Deck 5: Panic, Anxiety, and Their Disorders

Question 1

What is one of the major ways the anxiety disorders differ from each other?

A) Whether there are more fear/panic symptoms or anxiety symptoms involved.
B) Whether the disorder is associated with other anxiety disorders or not.
C) Whether or not they are treatable.
D) Whether or not they have a genetic component.

Answer 1

Whether there are more fear/panic symptoms or anxiety symptoms involved.

Question 2

Which of the following is one of the seven primary types of anxiety disorders recognized in the DSM-IV- TR?

A) bipolar disorder
B) hypochondriasis
C) dissociative fugue
D) obsessive-compulsive disorder

Answer 2

obsessive-compulsive disorder

Question 3

Fear is a basic emotion that involves

A) negative thoughts, but not a change in physiological arousal.
B) the activation of the "fight or flight" response.
C) concern about the future.
D) a complex blend of negative mood and self-preoccupation.

Answer 3

the activation of the "fight or flight" response.

Question 4

Which of the following is associated with a unique physiological response pattern?

A) blood-injection-injury phobia
B) agoraphobia
C) generalized anxiety disorder
D) obsessive-compulsive disorder

Question 5

Which of the following phobias is a 10-year-old boy most likely to suffer from?

A) blood-injury phobia
B) animal phobia
C) agoraphobia
D) claustrophobia

Question 6

The new DSM classification which omits the concept of neurosis is an improvement because

A) diagnostic criteria are now based on shared, observable symptoms and are more clearly defined.
B) each category is made up of symptoms that have one causal origin.
C) each category now has a specific effective treatment.
D) now anxiety disorders are identified regardless of whether anxiety symptoms are expressed or not.

Question 7

Which of the following explanations for Diana's scissors phobia would Freud be most likely to offer?

A) Diana once saw her brother seriously injured by a sharp object.
B) Constant warnings about the importance of not running with scissors have generalized to an overall fear of scissors.
C) Diana suffers from womb envy, creating an unconscious desire to harm her pregnant mother.
D) Diana's mother is a seamstress and Diana unconsciously wants to kill her.

Question 8

Which of the following would be an example of anxiety?

A) Hilda dreaded walking home alone.
B) Carl was certain that the food was poisoned.
C) The voices in Paul's head told him he should be afraid.
D) Julie jumped when she saw the snake.

Question 9

The main way to tell someone is having an uncued panic attack rather than is in a state of fear is

A) whether or not they think about what is happening.
B) if they feel a strong urge to flee.
C) whether or not they show physiological changes such as increased heart rate.
D) if they have a subjective belief that something awful is about to happen.

Question 10

Martin is afraid to fly. He knows his boss wants him to take a trip for the business. Martin feels miserable, because he wants to keep his job but cannot even imagine getting on a plane. The most likely diagnosis for Martin is

A) agoraphobia without history of panic disorder.
B) social phobia.
C) panic disorder with agoraphobia.
D) specific phobia, situation type.

Question 11

Casey and Josh have both been bitten by strange dogs. Casey has a dog of his own at home that he loves. Josh has little experience with dogs. Which is likely to develop a phobia?

A) Casey is less likely to develop a phobia because he has had lots of earlier positive experiences with dogs.
B) Both boys are likely to develop a phobia because of the traumatic nature of the event.
C) It will depend on which boy is more sensitive to pain.
D) Casey is more likely to develop a phobia because his schema of dogs has been violated.

Question 12

When Charissa was a young child, she stepped on a bee and was stung. Since that time, she has been terrified of flying insects and runs away if she sees any. According to the classical conditioning model, the bee was

A) an unconditioned response.
B) an unconditioned stimulus.
C) a conditioned response.
D) a conditioned stimulus.

Question 13

An evolutionary psychologist might say, "The unique physiological response in this disorder, involving fainting at the sight of the feared object, may have evolved because fainting might inhibit further attack from a predator." What disorder is being discussed?

A) agoraphobia with panic attacks
B) blood-injection-injury phobia
C) social phobia
D) animal phobia

Question 14

Neurotic behavior

A) is what we now refer to as "hysteria."
B) is maladaptive and means that a person is out of touch with reality.
C) is maladaptive but means that a person is not out of touch with reality.
D) is a current term, used to describe many disorders in the DSM-IV-TR.

Question 15

Nicole's mother is terribly afraid of snakes. Although Nicole has never actually seen a snake, her mother has told her time and again to be careful and look for them when she is walking. Now Nicole has an intense fear of snakes and refuses to walk in the grass. This is an example of

A) vicarious conditioning of a phobia.
B) unconscious displacement of anxiety onto a phobic object.
C) classical conditioning of a phobia.
D) operant conditioning of a phobia.

