PSY301 – Pennebaker

Exam 4 – December 1, 2004

1. In the motivational world, one approach argues that there exists a need hierarchy. According to this view, which of the following people would most likely take a course in yoga in order to “find himself?”

a. a man who just lost his job because of an economic downturn (external cause).

b. a man who just lost his job because he didn’t work hard enough (low motivation).

c. a person who is concerned about terrorism threats.

d. a person who whose basic needs are satisfied and who feels loved and respected by others.

e. a person who is sexually frustrated (sublimation).

2. Which of the following people would be LEAST likely to benefit from writing?

a. Andy, who tends to keep things to himself.

b. Julia, who tends to be unaware of her psychological issues.

c. Anita, who was sexually assaulted on campus two days ago and has been feeling numb since.

d. Chris, who has difficulty finding an outlet for his hostility.

e. Tim, who was physically abused by his own father growing up, but never told any body about his traumatic experience.

3. According to the Yerkes-Dodson law, people should do best on this exam if:

a. they were extremely relaxed while taking the test.

b. they were moderately aroused while taking the test.

c. they were highly aroused while taking the test.

d. they merely guessed on most of the questions

e. they increased their self-efficacy and reduced their achievement motivation

4. Franz has been going to therapy for 4 years. During each therapy session, his therapist makes him talk about his dreams and childhood, but they rarely talk face to face. What therapy approach is Franz likely taking part?

a. Psychoanalytic

b. Humanistic

c. Cognitive Behavioral

d. Neo-gestalt

e. Quackery

5. Which of the following is an example of the exposure technique known as implosion for a person who is afraid of dogs?

a. John is exposed to larger and larger dogs over several weeks, which raises his threshold of fear over an extended period.

b. Zhang is locked into a kennel with over 100 dogs until he no longer feels frightened.

c. George imagines dogs in a non-threatening way, until he feels safe to pet one in real life.

d. Pierre recalls early memories of dogs and the emotions he originally felt during those encounters, and thus is able to better understand the source of his anxieties and conquer them.

e. Jean talks freely about how she feels around dogs without worrying about being judged by her therapist.

6. Recent data from studies of organisms with damage to the ventromedial hypothalamus (VMH) suggest that this area

a. is an appetite control center. (credit for both a and b)

b. regulates insulin levels.

c. stimulates dopamine production in response to ingestion of food.

d. serves as a “memory sensor.”

e. blocks people’s ability to orient themselves in space.

7. Jacque has recently begun to hear voices that tell him the mafia has bugged his house. He is absolutely positive that he is responsible for the recent floods. What psychological disorder is Jacque suffering from?

a. Paranoid schizophrenia

b. Hebephrenic schizophrenia

c. Bipolar depression

d. Catatonic schizophrenia

e. Panic disorder

8. Binge eating by restrained eaters occurs when

a. chronic dieters believe that they have already "blown" their diet.

b. individuals have been classically conditioned to "clean their plates" at mealtimes.

c. individuals secrete abnormally low levels of dopamine when eating food.

d. individuals have a high body weight set-point.

e. increases in salt consumption disrupts metabolism triggering a cascade of neuron firing in the anterior cingulate region of the brain.

9. Shanna has been diagnosed with anorexia nervosa. Which of the following traits would most likely be true of Shanna?

a. She has an accurate body image.

b. She grew up in poverty in a single-parent home.

c. She is over 45 years old.

d. She is very goal oriented and competitive.

e. She has a history of ADHD.

10. What is the current status on electroconvulsive therapy (ECT)?

a. although popular up until the late 1960s, it was discovered to be ineffective and is no longer used.

b. ECT is no longer used because of the danger of brain damage.

c. ECT is an effective method for the treatment of severe depression.

d. ECT is now widely used for multiple anxiety disorders, including the treatment of amnesia, fugue, and multiple personality disorders.

e. it is the preferred treatment method for most types of depression and schizophrenia since it produces longlasting – often permanent – improvements in people’s mental health.

11. The TOTE model of self-regulation could explain the benefits of expressive writing by arguing that expressive writing:

a. forces self-awareness and helps people to keep track of their goals in life.

b. serves as a form of deindividuation which frees people from past emotional pain

c. helps people to carry (or tote) their problems from one part of their life to another

d. aids people in reliving their childhoods and overcoming unresolved issues with parents

e. is merely a placebo.

12. According to evolutionary psychology, people who are more invested in relationships may attempt to elicit what in their partners?

a. jealousy

b. embarrassment

c. sadness

d. anger

e. boredom

13. Which of the following statements is true of ADHD?

a. Lack of structure in a child’s environment plays a greater role in developing ADHD than genetic predisposition

b. Taking stimulants put AHDH children at a greater risk for substance abuse later in their life.

c. ADHD is a product of Western culture and it is very rare that people get diagnosed with ADHD in Eastern culture.

d. Learning disability is one of the common disorders that co-occur with ADHD.

e. ADHD comprises of two symptom dimensions: hyperactivity and impulsivity.

