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Eustress is a term coined by endocrinologist Hans Selye, which is defined in the model of Richard Lazarus (1974) as stress that is healthy, or gives one a feeling of fulfillment or other positive feelings. Selye created the term as a subgroup of stress to differentiate the wide variety of stressors and manifestations of stress. . Eustress is often defined not by the type stressor, but rather how one perceives that stressor (e.g. a negative threat versus a positive challenge). Eustress refers to a positive response one has to a stressor, which can depend on one's current feelings of control, desirability, location, and timing of the stressor. Potential indicators of eustress may include responding to a stressor with a sense of meaning, hope, or vigor. Eustress has also been positively correlated with life satisfaction and well-being.

Compared with distress
Distress is the most commonly-referred to type of stress, having negative implications, whereas eustress is a positive form of stress, usually related to desirable events in a person's life. Both can be equally taxing on the body, and are cumulative in nature, depending on a person's way of adapting to a change that has caused it. The body itself cannot physically discern between distress or eustress. Differentiation between the two is dependent on one's perception of the stress, but it is believed that the same stressor may cause both eustress and distress. One context that this may occur in is societal trauma (e.g. the black death, WWII) which may cause great distress, but also eustress in the form of hardiness, coping, and fostering a sense of community

Occupational Eustress
Much of the research on eustress has focused on its presence in the workplace. In the workplace, stress can often be interpreted as a challenge, which generally denotes positive eustress, or hindrance, which referes to distress that interferes with one's ability to accomplish a job or task. Relationships have been shown between how one appraises an occupational stress and how one chooses a coping style. Emotion-focused coping strategies have been related to threat appraisals and distress while task-focused coping have been related to challenge appraisal and eustress. Research has focused on increasing eustress in the workplace, in an effort to promote positive reactions to an inevitably stressful environment. Techniques such as Stress Management Interventions (SMI) have been employed to increase occupational eustress. Rather than decrease stress in the workplace, SMI attempts to increase eustress with positive reactions to stressful stimuli.

Methods
Researchers have studied eustress using multiple subjective and objective measures. Occupational eustress may be measure on subjective levels such as of quality of life work life, job pressure, psychological coping resources, complaints, overall stress level, and mental health. Other subjective methodological practices have included interviews with focus groups asking about stressors and stress level. In one study participants were asked to remember a past stressful event and then answer questionnaires on coping skills, job well-being, and appraisal of the situation (viewing the stressful event as a challenge or a threat). Objective measures have also been used and include blood pressure rate, muscle tension, and absenteeism rates.