Abnormal Psych Exam #2

What is the average age of onset of unipolar depression?

19

What is the average length of time for the treatment of major depressive disorder using electroconvulsive therapy (ECT)?

2 to 4 weeks

What percentage of all adults experience an episode of severe depression at some point in their lives?

20 percent

About how many suicides are committed annually in the United States?

42,000

A client has been experiencing uncontrolled anxiety. His symptoms include edginess, sleep changes, fatigue, and significant distress. To meet the DSM-5 diagnostic criteria for generalized anxiety disorder, these symptoms must be present for at least how many months?

6 months

About what percentage of people who commit suicide use alcohol just before the act?

70 percent

According to current estimates, the suicide rate in the United States is highest among which ethnicity?

American Indians

_____ is the defining characteristic of melancholic depression.

Anhedonia

How likely are women to use a gun to commit suicide?

Approximately one-third of women who commit suicide use guns.

If one assumes that the frequency of text messaging is positively correlated with psychological problems, then what would be the predicted relationship between the number of text messages people send and their self-reported levels of stress, unhappiness, and anxiety?

As one increases, the others also increase.

Juan is currently experiencing a period of sadness that has resulted in almost total immobility. He sits in a chair all day and almost never moves. His wife has to assist him in getting into bed at night. Which type of major depression would he MOST likely be diagnosed with?

Catatonic

A therapist describes a patient who believes her personal worth is tied to each task she performs. She draws negative conclusions from very little evidence, amplifies minor mistakes into major character flaws, and suffers from repetitive thoughts that remind her of her flaws. You conclude that the therapist holds which theoretical orientation?

Cognitive-behavioral

How do death seekers differ from death darers?

Death seekers intend to end their lives with their action.

_____ is a treatment in which tiny holes are drilled into the skull through which electrodes are implanted into the brain.

Deep brain stimulation

_____ is(are) viewing problems and solutions in rigid either/or terms.

Dichotomous thinking

How do results from evoked potential studies support the idea of the existence of multiple personalities?

Different subpersonalities have been found to show different brain wave patterns.

A person constantly weeping is displaying a(n) _____ symptom of depression.

Emotional

How does fear differ from anxiety?

Fear is a response to a specific threat, whereas anxiety is more general.

_____ is common with dissociative fugue.

Fleeing to a new location

Benzodiazepines are believed to be effective in treating generalized anxiety disorder because they mimic the effect of what neurotransmitter at certain receptor sites in the brain?

GABA

The individual MOST at risk for suicide is the person who:

Is depressed and dependent on alcohol.

Why do some researchers believe dissociative identity disorder is culture-bound?

It is rare or nonexistent in certain countries.

The person associated with the learned helplessness theory of depression is:

Martin Seligman.

According to Aaron Beck, what are central to the development of unipolar depression?

Negative thoughts

According to the developmental psychopathology perspective, moderate and manageable adversities that occur during childhood may make a person more _____ when faced with stressful events during adulthood.

Resilient

A person taking antidepressant medication is starting to gain weight and reports decreasing interest in sexual activity. These changes are MOST common among people taking which kind of antidepressant medication?

Second-generation antidepressants

The psychodynamic theory of depression based on the notion that a set of unconscious processes become engaged when a person experiences a loss was developed by:

Sigmund Freud and Karl Abraham.

A clinician who looks at the influence of race, living conditions, marital status, and roles on the development of depression would MOST likely subscribe to which theoretical orientation?

Sociocultural theoretical orientation

One of the nutraceuticals shown to be frequently helpful in treating unipolar depression is:

St. John's wort.

_____ is when information is best recalled under the same conditions that it was learned.

State-dependent learning

DSM-5 added premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) as a diagnosis for certain women who repeatedly experience clinically significant depressive and related symptoms during the week before menstruation. Why has this been an ongoing controversy?

The diagnosis pathologizes severe cases of premenstrual syndrome.

How are the interpersonal theory of suicide and the sociocultural view of suicide different?

The interpersonal theory describes perceived burdensomeness as a factor in suicide.

Why do many people think that the estimates of the rates of suicide are inaccurate?

The stigma associated with suicide makes people hesitant to report it.

How are the features of the "baby blues" different from the symptoms of peripartum depression?

The symptoms of the "baby blues" are like those of peripartum depression but are less severe and persistent.

According to developmental psychopathologists, why do children tend to fare worse than adults when faced with an extreme stressor for the first time?

Their stress pathways and stress circuits are not yet fully developed.

What do acute and posttraumatic stress disorder have in common with dissociative disorders?

They are triggered by traumatic events.

How long must depression last to be classified as a major depressive episode?

Two weeks

At a suicide prevention center, you hear a counselor say, "Can you tell me what you think are the most important factors that are making you feel hopeless right now? If you could change three things about your life, what would they be?" Which of the goals and techniques of suicide prevention do these questions BEST represent?

