs
   • They close completely for a short time
   • They have no change in diameter
   • They constrict, reducing airflow to the lungs

10. During fight or flight, why is digestion temporarily inhibited?

    • Adrenaline stimulates the stomach to empty completely, so digestion speeds up during the emergency and food moves on
    • Blood and energy are redirected towards the muscles and vital organs needed for immediate action
    • The digestive system is connected only to the brain, so it cannot respond to adrenaline in any way at all
    • Digestion is blocked by the release of neurotransmitters in the blood that act on the gut

11. Adrenaline causes blood to be redirected from the skin and gut towards:

    • The digestive tract
    • Skeletal muscles
    • The lymph nodes
    • The skin surface

12. The adrenal medulla is part of which larger gland?

    • The pituitary gland
    • The thyroid gland
    • The pineal gland
    • The adrenal gland

13. Which hormone is released by the adrenal cortex in response to prolonged stress?

    • Cortisol
    • Oxytocin
    • Insulin
    • Adrenaline

14. Which sequence correctly describes the sympathetic-adrenal pathway in a threat?

    • Pituitary, adrenal cortex, insulin release, sympathetic nerve signals
    • Sympathetic nerve signals, insulin release, pituitary, adrenal medulla
    • Adrenal medulla, hypothalamus, sympathetic nerve signals, release of adrenaline into the blood
    • Hypothalamus, sympathetic nerve signals, adrenal medulla, release of adrenaline into the blood

15. Adrenaline raises blood pressure during fight or flight. What is the main reason?

    • Adrenaline acts only on the blood vessels of the brain and has no effect on the heart
    • Adrenaline reduces the total volume of blood in the body by draining fluid from vessels
    • Adrenaline stops the heart from pumping blood, so pressure falls to very low levels
    • Vasoconstriction in some vessels and increased heart output raise overall pressure

16. Why does the fight-or-flight response involve both the nervous and endocrine systems?

    • The endocrine system triggers the nervous system to release neurotransmitters only, with no hormones involved
    • The two systems operate separately with no interaction, so each acts on its own pathway in isolation
    • Hormones are released only by the nervous system through nerve endings, never by glands at all
    • The nervous system triggers the adrenal medulla, which then releases hormones into the blood

17. Prolonged activation of the stress response is most likely to lead to:

    • Damage to health through effects such as raised blood pressure and suppressed immune function
    • Improved digestion and absorption of nutrients, since the body keeps its gut working at full capacity
    • Permanent reduction in heart rate and breathing, which lowers the body's energy demands for good
    • Faster healing of tissue damage over time, because the stress hormones speed up repair processes

18. A person is repeatedly exposed to stress and their cortisol levels remain raised over several weeks. What would a psychologist most likely predict?

    • Greater risk of stress-related health problems and difficulty recovering from stressors
    • No change in the body's response to later stress, which remains exactly the same over time
    • Immediate reduction in blood glucose levels, which restores the body to its resting state
    • Reduced risk of health problems because cortisol is protective and builds strong immunity

19. Which term describes the chemical messengers that endocrine glands release into the bloodstream?

    • Hormones
    • Neurotransmitters
    • Enzymes
    • Antibodies

20. Which of these is a physiological effect of the fight-or-flight response?

    • Airways constrict and blood flow to the muscles falls to save energy for later
    • Digestion speeds up and saliva production increases to prepare the body for food
    • Heart rate slows and pupils constrict to conserve energy during the threat
    • Pupils dilate and blood flow to the skeletal muscles increases

Related quizzes

• Learning approaches: behaviourism and classical conditioning Quiz · 4.2.1.1 · 20 questions
• Operant conditioning and social learning theory Quiz · 4.2.1.2 · 20 questions
• The cognitive approach Quiz · 4.2.1.3 · 20 questions
• The biological approach Quiz · 4.2.1.4 · 20 questions
• The psychodynamic approach Quiz · 4.2.1.5 · 20 questions
• Humanistic psychology Quiz · 4.2.1.6 · 20 questions
• Comparison of approaches Quiz · 4.2.1.7 · 20 questions
• Divisions of the nervous system and neurons Quiz · 4.2.2.1 · 20 questions
• Synaptic transmission Quiz · 4.2.2.2 · 20 questions
• Ways of studying the brain Quiz · 4.2.2.4 · 20 questions