Psychopathology

By Graham Davey

Series: BPS Textbooks in Psychology

Multiple Choice Questions

1) An anxiety disorder is:

	a)	An emotional state identified by panic attacks.
	b)	An emotional condition classified by excessive checking.
	c)	Disordered thinking.
	d)	An excessive or aroused state characterized by feelings of apprehension, uncertainty and fear.
Correct! Anxiety Disorder: An excessive or aroused state characterised by feelings of apprehension, uncertainty and fear.Incorrect.

2) Which of the following are common aspects of co-morbidity in anxiety disorders?

	a)	Physiological symptoms of panic are found not only in panic disorder, but also in the reactions to phobic stimuli in specific phobias.
	b)	Cognitive biases - such as information processing biases that tend anxious people to selectively attending to threatening stimuli (Mathews & McLeod, 1994) - are common to almost all anxiety disorders.
	c)	Certain specific early experiences can be found in the aetiology of a number of different anxiety disorders (e.g. physical or sexual abuse during childhood), and experiences such as these may increase an individual's risk of developing several anxiety-based problems.
	d)	All of the above.
Correct! Comorbidity: The co-occurrence of two or more distinct disorders.Incorrect.

3) Specific phobias are defined as:

	a)	Excessive worry bouts triggered by a specific object or situation.
	b)	An abnormal sensitivity to light.
	c)	An excessive, unreasonable, persistent fear triggered by a specific object or situation.
	d)	A persistent fear of social situations.
Correct! Specific Phobias: Excessive, unreasonable, persistent fear triggered by a specific object or situation.Incorrect.

4) In phobia individuals acquire a strong set of phobic beliefs which:

	a)	Information about why they think the phobia is threatening.
	b)	How to react when they are in the phobic situation.
	c)	Appear to control their fear.
	d)	All of the above.
Correct! Phobic Beliefs: Beliefs about phobic stimuli that maintain the phobic's fear and avoidance of that stimulus or situation.Incorrect.

5) Psychodynamic theory as developed by Freud saw phobias as:

	a)	Repressed Ego.
	b)	Repressed Id impulses.
	c)	Repressed superego.
	d)	Repressed defence mechanisms.
Correct! Psychodynamic Approaches: Theories which assume that unconscious conflicts develop early in life, and part of the therapy is designed to identify life events that may have caused these unconscious conflicts.Incorrect.

6) In the famous “Little Albert” study by Watson & Rayner, they attempted to condition in him, a fear of his pet white rat. This was done by:

	a)	Pairing the unconditioned stimulus (UCS) with unconditioned response (UCR) to produce the conditioned stimulus.
	b)	Pairing the conditioned response (CR) with conditioned stimulus (CS) which produced the unconditioned stimulus (UCS).
	c)	Pairing the rat - the conditioned stimulus (CS) with the unconditioned stimulus (UCS) which produced the unconditioned response (UCR) and subsequently conditioned response (CR).
	d)	Pairing the unconditioned response with the unconditioned stimulus (UCS) to produce the conditioned response (CR).
Correct! Conditioning: A form of learning in which an organism learns to associate events together (e.g. classical conditioning or operant conditioning.Incorrect.

7) According to conditioning theory Incubation is a phenomenon that should lead to:

	a)	Distinction.
	b)	Extinction.
	c)	Annulation.
	d)	Conflagration.
Correct! Incubation: A common clinical phenomenon where fear increases in magnitude over successive encounters with the phobic stimulus - even though it is not followed by a traumatic consequence.Incorrect.

8) Which of the following is a predominant evolutionary theory of phobias?:

	a)	Non-associative fear acquisition.
	b)	Learned fear responses.
	c)	Biological preparedness.
	d)	Specific phobia acquisition.
Correct! Biological Preparedness: A theory which argues that we have a built-in predisposition to learn to fear things such as snakes, spiders, heights, and water because these have been life-threatening to our ancestors.Incorrect.

9) Recent evidence suggests that at least some phobias are closely associated with the emotion of:

	a)	Anger.
	b)	Disgust.
	c)	Exhilaration.
	d)	Sadness.
Correct! Disgust: A food-rejection emotion whose purpose is to prevent the transmission of illness and disease through the oral incorporation of contaminated items.Incorrect.

10) The disease-avoidance model of animal phobias (Matchett & Davey, 1991) is supported by which of the following?

	a)	Evidence that a medical approach supports psychological disturbances.
	b)	Findings that sick individuals avoid animals.
	c)	All spiders spread disease.
	d)	Findings that high levels of disgust sensitivity is a vulnerability factor for animal phobias.
Correct! Disease-Avoidance Model: The view that animal phobias are caused by attempts to avoid disease or illness than might be transmitted by these animals.Incorrect.

