abnormal psychology chapter 4
Recently, a client diagnosed with schizophrenia has begun to exhibit more symptoms, often saying, "They tell me I'm crazy, so I must be crazy." MOST likely, this is an example of:
self-fulfilling prophecy
The DSM-5 task force and various work groups:
began their work in 2006
Those who are MOST likely to visit "suicide sites" on the Internet—sites that celebrate suicide and describe ways to commit suicide—are:
teenagers and young adults, who are at high risk for imitative suicidal behavior
One limitation of the clinical interview as an assessment tool is that:
the client may give an overly positive picture
If a graph shows the years of the twentieth century along the horizontal axis, and confidence in assessment of abnormality—from low confidence to high confidence—going up the vertical axis, then confidence in assessment of abnormality over the past 50 years would be a(n):
"-shaped function--high, then low, then high.
A person with a mental age of 10 and a chronological age of 8 has an IQ of:
125
approx. how many mental disorders does the DSM-5 list?
400 mental disorders
There has been a recent increase in attention to and research in assessment. That said, use of effective assessment tools may be decreasing because:
they are expensive to administer and evaluate
Studies of diagnostic conclusions made by clinicians show that:
they pay too much attention to some information and too little to other information
one way a clinician might try to reduce observer drift would be to:
decrease the lengths of the observation periods
Surveys of very successful therapists show that they generally do all of the following EXCEPT:
disregard ethical principles when they think their clients might benefit
The MMPI-2 is considered by many to be superior to the original MMPI because the MMPI-2:
was tested on a more diverse group of people
Those who are MOST likely to have been in therapy at some time in their lives are those:
who are middle-aged, and women
Studies show that errors in diagnosis MOST commonly involve information gathered:
early in the assessment process, and in a hospital setting
Therapies that have received clear research support are called:
evidence-based
A clinical psychologist you know says, "How do I decide on the best treatment? Simple, I make sure to read the most recent research studies in therapy, and follow their advice." The clinical psychologist believes in using:
evidence-based treatment
Because people who exhibit mania have very elevated moods, a new test for mania includes questions about how happy the person feels and how often he or she laughs. This test has:
face validity
"You know, it really doesn't matter. One kind of psychotherapy is generally just about as good as any other." One who agrees with this statement is:
falling victim to the uniformity myth
The greater reliability of the DSM-5 over earlier versions is MOST likely because of its:
field trials of new criteria and categories
Which category of clinical tests tends to have the BEST standardization, reliability, and validity?
intelligence tests
An interviewer who asks a client questions such as "Where are you now?," "Why do you think you're here?," or even "Who are you?" is probably conducting a(n):
mental status exam
Imagine that you are asked to give a scientific opinion on the use of polygraphic evidence. Your BEST response would be:
"although they are used widely, they are not particularly reliable."
Your friend says, "I always trust my first impressions, especially when my first impression of someone is negative." Based on research dealing with clinical interviews, your BEST answer would be:
"be careful; the research shows that first impressions, especially negative ones, may be inaccurate."
A friend says to you, "I wonder how likely I am to qualify for a DSM diagnosis in my lifetime." Based upon survey results, your MOST accurate answer would be (assuming your friend is "typical"):
"likely; almost half of people would ever qualify for a DSM diagnosis."
Patients receiving therapy for a psychological problem, on average, experience improvement greater than do ______ of people with similar problems who do not receive treatment.
75%
A patient looks at a series of black-and-white pictures, making up a dramatic story about each. The patient is taking:
TAT
A clinician has developed a test that requires test takers to tell stories about a series of pictures of city skylines. MOST likely, this new test is a
projective test
which of the following tests is a personality inventory?
MMPI-2
DSM-5 tried to ensure the validity of the new edition by using all of the following procedures EXCEPT:
consulting with clinical advisors
Binet and Simon are known for their work in creating a(n):
intelligence test
In DSM-5, which of the following diagnostic categories would no longer be considered an anxiety disorder?
obsessive-compulsive disorder
If your friend had her brain waves recorded in order to measure electrical activity, she MOST likely had a(n):
EEG
Which of the following is NOT a form of neuroimaging?