14. Let’s say you are kidnapped by a terrorist who wants money from the government and, if it doesn’t come through, has threatened to kill you. Assuming you had a choice, which of the following disorders would you definitely NOT your terrorist to suffer from?

a. anti-social personality disorder

b. borderline personality disorder

c. narcissistic personality disorder

d. avoidant personality disorder

e. fundamentalist religious disorder

15. Studies on social support and immunity show

a. a weak positive association.

b. a strong and consistent positive association.

c. a strong but rather inconsistent positive association.

d. a negative association.

e. no relationship

16. Which part of the brain is most likely responsible for ADHD?

a. Temporal lobe

b. Parietal lobe

c. Occipital lobe

d. Frontal lobe

e. Hyperactivity lobe

17. Recent work suggests that men and women differ in how they react to stressors in their environments. Whereas men’s responses can be characterized by ___________, women’s responses are associated with ___________________

a. problem focused coping; emotion focused coping

b. internal locus of control; external locus of control

c. hypothalamic pituitary adrenal (HPA) response; adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) response

d. challenge; threat

e. fight or flight; tend and befriend

18. Wendy finds herself excessively worrying that something awful happening to her husband. She constantly calls him at work, and feels panicky whenever her husband does not come home at the usual time. Which of the following would be LEAST likely to be used by a cognitive-behavioral therapist to alleviate her anxiety?

a. Help her see how unlikely it is for her husband to experience tragedies (e.g. a serious car accident, having a heart attack, etc.) by coming up with evidence

b. Help her come up with alternative and more realistic interpretations when he is late for home

c. Help explore her feelings by having her write about her deepest emotions

d. Have her identify situational factors that tend to worsen her anxiety.

e. Have her imagine the worst case scenario as a way of facing her fear

19. Which of the following is not a criterion used to determine whether a behavior represents mental illness?

a. personal distress

b. deviation from cultural norms

c. knowing right from wrong

d. maladaptiveness

e. potential harm to self or others

20. Earlier versions of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, or DSM, focused on __________, whereas updated versions focus on __________.

a. underlying causes; descriptions

b. early childhood disorders; personality disorders

c. treatment strategies; degree of deviance

d. degree of deviance; prognosis

e. neuroses; psychoses

21. About 4 years ago, Jenn experienced an extremely traumatic experience. She has never spoken about her trauma with anyone, even though she has a strong social support network of friends and family. Recently, Jenn started experiencing symptoms of one of the somatoform disorders -- hypochondriasis. What treatment approach might Jenn use to help decrease her somatoform symptoms?

a. Expressive writing therapy

b. Anti-psychotics

c. Lithium

d. Ritalin

e. Kick-boxing

22. According to research on trauma and health, which of the following is NOT true of traumatic experiences?

a. They put an individual at risk for developing a psychological disorder sometime in their life.

b. A strong social support network is helpful in buffering the negative outcomes of the trauma.

c. They predispose an individual for more health problems in their lifetime.

d. Individuals will benefit from dealing with their traumatic experience more than if they deny or ignore it.

e. They are least harmful to the individual when kept secret.

23. Some psychologists would consider dysthymia __________ because __________.

a. a diathesis; it changes people's dispositions and traits

b. a childhood problem; it often first appears before age 10

c. a personality disorder; it lasts such a long time

d. an anxiety disorder; it often co-occurs with OCD

e. a very difficult word to spell; it has so many vowels

24. Dave is afraid to leave his house and travel to work or to any other place because he’s afraid of having a panic attack while traveling there. He is unable to take the subway, because it’s crowded and it’s hard to get out. Taking his car is also difficult, because he has to travel on the expressway, making it very difficult to pull over and get out, should a panic attack occur. Dave’s disorder would most likely be diagnosed as:

a. posttraumatic stress disorder

b. generalized anxiety disorder

c. a dissociative disorder

d. a panic disorder with agoraphobia

e. depression

25. Which of the following is true about bipolar disorder?

a. it occurs in about 1% of people.

b. it occurs at much higher rates in the United States than any other country.

c. it is much more prevalent in women than men.

d. it is much more prevalent in men than women.

e. it is more common in the very most northern regions in the northern hemisphere and in the very most southern regions in the southern hemisphere.