11) One important issue in therapy for specific phobias is to address:

	a)	Ensure the individual never comes in contact with the phobic event or situation.
	b)	The phobic beliefs that sufferers hold about their phobic event or situation.
	c)	The individual has ample opportunity to talk about the phobic event or situation.
	d)	That any dreams about the phobic event or situation are analyzed.
Correct! Phobic Beliefs: Beliefs about phobic stimuli that maintain the phobic's fear and avoidance of that stimulus or situation.Incorrect.

12) Some of the defining features of Social phobia are described in DSM-IV-TR as:

	a)	Individuals with social phobia experience concerns about embarrassment and are afraid that others will judge them to be anxious, weak, “crazy”, or stupid.
	b)	They may fear public speaking because of concern that others will notice their trembling hands or voice.
	c)	They may experience extreme anxiety when conversing with others because of fear they will appear inarticulate.
	d)	All of the above.
Correct! Social Phobia: A severe and persistent fear of social or performance situations.Incorrect.

13) It is considered that successful CBT treatments of social phobia include elements of the following:

	a)	Exposure therapy.
	b)	Social skills training.
	c)	Cognitive restructuring.
	d)	All of the above.
Correct! Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT): An intervention for changing both thoughts and behaviour. CBT represents an umbrella term for many different therapies that share the common aim of changing both cognitions and behaviour.Incorrect.

14) Which of the following is a Drug treatment for social phobia:

	a)	Serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs).
	b)	Antibiotics.
	c)	Antipsychotic drugs.
	d)	Anti-inflamitory drugs.
Correct! Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs): A recent group of antidepressant drugs which selectively affect the uptake of only one neurotransmitter - usually serotonin.Incorrect.

15) Which of the following physical symptoms are associated with Panic attacks:

	a)	Heart palpitations.
	b)	Perspiring.
	c)	Hyperventilating.
	d)	All of the above.
Correct! Panic Disorder: An anxiety disorder that is characterised by repeated panic or anxiety attacks.Incorrect.

16) A common feature of panic attacks is Hyperventilation and it is due to:

	a)	Dysfunctional breathing patterns.
	b)	Raising blood pH level.
	c)	Oxygen is then delivered less efficiently to body cells.
	d)	All of the above.
Correct! Hyperventilation: A rapid form of breathing that results in ventilation exceeding metabolic demand and has an end result of raising blood pH level. A common feature of panic attacks.Incorrect.

17) Sensitivity to increases in CO2 have been suggested as a risk factor for panic disorder (Papp, Klein & Gorman, 1993), and have given rise to what are known as “suffocation alarm theories” of panic disorder where increased CO2 intake may:

	a)	Activate the hypothalamus.
	b)	Activate the frontal lobes.
	c)	Activate an over-sensitive suffocation alarm system.
	d)	Activate the adrenal system.
Correct! Suffocation Alarm Theories: Models of panic disorder in which a combination of increased CO2 intake may activate an over-sensitive suffocation alarm system and give rise to the intense terror and anxiety experience during a panic attack.Incorrect.

18) In panic disorder anxiety sensitivity refers to:

	a)	Anxiety may lead to depression.
	b)	That the fears of anxiety symptoms that are based on beliefs that such symptoms have harmful consequences.
	c)	Anxiety symptoms may predict self harm.
	d)	Feeling anxious always leads to negative events.
Correct! Anxiety Sensitivity : Fears of anxiety symptoms that are based on beliefs that such symptoms have harmful consequences (e.g. that a rapid heart beat predicts an impending heart attack).Incorrect.

19) Clark's (1986, 1988) theory of Catastrophic Misinterpretation of Bodily Sensations suggests that individuals:

	a)	Are more likely to develop heart disease.
	b)	Have a cognitive bias towards accepting the more threatening interpretation of their sensations.
	c)	Are less able to determine when they are sickening for something.
	d)	Less likely to seek treatment from medical professionals.
Correct! Catastrophic Misinterpretation of Bodily Sensations: A feature of panic disorders where there is a cognitive bias towards accepting the more threatening interpretation of an individual's sensations.Incorrect.

20) Generalised Anxiety Disorder (GAD) is a pervasive condition in which the sufferer experiences:

	a)	Fear of fear.
	b)	Continual apprehension and anxiety about future events.
	c)	Continual flashbacks to past events.
	d)	A desire to check that the environment is safe.
Correct! Generalised Anxiety Disorder (GAD): A pervasive condition in which the sufferer experiences continual apprehension and anxiety about future events, and this leads to chronic and pathological worrying about those events.Incorrect.

21) Pathological and chronic worrying is the cardinal diagnostic feature of GAD, but it may also be accompanied by physical symptoms such as:

	a)	Fatigue and trembling.
	b)	Muscle tension.
	c)	Headache, and nausea.
	d)	All of the above.
Correct!GAD: Generalized Anxiety Disorder. A pervasive condition in which the sufferer experiences continual apprehension and anxiety about future events and this leads to chronic and pathological worrying about those events.Incorrect.