Understanding and clarifying the problem

The accidental discovery of drugs that increased serotonin and norepinephrine activity also led to effective treatments for what disorder

Unipolar depression

What do we know about the inheritance of PTSD?

Women who have high cortisol levels tend to have children with high cortisol levels.

Phobic and generalized anxiety disorders arise when people stop looking at themselves honestly and with acceptance and instead deny and distort their true thoughts, emotions, and behavior. Which kind of theorist would offer the preceding explanation for anxiety disorders?

a humanistic theorist

The fact that very angry people are not significantly more suicidal than other people argues MOST strongly against which explanation for suicide?

a psychodynamic explanation

Beatrice is prescribed a medication for her anxiety. When she takes a small dose, she feels calmer. When she takes a larger dose, she can fall asleep without tossing and turning. This type of drug is called:

a sedative-hypnotic drug.

Manuel is afraid of eating in public because he expects to be judged negatively and to feel humiliated. As a result, he makes up excuses when asked out to eat. His diagnosis would probably be:

a social phobia.

The developmental psychopathology perspective of depression can be characterized as:

a view that ties together many of the factors that are included in other theories.

A pattern of anxiety, insomnia, depression, and flashbacks that begins shortly after a traumatic event and persists for less than a month is called:

acute stress disorder.

When was it recognized that acute stress during combat could result in psychological symptoms after combat?

after the Vietnam War

In the MOST common type of dissociative amnesia, a person loses memory for:

all events beginning with the trauma but within a limited period of time.

What would a person have if a biochemical imbalance were the cause of that person's depression?

an abnormality in the activity of certain neurotransmitters, especially serotonin and norepinephrine

Brody no longer enjoys his usual hobbies, talking to his friends, or even playing with his dog. In fact, Brody didn't even care when he learned that he was up for a promotion at work. This BEST describes someone with:

anhedonia.

A person commits suicide in response to a social environment that fails to provide stable structures to support and give meaning to life. According to Durkheim, this represents an:

anomic suicide.

Those people MOST likely to develop stress disorders are:

anxious and think they cannot control negative things that happen to them.

The statement that men and women are equally prone to depression, but clinicians often fail to detect depressive symptoms in men, reflects the _____ theory.

artifact

Talking rapidly, dressing flamboyantly, and getting involved in dangerous activities are _____ symptoms of mania.

behavioral

How can exercise can help alleviate depression?

by producing social interactions

The second phase of Beck's cognitive therapy is to get the client to:

challenge automatic thoughts.

The age group LEAST likely to commit suicide in the United States is:

children.

When he was 5 years old, Sunil was almost struck by lightning while walking through a forest during a rainstorm. Today, he is extremely afraid of trees. A behaviorist would say that he has acquired this fear by:

classical conditioning.

A friend who has unipolar depression says, "I can't do anything right. Nobody will ever love me again." This statement reflects a(n):

cognitive symptom.

Françoise is depressed. Her therapist asks her about her daily experiences, focusing on how often people say nice things to her. Her therapist MOST likely has a:

cognitive-behavioral orientation.

The belief that the prefrontal cortex has a very important part to play in the development of depression is probably:

correct; unusually high activity in some parts and unusually low activity in other parts of the prefrontal cortex are associated with depression.

The group of hormones that are referred to as "stress hormones" are:

corticosteroids.

The disorder marked by numerous periods of hypomanic symptoms and mild depressive symptoms is called:

cyclothymic disorder.

Cecil and Andrea are teenagers who made a love pact, jumping off a cliff to be with each other for eternity. Cecil and Andrea are examples of what Shneidman refers to as:

death ignorers.

According to Freud, a generalized anxiety disorder is MOST likely to result when:

defense mechanisms are too weak to cope with anxiety.

The risk of negative side effects for people who take MAO inhibitors can be mitigated by making changes in which aspect of life?

diet

People who are unable to recall important information about themselves, especially of an upsetting nature, are MOST likely experiencing:

dissociative amnesia.

In the United States, the highest depression rate is found in:

divorced people.

One distinction that DSM-5 makes between acute stress disorder and posttraumatic stress disorder is based on the:

duration of anxiety symptoms.

Jacquie developed PTSD after being held in captivity for years. She is upset by what she had to do to survive and perhaps even feels unworthy of surviving. This is an example of:

experiencing increased anger, anxiety, and guilt.

The individuals who are MOST likely to experience a psychological stress disorder are:

female or low-income individuals.

The collective reactions generated by the sympathetic nervous system pathway and the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) pathway are termed the:

fight-or-flight response.

