HESI General Chairside Assisting Practice Exam

Which type of stress is characterized by pulling or stretching in a material?

1. Compressive

2. Shear

3. Tensile

4. Bending

The correct answer is: Tensile

The type of stress characterized by pulling or stretching in a material is tensile stress. This occurs when a material is subjected to forces that attempt to elongate it, leading to deformation in the direction of the applied force. In tensile stress, the force acts outward along the length of the material, causing it to stretch. This type of stress is critical in various applications, such as in structural engineering and material science, where understanding how materials respond to stretching forces is essential for ensuring their integrity and performance. Other types of stress, such as compressive and shear stress, operate under different mechanisms. Compressive stress occurs when forces are applied to compress or shorten a material, while shear stress involves forces applied parallel or tangential to the surface, resulting in sliding layers within the material. Bending stress involves a combination of tensile and compressive forces, where one side of a material experiences tension while the opposite side experiences compression as it bends. Thus, recognizing the specific characteristics and impacts of tensile stress is fundamental in evaluating material behavior under different loading conditions.