According to Jerome Wakefield's model, a condition counts as a psychological disorder when it involves which combination?
A dysfunction that causes harm
✓
Atypical behavior that breaks social norms
Distress that lasts at least six months
A genetic cause plus an environmental trigger
Correct Answer
A dysfunction that causes harm
Wakefield argued that a disorder requires a failure of some internal mechanism to perform its natural function, and that this failure must produce harm to the person or others. Atypical behavior that breaks social norms is not enough, since many unusual behaviors are harmless. Distress that lasts at least six months is a duration rule for certain diagnoses, not part of the model. A genetic cause plus an environmental trigger describes the diathesis-stress model of how disorders develop, not a definition of disorder.
Category: Defining Disorders
Question 2
Which organization publishes the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM)?
American Psychological Association
American Psychiatric Association
✓
World Health Organization
National Institute of Mental Health
Correct Answer
American Psychiatric Association
The DSM is produced by the American Psychiatric Association and is the classification system most U.S. mental health professionals use. The American Psychological Association is a different organization with a similar name and does not publish the DSM. The World Health Organization publishes the International Classification of Diseases (ICD). The National Institute of Mental Health funds research but does not publish a diagnostic manual.
Category: Diagnosis and Models
Question 3
A client is diagnosed with both major depressive disorder and generalized anxiety disorder at the same time. Which term describes this situation?
Prevalence
Heritability
Comorbidity
✓
Concordance
Correct Answer
Comorbidity
Comorbidity is the co-occurrence of two or more disorders in the same person, which is common and can make each condition harder to treat. Prevalence is the proportion of a population that has a disorder. Heritability is the degree to which variation in a trait is due to genetic factors. Concordance is the likelihood that both members of a twin pair share a trait or disorder.
Category: Diagnosis and Models
Question 4
A researcher proposes that depression develops when a person who has an inherited vulnerability experiences a major loss. Which model does this reflect?
Supernatural perspective
Harmful dysfunction model
Problems-in-living view
Diathesis-stress model
✓
Correct Answer
Diathesis-stress model
The diathesis-stress model holds that a disorder is most likely when an underlying predisposition (the diathesis) is combined with a stressful event, and the stronger the predisposition, the less stress is needed. The supernatural perspective attributes disorders to forces such as spirits or magic. The harmful dysfunction model is a way of defining what counts as a disorder, not an account of how one develops. The problems-in-living view is Thomas Szasz's argument that mental illness is a label for difficulties in life rather than a disease.
Category: Diagnosis and Models
Question 5
Which critic argued that mental illness is a myth used to label people whose behavior violates social norms?
Thomas Szasz
✓
Jerome Wakefield
Aaron Beck
Philippe Pinel
Correct Answer
Thomas Szasz
Thomas Szasz, author of The Myth of Mental Illness, argued that what are called symptoms are really problems in living and that diagnosis can be used to stigmatize nonconformity. Jerome Wakefield proposed the harmful dysfunction definition of disorder. Aaron Beck developed a cognitive theory of depression and cognitive therapy. Philippe Pinel was an 18th-century reformer known for more humane treatment of asylum patients.
Category: Defining Disorders
Question 6
A man has repeated, unexpected episodes of sudden intense fear with a pounding heart and shortness of breath, and for over a month he has worried constantly about having another one. Which diagnosis best fits?
Generalized anxiety disorder
Panic disorder
✓
Specific phobia
Social anxiety disorder
Correct Answer
Panic disorder
Panic disorder involves recurrent, unexpected panic attacks followed by at least a month of persistent concern about future attacks or changes in behavior to avoid them. Generalized anxiety disorder centers on ongoing, uncontrollable worry about many everyday matters rather than sudden attacks. Specific phobia is excessive fear of a particular object or situation. Social anxiety disorder is fear of situations in which a person might be judged negatively by others.
Category: Anxiety and OCD
Question 7
According to learning accounts of obsessive-compulsive disorder, why do compulsions such as repeated handwashing keep occurring?