At a suicide prevention center, you hear a counselor say, "Will you promise me that you will call again if you ever feel like killing yourself?" Which one of the goals and techniques of suicide prevention does this question BEST represent?

formulating a plan

Gwen is held up at knifepoint, and her young son is kidnapped. Her son is eventually found and returned to her. However, Gwen is unable to recall events that occurred since the attack, although she remembers some new experiences; worse still, she finds that she is forgetting events that occurred even before the attack. This is a classic example of:

generalized amnesia.

A person experiences wide-ranging and persistent feelings of worry and anxiety. This is most likely which disorder?

generalized anxiety disorder

Anna is pessimistic and believes that her life will never get better and her problems will only get worse. She is experiencing:

hopelessness.

When a dangerous situation is recognized, what brain structure releases neurotransmitters to trigger the firing of neurons and the release of chemicals throughout the body?

hypothalamus

When should critical incident stress debriefing take place?

immediately after a trauma and continue long-term

Unipolar depression and bipolar disorder share all the following characteristics EXCEPT:

inappropriate rises in mood.

The statement "My girlfriend broke up with me because I am worthless" BEST reflects a(n):

internal attribution.

A young woman believes that everything negative that happens to her is her own fault, that she ruins everything, and that she always will. The therapist diagnoses her as suffering from a learned helplessness-induced depression because she attributes negative events in her life to:

internal, global, stable factors.

What would typically be included in a retrospective analysis of suicide?

interviews with people who knew the person who committed suicide

What are the inaccurate and inappropriate beliefs held by people with various psychological problems called?

irrational assumptions

A woman in a middle-level manager's job is repeatedly not promoted, no matter how hard she tries, even though she seems as qualified as the men who are promoted. If she develops depression because of her work experiences, the theory that BEST explains the onset of her depression is:

lack of control theory.

Many victims of spousal abuse stay with their abusers, even though it is obvious to others that they should, and actually could, leave. A good explanation for their behavior is:

learned helplessness.

Among teenagers who attempt suicide, _____ succeed the first time, and _____ will try again.

less than 1 percent; approximately half

Depression is more common in women because they experience more taxing life situations, such as poverty and menial jobs, than men. This is the:

life stress theory.

An older person retires and begins experiencing health problems. The person consequently loses contact with old friends and becomes unpleasant to be around. A cognitive-behaviorist would explain the resulting depression in terms of:

loss of positive social rewards.

Biological researchers have found a link between suicide and:

low activity levels of serotonin.

A belief of many early cognitive-behavioral therapists, and one that continues to be influential today, is that generalized anxiety disorder is induced by:

maladaptive assumptions.

A state of breathless euphoria, or frenzied energy, in which individuals have an exaggerated belief in their own power, is characteristic of:

mania.

Suicide prevention centers:

may deliver services over the phone using paraprofessionals.

A clinically depressed individual who has been threatening suicide finally shows a diminishing of depressive symptoms. This person's risk of committing suicide:

may have increased, because the person may have the energy to act on the suicidal impulse.

What is key to our sense of identity?

memory

Davon watched his father recoil from a snake in fear. Now he is afraid of snakes. This apparent acquisition of fear of snakes is an example of:

modeling.

When a rash of suicides occurs in the aftermath of a celebrity's suicide or a case that has been highly publicized by the media, behavioral theorists believe it is attributable to:

modeling.

What mental disorders have been found to contribute to the greatest number of suicides?

mood disorders

A diagnostic criterion for posttraumatic stress disorder is the presence of significant distress or impairment for:

more than one month.

ECT has changed over the years so that patients now receive:

muscle relaxants before the procedure.

Alexis has dissociative identity disorder. When one of her personalities, Jodi, is asked about another one, Tom, she claims ignorance. Tom has never heard of Jodi, either. This is called a:

mutually amnesic relationship.

What are brain circuits?

networks of brain structures that work together

What are the persistent thoughts, ideas, impulses, or images that seem to invade a person's consciousness called?

obsessions

Which is an anxiety disorder?

obsessive-compulsive disorder

In a case of dissociative identity disorder, Lorna is aware of the existence of Jerry and Chris, but Jerry and Chris are not aware of the existence of the other personalities. This form of subpersonality relationship is called:

one-way amnesic.

Sebastian was outside the parking garage when, out of nowhere, he suddenly felt overwhelming fear. Sebastian noticed that his fear increased, he started to feel out of control, and the intensity of the feelings seemed to reach a peak and then pass within a few minutes. This is an example of a:

panic attack.

A person who experiences unpredictable panic attacks combined with dysfunctional behavior and thoughts is probably experiencing:

panic disorder.

Every once in a while, Ona feels nervous to the point of terror. This feeling seems to come on suddenly and randomly. Her experience is an example of a(n):

panic disorder.

Susan deliberately overdoses on pills in an attempt at suicide but her attempt at suicide does not succeed. This suicide attempt is called a:

parasuicide.

Although all of the following mental disorders are of concern for increased suicide risk, the LEAST likely to be linked to suicide is:

posttraumatic stress disorder.