26. Which of the following is true about autistic people?

a. They are aware of their maladaptiveness but cannot stop it.

b. They want to stop their behavior patterns but hear voices telling them to continue.

c. They are generally unaware of others around them but are sensitive to all other aspects of their settings.

d. They appear to be low in intelligence but actually score at the genius level on most tests.

e. They appear to be completely detached from the world around them until they reach puberty when they transform into normal social beings in the space of a few months.

27. Reflective listening is a technique used in

a. behavioral therapy.

b. client-centered therapy.

c. psychoanalysis.

d. cognitive-behavioral therapy.

e. mirror therapy.

28. Which of the following neurotransmitters is considered to be associated with depression?

a. Serotonin

b. Dopamine

c. Nicotine

d. Acetylcholine

e. Buttermilk

29. Which of the following best illustrates the diathesis-stress model?

a. Todd, who tends to be high strung, learns about this when he completes the extraversion scale of the Big Five personality inventory.

b. Sam, who became depressed after getting fired from work, eventually goes into therapy before the symptoms go away.

c. Mina with an underlying predisposition to anxiety, who develops panic disorder shortly after seeing her pet cat killed by a neighbor’s dog

d. Marie, who is overly sensitive to criticism, who goes on vacation by herself and develops an intense interest in poetry

e. Suzanne, who lost her father during childhood.

30. Patients with schizophrenia may relapse if they are released to a family that

a. is high in negative expressed emotion.

b. expresses maladaptive cognitions.

c. has low socioeconomic status.

d. provides inadequate nutrition.

e. has virtually no conflict.

31. Lisa is a seventeen-year-old whose parents forced her to begin psychoanalysis in hope that therapy might help her conquer a severe eating disorder. She is often late for her sessions, hostile and uncooperative with her doctor. According to psychodynamic theory, Lisa's behavior may be viewed as an example of the process of

a. transference.

b. denial.

c. free association.

d. reaction-formation.

e. countertransference

32. For most common mental disorders, which would be the best summary of our knowledge:

a. Behavioral therapy is most effective.

b. Cognitive therapy is most effective.

c. Humanistic therapy is most effective.

d. The Yerkes-Dodson inverted pyramid therapy is most effective for males whereas medication works best for females.

e. Therapy helps, but the type usually does not matter.

33. Sara suffers from an extreme fear of snakes. How would a cognitive behavioral therapist attempt to rid Sara of her fear?

a. By giving her a placebo medication.

b. By desensitizing her to snakes in small steps.

c. By mirroring everything Sara says in therapy.

d. By examining her childhood experiences.

e. By giving her electroconvulsive shock therapy (ECT).

34. The most common treatment for ADHD is

a. behavioral therapy.

b. cognitive therapy.

c. use of stimulants.

d. use of antidepressants.

e. use of muscle relaxants.

35. Tsalac has significant periods where she sometimes finding herself in a new city with no recollection of her old life, and feels separated from her emotions and experiences, as if her mind and body were in two different places. Tsalac most likely suffers from:

a. a dissociative disorder

b. schizophrenia

c. borderline personality disorder

d. posttraumatic stress disorder

e. generalized anxiety disorder

36. Who of the following would be most likely to commit suicide?

a. Youngsuk, who is experiencing postpartum depression

b. Naomi, who has been suffering from generalized anxiety disorder for 10 years

c. Florence, who has recently been hospitalized for her bulimia

d. Ahmad, who feels paralyzed by his panic disorder

e. Tommy, who has been suffering from bipolar disorder and substance abuse

37. Emily’s daily routine involves cleaning her apartment for 2 hours making sure everything is arranged symmetrically and another 2 hours washing her hands for fear of germs, and checking the stove and door locks 20 times. Her behaviors exemplify ________.

a. Obsessions

b. Paranoia

c. Delusions

d. Somatization

e. Compulsions

38. DSM Axis I is to DSM Axis II as Generalized Anxiety Disorder is to ________________

a. Panic disorder

b. Feelings of fear in a shopping mall

c. General Medical Disorder

d. Phelondyncion bicarbonate

e. avoidant personality disorder

39. Seasonal affective disorder is:

a. common during the late summer, leading some to speculate that it may associated with allergic responses to pollen, such as ragweed.

b. more frequent during the summer, when it is hot.

c. more frequent during the winter months, because of the lack of sunlight.

d. more frequent during the winter months, because of the cold.

e. more frequent during the spring because of delayed reaction to the gloomy winter weather.

40. Which of the following statements is false:

a. Pharmacological treatments are superior to psychotherapy for the treatment of schizophrenia

b. Autistic children benefit from a structured treatment approach

c. Negative symptoms of schizophrenia include things like lack of emotion and slowed speech and movement

d. Only about 1% of felony indictments involve the insanity plea

e. With the new dopamine-replacement drugs, antisocial personality disorder is easily treated