Annotated Bibliography #3: Walter Bradford Cannon

The famous term used to describe the human bodys reaction to extreme stress is fight or
flight coined by American psychologist, Walter Bradford Cannon. In 1911, Cannon began to
turn his work towards the study of physiology of emotions in animals. This study led to the
discovery that when an animal is strongly aroused, the sympathetic division of its autonomic
nervous system combines with the hormone adrenaline to put forth the animal to display an
emergency response of fight or flight.
Cannon also turned his attention to wartime service during the First World War and
served in field hospitals studying the process of wound shock. What better way to study this
emergency response than tending to those whose lives are in peril almost 24 hours of the day. It
may sound maniacal but it proved to be a source of substantial information regarding his studies
of the human bodys response to extreme stress levels.
Cannon passed away in 1945 but was deemed as a beloved and much-honored role
model, teacher, and investigator. Although never a recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize, several
times he was considered prize-worthy.

Citations
Brown, Theodore M., and Elizabeth Fee. "Walter Bradford Cannon: Pioneer Physiologist of
Human Emotions." American Journal of Public Health. American Journal of Public Health
2002, n.d. Web. 01 Apr. 2016.
Goldstein, David S. "Adrenal Responses to Stress." Cellular and Molecular Neurobiology. U.S.
National Library of Medicine, n.d. Web. 01 Apr. 2016.

Goldstein, David. "Homeostasis and the Fight-or-Flight Response." BrainImmune: Trends in

Neuroendocrine Immunology. N.p., 15 May 2009. Web. 01 Apr. 2016.