GSR
The only test among the following that is NOT a projective test is the:
Minnesota multiphase personality inventory
The test that reports one's results on clinical scales such as "hypochondriasis" (HS) and "Psychopathic deviate" (PD) is the:
Minnesota multiphase personality inventory
Among the following, the test with the highest validity in identifying psychological disturbances is the:
Minnesota multiphase personality test
A clinical diagnostician is dissatisfied with tests that cannot specify the type of brain damage or brain impairment that clients have. Your BEST suggestion for that diagnostician would be to use:
a battery of neuropsychological tests
Which of the following is designed to disclose a patient's thoughts and assumptions?
a cognitive inventory
A clinician can include three kinds of information in making a diagnosis: a diagnostic category, a severity rating for the disorder, and additional information about possibly relevant medical conditions and sociocultural factors. According to the DSM-5, a clinician is required to include:
a diagnostic category and a severity rating, but not additional information
Of the following, who is MOST at risk for misinterpreting a cultural response as pathology?
a dominant-culture assessor
Under the instructions of a psychologist, Tina's mother records the number of times Tina hits her brother at home, and what happens immediately prior to the hitting. In this situation, Tina's mother is:
a participant observer
If a clinician wanted to know more detailed information about a person's functioning in a specific area, the clinician would use:
a response inventory
One of the assumptions of a functional analysis is that:
abnormal behaviors are learned
Of the people who would qualify for a DSM diagnosis in their lifetime, surveys show what percent would show comorbidity?
about 28%
If a new test for anxiety is normed on individuals who are waiting to take introductory psychology final exams, the new test is surely lacking:
adequate standardization
An inventory that asks about one's level of anxiety, depression, or anger is a(n) ______ inventory.
affective
When graduate schools choose students based on test scores, college grades, and relevant experience, they are engaging in:
assessment
A patient complains of a phobia. Two lines of questioning by the clinician concern the specific object of the phobia and what the person does when he or she confronts that object. This clinician's orientation is probably:
behavioral
The clinical interviewer MOST interested in stimuli that trigger abnormal responses would have what orientation?
behavioral
If a clinician is particularly interested in a client's family medical history, that clinician's orientation is MOST likely:
biological
The DSM-5 is the first edition of the DSM that requires clinicians to provide:
both categorical information and dimensional information
Concerns about the reliability and validity of the DSM-5 diagnoses are MOST likely to center on which factors?
categories based on weak research, and reflecting bias (for example, gender or racial bias)
The existence of disorders such as koro, susto, amok, and windigo remind us that:
classifications applied in one culture may not be appropriate in another.
The process of evaluating a person's progress after being in treatment is called a:
clinical assessment
Which of the following is a reason to question the validity of clinical interviews?
clinicians might overemphasize pathology
A response inventory that asks individuals to provide detailed information about their typical thoughts and assumptions is a(n):
cognitive inventory
A friend of yours says, "I'm not going to the counseling center; my friends will think I'm mentally ill!" Your friend's attitude is:
common: about 1/3 of people surveyed expressed a similar opinion
The technique that uses X-rays of the brain taken at different angles to create a static picture of the structure of the brain is called:
computerized axial tomography
If a new test for assessing anorectic tendencies produces scores comparable to those of other tests for assessing anorectic tendencies, then the new test has high:
concurrent validity
Dr. Martin has just asked a potential client to talk about herself. As she responds, the doctor's next question is based on some interesting point she brought up. There are few constraints on the conversation. Dr. Martin has just:
conducted an unstructured interview
After some people are told their DSM diagnoses, their "symptoms" appear to stay the same or even get worse. Many theorists would attribute this to the development of:
crisis of faith
An adult frequently displays symptoms of depression at home, but seldom does so at work. In this case, clinical observations of this person at home would lack:
cross-situational validity
the MOST legitimate criticism of intelligence tests concerns their:
cultural fairness
Deciding that a client's psychological problems represent a particular disorder is called:
diagnosis
Assessment tools such as the Severity of Illness Rating Scale are used to provide what kind of information for making a diagnosis?
dimensional
If a clinician focused on where you placed your drawing on the page, the size of the drawing, and the parts you omitted, you MOST likely took which of the following tests?
