an increase in limbic activity was discovered. Many researchers believe that these results underlie the reasons why men administer a fight-or-flight reaction to stress; whereas, females have a tend-and-befriend reaction. The "fight-or-flight" response activates the sympathetic nervous system in the form of increased focus levels, adrenaline, and epinephrine. Conversely, the "tend-and-befriend" reaction refers to the tendency of women to protect their offspring and relatives. Although these two reactions support a genetic basis to differences in behavior, one should not assume that in general females cannot implement "fight-or-flight" behavior or that males cannot implement "tend-and-befriend" behavior. Additionally, this study implied differing health impacts for each gender as a result of the contrasting stress-processes. See also References Sources Further reading Susan Folkman and Richard S. Lazarus, "Coping and Emotion", in Nancy Stein et al. eds., Psychological and Biological Approaches to Emotion (1990) External links Spirituality and Health Mental Health Coping Skills Coping Skills for Trauma Coping Strategies for Children and Teenagers Living with Domestic Violence Interpersonal conflict Personal life Psychological stress Human behavior Life skills