The emerging consensus among contemporary researchers is that stress is

A) a stimulus event that presents difficult demands.
B) the response of physiological arousal elicited by a troublesome event.
C) a special stimulus-response transaction in which one feels threatened or experiences loss or harm.
D) a series of events that tend to elicit overwhelming feelings of anxiety.

The emerging consensus among contemporary researchers is that stress is a special stimulus-response transaction in which one feels threatened or experiences loss or harm. Stress is not just a stimulus event or a series of events, but rather the psychological and physiological response to a perceived threat or challenge. While stress can certainly be elicited by difficult demands or lead to overwhelming feelings of anxiety, these are not the defining characteristics of stress itself.