draw-a-person
If it were necessary to get the clearest and most accurate picture of the physical anatomy of the brain in order to aid in the diagnosis of a psychological disorder, the method of choice would be:
fMRI
A campus newspaper publishes an "Exam Anxiety" test, which was put together by the newspaper staff one evening just before their publishing deadline. Despite its hasty construction, the test MOST likely has:
face validity
Compared to projective tests, personality inventories generally have:
greater reliability and greater validity
Support for the use of evidence-based forms of psychotherapy:
has increased in recent years
compared to projective tests, personality inventories:
have higher validity
A clinician has developed a new assessment tool. Clients write stories about their problems, then two different judges independently evaluate the stories in terms of how logically they are written. For this assessment technique to be useful, there must be:
high interrater reliability
A new test for anxiety shows consistent levels of anxiety across time for people, but very few people have taken the test, and accurate norms don't exist. The test has:
high reliability, but inadequate standardization
A person taking a polygraph test is suspected of lying when measures of physiological variables such as heart rate and perspiration are:
higher for test than control questions
If you consulted a pro-anorexia site on the Internet, you would learn about:
how to be a better anorexic
Among her other questions, a clinical interviewer asks, "How do you feel about yourself today? How do you feel about what's going on in your life?" MOST likely, the clinical interviewer's orientation is:
humanistic
A mental health practitioner attempts to learn about the behavior and emotional state of each client. This approach to abnormal psychology is called:
idiographic
The major focus of a clinical practitioner when dealing with a new client is to gather what type of information?
idiographic
Which of the following factors leads to increased respect for assessment and diagnosis?
increased assessment research
A panel of psychologists and psychiatrists evaluates the test results and clinical interviews of a client in a sanity hearing. They all arrive at the same diagnosis. The panel has high:
interrater reliability
How does an MRI make a picture of the brain?
it relies on the magnetic properties of the atoms in the cells scanned
Studies show that if you want the MOST accurate assessment of a psychological disorder, what is better, judgments of clinicians or computer models and actuarial tables?
judgements of computer models and actuarial tables; they're about 10% more accurate
a strength of intelligence tests include their:
large standardization
Personality assessment using projective tests is designed to:
learn about unconscious conflicts in the client
A functional analysis involves:
learning about a person's behaviors
A friend of yours is required to take a polygraph test as part of a job application. This requirement is:
legal; in fact, in some employment categories, polygraph use may be on the increase
a college graduate is:
less likely than someone with a postgraduate degree to seek therapy
An assessment tool asks individuals to record all the times they feel sad, in order to try to measure tendencies toward depression. However, individuals report wide variation from day to day in terms of the number of "sad" episodes they record. This assessment tool has:
low test-retest reliability, and high face validity
Standardizing and combining the findings of many different studies is called:
meta-analysis
In order to study the general effectiveness of treatment, Smith and Glass and their colleagues performed a(n):
meta-analysis of many studies
DSM-5 is the classification system for abnormal behaviors that is:
most widely used in the US
A therapist's preferred method of assessing abnormal behavior is to watch clients in their everyday environments and record their activities and behaviors. This approach is known as:
naturalistic observation
The assessment instrument MOST likely to be used to detect subtle brain abnormalities is the:
neuropsychological test
How difficult is it for a typical person to buy an intelligence test, or view Rorschach cards?
not difficult at all; one can buy intelligence tests and view Rorschach cards online
A present-day clinician uses terms like "dementia" and "mental retardation" for diagnostic categories. That clinician is using terms:
not used in the DSM-5 but used in previous forms of the DSM
A clinician who is using naturalistic observation would be MOST likely to do which of the following?
observe parent-child interactions in the family's home
The knowledge that a person a clinician is about to interview has already been diagnosed as having an anxiety disorder could lead to:
observer bias
Compared to the original DSM, which appeared in the 1950s, the DSM-5 has:
over five times as many diagnostic categories
Clients check off either "Applies" or "Does Not Apply" to a series of 200 items dealing with what they do and what they think in a variety of situations. The kind of test they are taking MOST likely is a:
personality inventory
Use of projective tests has decreased in the past few decades because projective tests often have:
poor validity
If a clinician is using the ICD to make a diagnosis, MOST likely that clinician is:
practicing outside the US
A new assessment tool does a good job of differentiating those who later will be depressed and those who will not be depressed, and it produces results similar to those of other tools measuring depression. Therefore, the new assessment tool has good:
predictive validity
A test is constructed to identify people who will develop schizophrenia. Of the 100 people the test identifies, 93 show signs of developing schizophrenia within five years. The test may be said to have high:
predictive validity
George is consumed with concern that his house will burn down. Before he leaves, he makes sure that all his appliances are unplugged. He often has to go back home and check to make sure he did not leave any plugged in. Which MMPI-2 scale would he MOST likely score high on?
