Marcus was mapping an uncharted, narrow cave system alone when his headtorch suddenly flickered and died, plunging him into pitch darkness. A second later, he heard a loud, rapid scuttling sound on the rocks directly behind him.
When Marcus finally scrambled back out to the base camp, he explained to his team that he had been absolutely terrified. He reported that his heart was hammering violently in his chest, his mouth felt completely dry, and he had broken out into a cold sweat. He also felt a sudden urge to urinate and a jittery, hyper-alert feeling in his limbs. After sitting quietly by the campfire for about 20 minutes, his heart rate settled, his mouth watered again, and his body returned to a relaxed state.
Outline the fight or flight response and use this to explain what Marcus was experiencing.
Practise AQA A Level Psychology Fight or flight response with exam-style questions for A Level Psychology. 11 questions, matched to the AQA A Level Psychology (7182) specification and written in Paper 1, Paper 2 and Paper 3 style. Every question includes a full worked solution and mark scheme, so you can see where marks are awarded rather than just whether you got the answer right.