Question 16

Which of the following is most characteristic of anxiety?

A) avoidant behavior
B) a desire to scream
C) trembling
D) increased heart rate

Question 17

When Kenneth was a young boy he went to a dentist who treated him uncaringly and inflicted a good deal of pain. Even years later, he has an uncontrollable and intense fear of not only dentists but physicians, too. This best illustrates how phobias might be the result of

A) observational conditioning.
B) the inflation effect.
C) secondary gain.
D) generalization in classical conditioning.

Question 18

When Kenneth was a young boy he went to a dentist who treated him uncaringly and inflicted a good deal of pain. Even years later, he has a uncontrollable and intense fear of not only dentists but physicians, too. This best illustrates how phobias might be the result of

A) generalization in classical conditioning.
B) the inflation effect.
C) secondary gain.
D) observational conditioning.

Question 19

Individuals who suffer from phobias

A) are likely to believe that their fear is justified.
B) are unlikely to have other psychological diagnoses.
C) avoid the feared stimulus.
D) suffer from uncued panic attacks.

Question 20

Why do people with phobias continue to avoid the thing they fear?

A) They are cognitively unable to make any other decision due to their disorder.
B) Avoidance is reinforced by anxiety reduction.
C) There is something wrong with their flight-fight system.
D) Their low self-esteem causes them to choose not to fight their fear.

Question 21

Social phobia often begins

A) at a time when the person seems relatively free of stressors.
B) after any traumatic experience, even if it didn't include other people.
C) at a time when the person was having problems with his/her peers.
D) after a parent criticized the person.

Question 22

Studies of preparedness and social phobia

A) provide an explanation for why such a maladaptive behavioral response persists.
B) reveal that an explicit perception of threat is necessary to evoke a sympathetic response.
C) do not provide justification for the seemingly irrational nature of social phobia.
D) find that angry faces act as fear-relevant stimuli.

Question 23

Paul has social phobia. He walks into a meeting at work and two people look up and smile. Paul

A) is likely to interpret this as a friendly gesture-he is finally liked by someone.
B) is likely to not notice-his anxiety will keep him from seeing the friendly gesture.
C) is likely to interpret this in a negative way-that they are laughing at him in a mean way.
D) is likely to not know how to interpret this and this will make him feel more anxious.

Question 24

What has research on the preparedness theory of phobias found?

A) Acquired fear responses can be elicited with subliminal exposure to fear-relevant stimuli.
B) Prepared fears are innate.
C) There are cross-cultural differences in the stimuli people are "prepared" to fear.
D) Fear responses can not be conditioned to fear-irrelevant stimuli.

Question 25

Which of the following is likely to maintain or strengthen conditioned fears over time?

A) overestimating the likelihood that the event will reoccur
B) having previously experienced a less traumatic event
C) a genetic vulnerability to phobias
D) viewing the trauma as uncontrollable and inescapable

Question 26

Lauren is phobic of birds. Her therapist shows her how to approach a bird in a cage. The therapist then takes the bird out, pets it and feeds it. She then encourages Lauren to do the same behaviors. This type of procedure is called

A) exposure therapy.
B) classical conditioning.
C) virtual reality therapy.
D) participant modeling.

Question 27

The individual with generalized social phobia

A) has a specific phobia for all social situations.
B) is likely to receive a diagnosis of generalized anxiety disorder.
C) exhibits a fear of most social situations.
D) typically has a fear of public speaking, using a public restroom, and restaurants.

Question 28

Panic attacks, by definition,

A) are seen in individuals with panic disorder.
B) require the presence of at least four of 13 characteristic symptoms.
C) are unexpected "uncued").
D) are 30-60 minutes in duration.

Question 29

Which of the following illustrates how cognitive variables may act to maintain acquired fears?

A) Jane no longer went to the park due to her fear of dogs.
B) Melvin knew that his heart was racing because he was afraid.
C) Karen would think happy thoughts whenever she drove over a bridge.
D) Ryan's fear of heights caused him to always wonder just how high up he was in a building.

Question 30

Compared to anxiety, panic is

A) slower to develop.
B) longer lasting.
C) less focused.
D) more intense.

Question 31

The cognitive restructuring approach to social phobia focuses on

A) identifying the underlying cause of the phobia.
B) extinguishing problematic behavioral responses.
C) challenging automatic thoughts.
D) minimizing symptoms.

Question 32

When Jill experience her first panic attack, she felt as if she were outside of herself, watching herself struggle to catch her breath. Jill's sense of not being part of herself is one of the symptoms of a panic attack known as

A) depersonalization.
B) derealization.
C) dissociative fugue.
D) personality disintegration.