They are positively punished by other people
They extinguish the original conditioned fear
They are negatively reinforced by reducing anxiety
✓
They are acquired only through latent learning
Correct Answer
They are negatively reinforced by reducing anxiety
Performing a compulsion temporarily relieves the anxiety an obsession produces, and removing an unpleasant state is negative reinforcement, which strengthens the behavior. Being positively punished by other people would make the behavior less likely, not more. Compulsions do not extinguish the original conditioned fear; by preventing exposure they tend to preserve it. Latent learning is learning that is not shown until there is a reason to show it, and it does not explain why compulsions persist.
Category: Anxiety and OCD
Question 8
Brain imaging studies of people with obsessive-compulsive disorder show heightened activity in which region when they face provoking stimuli?
Occipital lobe
Cerebellum
Hippocampus
Orbitofrontal cortex
✓
Correct Answer
Orbitofrontal cortex
The orbitofrontal cortex, part of a frontal-striatal circuit often called the OCD circuit, becomes hyperactive when people with OCD encounter stimuli that trigger their symptoms. The occipital lobe processes visual input and is not the region linked to OCD. The cerebellum coordinates movement and balance. The hippocampus is central to forming new memories rather than to the OCD circuit.
Category: Anxiety and OCD
Question 9
A student spends hours each day checking mirrors and hiding a small bump on her nose that friends say they cannot even see. Which disorder does this pattern suggest?
Body dysmorphic disorder
✓
Hoarding disorder
Illness anxiety disorder
Social anxiety disorder
Correct Answer
Body dysmorphic disorder
Body dysmorphic disorder is a preoccupation with a perceived flaw in appearance that is slight or invisible to others, often with mirror checking, hiding the feature, or seeking cosmetic procedures. Hoarding disorder is persistent difficulty discarding possessions. Illness anxiety disorder is worry about having a serious medical illness, not about appearance. Social anxiety disorder is fear of being judged in social situations in general rather than fixation on one body feature.
Category: Anxiety and OCD
Question 10
Months after returning from combat, a veteran hears a car backfire and suddenly feels and acts as though he is back in a firefight. Which term describes this experience?
Delusion
Flashback
✓
Derealization
Compulsion
Correct Answer
Flashback
A flashback is a state in which a person relives a traumatic event as if it were happening again in the present, and it is a hallmark intrusion symptom of PTSD. A delusion is a firmly held false belief, a feature of psychotic disorders. Derealization is a feeling that the world is unreal or dreamlike. A compulsion is a repetitive behavior performed to reduce anxiety, a feature of obsessive-compulsive disorder.
Category: Trauma and Mood
Question 11
For a diagnosis of major depressive disorder, symptoms such as depressed mood or loss of interest must be present for at least how long?
One week
Six months
Two weeks
✓
Two years
Correct Answer
Two weeks
DSM-5 requires that the symptoms of a major depressive episode last at least two weeks, most of the day and nearly every day. One week is the minimum duration of a manic episode, not a depressive one. Six months is the duration required for generalized anxiety disorder. Two years is the minimum duration for persistent depressive disorder in adults.
Category: Trauma and Mood
Question 12
Which type of mood episode must a person have experienced at least once to be diagnosed with bipolar disorder?
A major depressive episode
A psychotic episode
A dissociative episode
A manic episode
✓
Correct Answer
A manic episode
Bipolar disorder requires at least one manic episode, a period of abnormally elevated, expansive, or irritable mood with increased energy. A major depressive episode is common in bipolar disorder but is not required for the diagnosis. A psychotic episode can occur in severe mood episodes but is not the defining requirement. A dissociative episode involves disrupted memory or identity and belongs to a different category of disorders.
Category: Trauma and Mood
Question 13
According to the hopelessness theory of depression, a person is at greatest risk when explaining negative events with causes that are
Stable and global
✓
Unstable and specific
Unstable and global
Stable and specific
Correct Answer
Stable and global
Hopelessness theory proposes that attributing a setback to a cause that is lasting (stable) and affects many areas of life (global) leads to hopelessness, which in turn leads to depression. Unstable and specific attributions limit a failure to one temporary situation and are protective. Unstable and global attributions see the cause as temporary, so they do not predict lasting hopelessness. Stable and specific attributions confine the problem to one area of life, which also limits hopelessness.