psychasthemia
Youssef is the kind of person who breaks laws and rules with no feeling of guilt and is emotionally shallow. He would probably score high on the MMPI-2 scale called:
psychopathic deviate
A person who primarily prescribes medication but does not conduct psychotherapy is called a:
psychopharmacologist
A psychiatrist says, "I'm a strong believer in a combined approach to therapy. In fact, I frequently participate in combined approaches, although I don't do psychotherapy." Based on this statement, the MOST likely specialty of the psychiatrist is:
psychopharmacology
A client is hooked up to an apparatus that measures galvanic skin response and blood pressure, after which the client verbally answers a series of questions. The type of clinical test being used is:
psychophysiological
The movement that has tried to find the common strategies that "good" therapists use is called:
rapprochement
Imagine that you know you are being observed and you change your behavior in order to make a good impression. This is known as:
reactivity
When someone is watching, Jennifer actually eats fewer sweets than usual. This tendency to decrease a behavior while being observed is an example of:
reactivity
Which of the following is NOT a procedure that DSM-5 developers relied on to improve reliability?
reducing substantially the number of different diagnostic categories
Dr. Ross and Dr. Carman agree that Suzette is suffering from posttraumatic stress disorder. Their judgment is said to have:
reliability
Which of the following is a valid critique of the use of response inventories?
response inventories are improvised as the need arises and are not well-tested
An institutionalized individual behaving abnormally says, "The doctor claims I'm schizophrenic! How else would you expect me to act?" The individual's comments reflect:
self-fulfilling prophecy
A client reports having infrequent, but extremely disturbing, tactile hallucinations. The MOST useful of the following ways to gather information about this person would involve:
self-monitoring
"Let's just do away with diagnosis," says a clinician, "all we do is make things worse." That clinician's viewpoint is:
shared by some of those working in the area of abnormality
An inventory that asks about how one would act with others in a variety of situations is a(n) ______ inventory.
social skills
If a clinician is particularly interested in a client's family background and community influences, MOST likely, that clinician's orientation is:
sociocultural
Another term for developing norms for an assessment tool is:
standardization
When Rorschach testers ask questions like, "Did the person respond to the whole picture or to specific details, and to the colors or the white spaces?" they are interested in the ______of the response.
style
A cluster of symptoms that go together and define a mental disorder is called a:
syndrome
Studies show that most therapists these days are MOST likely to learn about the latest information on treatment of psychological disorders from:
talking with professional colleagues
The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (presently DSM-5) was developed by:
the American Psychiatric Association
Which of the following differentiates the DSM-5 from earlier versions of the DSM?
the DSM-5 requires both dimensional and categorical information
When a person has organic brain impairment, that person would MOST likely have difficulty completing:
the bender visual-motor gestalt test
Which of the following statements about the use of projective techniques by today's clinicians is TRUE?
the centrality of projective tests has declined since their introduction
Clinical interviews are the preferred assessment technique of many practitioners. One particular strength of the interview process is:
the chance to get a general sense of the client
Of the following statements, which is MOST accurate?
the classification system Emil Kraepelin developed served as the model for the DSM
The term used to refer to the comprehensive view of the causes and the maintenance of a person's abnormal behavior that a psychologist develops is:
the clinical picture
The assumption behind the use of projective tests as assessment tools is that:
the responses come from the client's unconscious
When a clinician using the Rorschach focuses on the actual images that a person "sees," the clinician is emphasizing:
theme
Surveys show that over 1/3 (33 percent) of Americans:
think they should be able to deal with their psychological problems on their own, would not tell their boss they were receiving mental health treatment, would not want to go to a therapist to get required diagnosis
Symptoms such as sadness, loss of appetite, and low energy cluster together to form a:
treatment
If a clinician begins by asking, "Would you tell me about yourself?" the clinician is MOST likely conducting a(n):
unstructured interview
A prisoner eligible for parole is required to take a polygraph test. Although the prisoner tells the truth in response to one question, the polygraph operator records the response as a lie. According to recent research, this kind of error is:
unusual; less than 10% of true statements are interpreted as lies
A clinical psychologist you know says, "How do I decide on the best treatment? Simple, I make sure to read the most recent research studies in therapy, and follow their advice." The clinical psychologist you know is:
unusual; most therapists base therapy decisions on something besides what they can read in research journals
A student who is quiet in class might be the life of the party on the weekend. Clinical observation of that student in class would lack:
validity
Which of the following is the BEST conclusion you could draw about the effectiveness of the various assessment techniques?
when all is said and done, no technique stands out as superior
"I've just experienced overload," says the participant observer. "I simply can't:
write down all the important things im seeing.