Question 33

Which of the following explains why many people never seek treatment for phobias?

A) the frequent use of exposure therapy
B) Even the simplest of phobias requires participation in many lengthy treatment sessions before any progress is seen.
C) Most individuals who have a phobia have agoraphobia or claustrophobia, leaving them less likely to venture out in public and making the use of many modes of transportation difficult.
D) the high likelihood that the individual with a phobia believes that their fear is rational

Question 34

Kayla has just started college and wants to make friends. She refuses to go to large parties because she is afraid that she will blush and sweat, and that other people will laugh at her. She is fine talking to people in one-on-one settings. Kayla's most likely diagnosis is

A) agoraphobia without history of panic disorder.
B) social phobia.
C) generalized social phobia.
D) specific phobia, situational type.

Question 35

Evolutionary preparedness explains

A) why phobic people are likely to maintain their avoidance behavior.
B) why cognitive variables are so important in phobias.
C) why some types of phobias are much more common than others.
D) how the inflation effect works.

Question 36

Behaviorally inhibited young children are more likely to develop specific phobias. This is an example of a ________ causal factor.

A) biological
B) conditioning
C) preparedness
D) cognitive

Question 37

Wendy went swimming in the ocean last week and became mildly fearful when she swallowed a lot of water and felt as though she would drown. Just yesterday someone told her that a shark was seen in the water at the same time she was swimming. Now she is petrified of going into the ocean. This best illustrates

A) the inability of the phobic person to direct their attention away from a feared object.
B) the "inflation effect."
C) the observational learning explanation for phobias.
D) classically conditioned generalization based on direct experience.

Question 38

Which of the following is necessary for a diagnosis of panic disorder?

A) depersonalization
B) derealization
C) panic attacks, cued and uncued, consisting of at least 6 of the 13 symptoms of a panic attack
D) uncued panic attacks

Question 39

Social phobia

A) involves a fear of one or more specific social situations.
B) is characterized by significant fear of most social situations.
C) typically develops in childhood.
D) and antisocial personality commonly are comorbid disorders.

Question 40

Social phobics are likely to

A) be aggressive.
B) attribute events in their lives to external factors.
C) attribute negative life events to internal, global, and stable factors.
D) have been raised in a permissive environment.

Question 41

Which learning process best accounts for the progression of agoraphobia?

A) social modeling
B) avoidance learning
C) generalization
D) conditioning

Question 42

Agoraphobia is best described as a fear of

A) experiencing a panic attack.
B) open spaces.
C) people.
D) public events.

Question 43

According to the fear of fear model of agoraphobia,

A) the avoidant behaviors that the agoraphobic engages in serve to both maintain and exaggerate existing conditioned fear reactions.
B) minimal signs of sympathetic arousal come to signal more intense levels of arousal such that slight changes in autonomic activity become triggers for panic attacks.
C) agoraphobics develop fear responses to so many environmental stimuli that it is impossible to identify the stimulus that triggers a panic attack.
D) agoraphobia develops when the fear caused by a traumatic event becomes associated with numerous diverse environmental stimuli.

Question 44

"Fear of fear," fear of anger and depression, and fear of internal bodily sensations are all cognitive causal explanations for

A) agoraphobia.
B) social phobia.
C) obsessive-compulsive disorder.
D) generalized anxiety disorder.

Question 45

Panic disorders are often misdiagnosed because

A) the symptoms overlap so much with major depression.
B) symptoms are so somatic they are treated by physicians for medical problems.
C) the symptoms are so chronic and mild, they do not seem like serious forms of psychopathology.
D) patients are so embarrassed by their problems, they do not make them known to professionals.

Question 46

was once thought to be a fear of crowded places, but now is seen as a complication of having panic attacks in public.

A) Generalized anxiety disorder
B) Agoraphobia
C) Claustrophobia
D) General social phobia

Question 47

Which brain structure is recognized as playing a central role in panic attacks?

A) hippocampus
B) cerebellum
C) amygdala
D) locus coeruleus

Question 48

The genetic component of Panic Disorder appears to be

A) due to a single gene.
B) connected to the gene for obsessive compulsive disorder.
C) due to the heritability of neuroticism.
D) nonexistant.

Question 49

Which of the following is a sociocultural explanation for the higher incidence of anxiety disorders in women?

A) Women have a natural tendency to be more cautious than men.
B) It is more acceptable for women to exhibit fear.
C) High levels of male hormones lead to aggression and fearlessness.
D) Historically, women have had to stay and care for young. Thus, a hyper-vigilant state was adaptive.