22) Individuals suffering with Generalised Anxiety Disorder, have a series of information processing biases which appear to maintain hyper-vigilance for threat, create further sources for worry, and maintain anxiety. Which of the following are examples of such biases?

	a)	Preferential allocation of attention to threatening stimuli occurs pre-attentively.
	b)	Preferential allocation occurs to both verbal stimuli and to pictures of threatening emotional faces.
	c)	The bias towards attending to threatening stimuli in anxious individuals is mirrored by the tendency of nonanxious individuals to attentionally avoid threat, i.e. to shift attention away from threatening stimuli.
	d)	All of the above.
Correct! Information Processing Biases: Biases in interpreting, attending to, storing or recalling information, and which may give rise to dysfunctional thinking and behaving.Incorrect.

23) Stimulus Control Treatment for Generalised Anxiety Disorder involves:

	a)	Instructing the individual not to worry.
	b)	Encouraging the individual to control their worry by performing rituals.
	c)	Instructing the individual to worry at a specific time or in a particular location.
	d)	Keep a diary of their worries.
Correct! Stimulus Control Treatment: An early behavioural intervention for worry in GAD which adopted the principle of stimulus control. This is based on the conditioning principle that the environments in which behaviours are enacted come to control the future occurrence of those, and can act to elicit those behaviours (the principle of stimulus control).Incorrect.

24) Treatment for GAD involves Cognitive restructuring. This involves :

	a)	Challenging and replacement of dysfunctional beliefs about the advantages of worrying.
	b)	Generate thoughts that are more accurate.
	c)	Challenge the biases that GAD sufferers hold about how frequently bad events might happen.
	d)	All of the above.
Correct! Cognitive Remediation Therapy (CRT: A treatment programme for clients with neurological disorders designed to to develop and improve basic cognitive skills and social functioning generally.Incorrect.

25) In Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) compulsions are generally thought to be which of the following:

	a)	Repetitive or ritualized behaviour patterns that the individual feels driven to perform in order to prevent some negative outcome happening.
	b)	Repetitive thoughts about harming or distressing others.
	c)	Overwhelming desires to behave in an inappropriate fashion.
	d)	Ritualised worrying about negative outcome of events.
Correct! Compulsions : Repetitive or ritualized behaviour patterns that an individual feels driven to perform in order to prevent some negative outcome happening.Incorrect.

26) In OCD one of the most important dysfunctional beliefs has been defined as inflated responsibility. This is:

	a)	An inability to take responsibility for one's actions.
	b)	Delusions of grandeur.
	c)	The belief that one has power which is pivotal to bring about or prevent subjectively crucial negative outcomes.
	d)	Increased sense of self importance.
Correct! Inflated Responsibility: The belief that one has power which is pivotal to bring about or prevent subjectively crucial negative outcomes. These outcomes are perceived as essential to prevent. They may be actual, that is having consequences in the real world, and/or at a moral level.Incorrect.

27) Mood is considered to have a role in perseverative psychopathologies such as OCD. One such account is the Mood as input hypothesis, which suggests that OCD suffers persevere with their compulsive activities because:

	a)	They use an implicit 'stop rule' for the compulsive activity which says they must only stop when they are sure they have completed the task fully and properly.
	b)	They undertake the task in a strong negative mood.
	c)	Concurrent mood as ‘information’ to assess whether they have met their strict stop rule criteria.
	d)	All of the above.
Correct! Mood-as-input Hypothesis: A hypothesis claiming tha people use their concurrent mood as information about whether they have successfully completed a task or not.Incorrect.

28) The most common, and perhaps the most successful, treatment for OCD is exposure and ritual prevention. One such treatment is imaginal exposure. For example, for someone with compulsive washing, this involves:

	a)	Suppressing thoughts about the ritual.
	b)	Imagining others touching a dirty dish.
	c)	Imagining touching a dirty dish.
	d)	Imagining negative consequences that will result from not washing.
Correct! Exposure & Ritual Prevention Treatments: A means of treatment for OCD which involves graded exposure to the thoughts that trigger distress, followed by the development of behaviours designed to prevent the individual's compulsive ritual.Incorrect.

29) Sometimes as a last resort Neurosurgery has become an intervention in OCD. The most common procedure is:

	a)	Neurobiotaxis.
	b)	Habituation.
	c)	Emotional anaesthesia.
	d)	Cingulatomy.
Correct! Cingulatomy: A neurosurgical treatment involving destroying cells in the cingulum, close to the corpus callosum.Incorrect.

30) Which of the following is considered to be a symptom of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD):

	a)	Increased arousal.
	b)	Avoidance and numbing of emotions.
	c)	Re-experiencing.
	d)	All of the above.
Correct! Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder: A set of persistent anxiety-based symptoms that occur after experiencing or witnessing an extremely fear-evoking traumatic event.Incorrect.

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