Category: Trauma and Mood
Question 14
Which type of hallucination is reported most often by people with schizophrenia?
Visual
Auditory
✓
Olfactory
Tactile
Correct Answer
Auditory
Auditory hallucinations, usually hearing voices that others cannot hear, are the most common type in schizophrenia. Visual hallucinations do occur but are reported less often. Olfactory hallucinations, involving smells, are relatively rare. Tactile hallucinations, involving sensations on the skin, are also less common than hearing voices.
Category: Schizophrenia
Question 15
A man with schizophrenia no longer starts or finishes everyday tasks such as showering or going to work because he lacks any motivation. Which negative symptom is this?
Alogia
Anhedonia
Avolition
✓
Catatonia
Correct Answer
Avolition
Avolition is a lack of motivation to begin or sustain goal-directed activity, and it is one of the negative symptoms of schizophrenia. Alogia is a reduction in the amount of speech. Anhedonia is a reduced ability to feel pleasure. Catatonia is a disturbance of movement, such as rigid posturing or unresponsive stupor.
Category: Schizophrenia
Question 16
The dopamine hypothesis links excess dopamine activity to which features of schizophrenia?
Flat affect and reduced speech
Social withdrawal and low motivation
Memory gaps and identity confusion
Hallucinations and delusions
✓
Correct Answer
Hallucinations and delusions
The dopamine hypothesis proposes that overactive dopamine signaling, especially in limbic pathways, underlies positive symptoms such as hallucinations and delusions. Flat affect and reduced speech are negative symptoms, which are linked instead to low dopamine activity in the prefrontal cortex. Social withdrawal and low motivation are also negative symptoms. Memory gaps and identity confusion describe dissociative disorders, not the dopamine hypothesis.
Category: Schizophrenia
Question 17
After a severe emotional shock, a man cannot recall his name, his family, or anything about his past life, and medical tests show no brain injury or drug use. Which disorder best fits this picture?
Dissociative amnesia
✓
Depersonalization/derealization disorder
Dissociative identity disorder
Generalized anxiety disorder
Correct Answer
Dissociative amnesia
Dissociative amnesia is an inability to recall important personal information, usually about a stressful or traumatic experience, that cannot be explained by brain injury, drugs, or ordinary forgetting. Depersonalization/derealization disorder involves feeling detached from oneself or feeling that the surroundings are unreal, not losing one's memories. Dissociative identity disorder requires two or more distinct personality states, which this man does not show. Generalized anxiety disorder is persistent, excessive worry about everyday matters and does not erase personal memories.
Category: Dissociative Disorders
Question 18
Critics who believe some cases of dissociative identity disorder are unintentionally produced by therapists describe those cases as
Comorbid
Iatrogenic
✓
Prodromal
Heritable
Correct Answer
Iatrogenic
An iatrogenic condition is one caused by the treatment or the treating professional, and some psychologists argue that suggestive therapy techniques have created or shaped multiple personality states. Comorbid means occurring alongside another disorder. Prodromal refers to early warning signs that come before a disorder fully develops. Heritable means influenced by genetic factors.
Category: Dissociative Disorders
Question 19
Which personality disorder belongs to Cluster A, the odd or eccentric group?
Histrionic
Dependent
Schizotypal
✓
Narcissistic
Correct Answer
Schizotypal
Cluster A contains the paranoid, schizoid, and schizotypal personality disorders, which share odd or eccentric patterns of thinking and relating. Histrionic personality disorder is in Cluster B, the dramatic and erratic group. Dependent personality disorder is in Cluster C, the anxious and fearful group. Narcissistic personality disorder is also in Cluster B.
Category: Personality Disorders
Question 20
What is the minimum age at which a person can be diagnosed with antisocial personality disorder?
15
16
21
18
✓
Correct Answer
18
DSM-5 requires that a person be at least 18 years old to receive a diagnosis of antisocial personality disorder, even though signs of the pattern often appear earlier. The age 15 appears in the criteria only because evidence of conduct problems must begin before then. The ages 16 and 21 are not part of the diagnostic criteria.
Category: Personality Disorders