Years after the U.S. Civil War was over, many veterans diagnosed with melancholia or soldier's heart still experienced vivid flashbacks of their combat experiences, as well as nightmares and guilt about what they had done. Today, their symptoms are considered consistent with:

posttraumatic stress disorder.

In general, object relations theorists follow the _____ perspective.

psychodynamic

A torture victim who is subjected to threats of death, mock executions, and degradation is experiencing which type of torture?

psychological

Agoraphobia is the fear of:

public places.

If a therapist gave a client homework that required the client to challenge faulty assumptions and replace them with healthier ones, the therapist would be using:

rational-emotive therapy.

Avery, a 28-year-old woman, tells her therapist that she has an intense fear of snakes. She says she has been afraid of snakes since she was a child. Which additional criterion would suggest that Avery meets the diagnostic criteria for a specific phobia?

refusal to go to certain places where she believes snakes could be present, such as the lake

According to psychodynamic theory, depression results in part from:

regression to the oral stage.

The first step in systematic desensitization treatment is:

relaxation training.

Ruminative responses are defined as:

repeatedly mentally dwelling on one's mood without acting to change it.

You are asked to speak before a local elementary school's Parent-Teacher Association (PTA) about suicide attempts by the very young. You should mention that suicide attempts by the very young often occur when they have:

run away from home.

The mood and thoughts of suicidal people are MOST often characterized as:

sad and hopeless.

Most second-generation antidepressants are:

selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs).

A common trigger seen in both adolescent suicides and suicides at other age levels is:

significant loss.

People with little sense of "belongingness," who live alone and experience frequent conflicts with others, and who believe they have limited social support are experiencing:

social isolation.

"Who wouldn't be afraid all the time? We have the bomb, overpopulation, AIDS, and violent crime everywhere. It's difficult to get a good job unless you're a computer genius." This complaint is consistent with a _____ explanation of generalized anxiety disorder.

sociocultural

The type of clinician who would be MOST likely to say, "Tell me about the quality of mutual support you receive from your marriage," is a:

sociocultural clinician.

Emile Durkheim's theory of suicide fits into the:

sociocultural model.

Regarding the symptoms of depression, a motivational symptom like the lack of desire to get out of bed is different from its companion behavioral symptom, such as:

staying in bed all day.

The statement, "This is awful, but I guess I can deal with it like I do everything else," represents one person's:

stress response.

Compared with people in untroubled marriages, people in troubled marriages are _____ to have a depressive disorder.

substantially more likely

A client who has been talking calmly and rationally suddenly begins whining and complaining like a spoiled child. If that client suffers from true dissociative identity disorder, the client just experienced:

switching.

In response to a threat, we perspire, breathe more quickly, get goosebumps, and feel nauseated. These responses are controlled by the:

sympathetic nervous system.

Dylan is suffering from arachnophobia. His therapist first has him go through relaxation training, and then has him construct a fear hierarchy. Finally, the therapist has Dylan go through a phase of graded pairings of spiders and relaxation responses. This approach is called:

systematic desensitization.

A woman who has just given birth is anxious, has trouble sleeping, and feels sad. These symptoms diminish over the next couple of weeks. What she has experienced is MOST likely:

the "baby blues," something experienced by more than half of new mothers.

The age group MOST likely to commit suicide in the United States is:

the elderly.

Ugo Cerletti, the first psychiatrist to use ECT effectively, later abandoned the procedure because of:

the likelihood of causing broken bones and dislocated joints.

Suicide rates in the weeks after Kurt Cobain's suicide held steady, contrary to the modeling effect seen with other celebrity suicides. The text notes that a possible reason for this was:

the media coverage of the event, which included a "Don't do it!" message.

A suicide by a family member or friend increases the risk that a person will commit suicide. This risk factor is called:

the social contagion effect.

Norepinephrine is to _____ as corticosteroid is to _____.

the sympathetic pathway; the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal pathway

What are the two most influential cognitive explanations for unipolar depression?

the theory of negative thinking and the theory of learned helplessness

A retrospective analysis is exemplified when:

therapists who had patients who committed suicide are interviewed to gain information on suicide.

Studies indicate that LGBTQ teenagers are _____ times more likely to have suicidal thoughts and to attempt suicide.

three

A stimulating current is sent through a patient's prefrontal cortex in:

transcranial magnetic stimulation

Researchers were searching for drugs to treat schizophrenia when they came across imipramine, which alleviated the symptoms of depression, although it was not effective against schizophrenia. It became the first of a class of drugs, all sharing a similar molecular structure, called:

tricyclics.

Treatment for suicide attempters:

typically involves medical and psychological care.

The majority of males who attempt suicide in the United States:

use guns.

An example of a meta-worry is demonstrated by someone who:

worries about worrying.