Question 50

Betty is hyper-aware of such bodily sensations as heart rate and respiration rate. When she perceives heart or breathing as getting faster she becomes afraid that she is having a heart attack. These thoughts make her symptoms worse and she has a panic attack. Betty's pattern of thinking best illustrates

A) the importance of perceived control in panic disorder.
B) interoceptive conditioning.
C) the cognitive theory of panic.
D) the role of the locus coeruleus in panic.

Question 51

"Repeated stimulation of the limbic system by discharges from the locus coeruleus may lower the threshold for later experiences of anxiety. Then, through learning, controlled by the prefrontal cortex, the person actively avoids fearful situations." This quotation most clearly refers to the biological processes involved in

A) obsessive-compulsive disorder.
B) generalized anxiety disorder.
C) panic disorder with agoraphobia.
D) social phobia.

Question 52

Panic disorder is best described as an) condition.

A) inherited
B) dissociative
C) acute
D) chronic

Question 53

Mrs. B. tells her psychologist, "I cannot leave a certain region around my home without having terrible fears. I am terribly worried when I am in a car or bus. I am afraid I will have another one of those terrifying experiences." What disorder does Mrs. B probably have and what experience is she talking about?

A) The disorder is agoraphobia, the experience is a panic attack.
B) The disorder is specific phobia, the experience is a panic attack.
C) The disorder is generalized anxiety disorder, the experience is anxiety.
D) The disorder is obsessive-compulsive disorder, the experience is an obsession.

Question 54

Research using panic provocation agents has revealed

A) that there are probably multiple biological explanations for panic disorder.
B) flaws in the studies using sodium lactate infusion.
C) the neurobiological basis for panic disorder.
D) that there is no biological explanation for panic disorder.

Question 55

Most first panic attacks

A) last more than an hour.
B) are uncued.
C) are followed by the development of panic disorder.
D) follow some distressing event.

Question 56

What is thought to explain the effectiveness of the SSRIs in treating panic disorder?

A) They decrease serotonergic activity.
B) They increase noradrenergic activity.
C) They increase serotonergic activity.
D) They decrease noradrenergic activity.

Question 57

People with agoraphobia

A) fear enclosed spaces.
B) fear fear.
C) fear open spaces.
D) fear situations in which they have experienced panic attacks.

Question 58

Limited symptom attacks are

A) panic attacks consisting of fewer than four symptoms.
B) unpredictable somatic ailments.
C) typically seen in individuals with agoraphobia with panic.
D) a characteristic of panic disorder.

Question 59

Which of the following is NOT an existing piece of evidence that provides support for the role of cognitions in panic?

A) Panic can be prevented in a panic provocation study by explaining what will happen.
B) Only individuals who tend to catastrophize develop panic disorder.
C) Evidence regarding the effectiveness of cognitive therapy for panic disorder.
D) Panic clients are more likely to interpret bodily sensations as catastrophic events.

Question 60

James began having panic attacks immediately after his mother died suddenly. As they became more frequent, he began to fear going into public situations where they might occur. Now he is unable to leave his apartment and has others go out to shop for him. What is unusual about this case?

A) There is nothing unusual about this case.
B) It is unusual for panic attacks to begin after a stressful life event.
C) It is unusual for a person with severe agoraphobia to be a man.
D) It is unusual for fear of panic attacks to lead to agoraphobia.

Question 61

High levels of anxiety sensitivity

A) are seen in all who develop agoraphobia.
B) can be effectively treated with drugs that minimize noradrenergic function.
C) are a diathesis for panic attacks.
D) increase the risk of all types of anxiety disorder.

Question 62

Which of the following is NOT one of the benefits that those with GAD commonly believe they derive from worrying?

A) If I worry about it now, I won't be as upset when it happens.
B) If I worry about it, I won't have to think about other things that are even worse.
C) If I worry about it, it is less likely to happen.
D) If I worry about it, I'll be more prepared when it does happen.

Question 63

Most people with obsessive-compulsive disorder

A) experience both obsessions and compulsions.
B) experience compulsions, but obsessions are relatively rare.
C) develop compulsions in childhood, and obsessions in adolescence or adulthood.
D) experience obsessions, but compulsions are relatively rare.

Question 64

Persistent and recurrent thoughts are

A) obsessions.
B) delusions.
C) compulsions.
D) hallucinations.

Question 65

According to the psychoanalytic view, what makes generalized anxiety disorder GAD) different from specific phobias?

A) Individuals with specific phobias suffer from self-hate and project this emotion on the feared stimulus.
B) Defense mechanisms are not functional in GAD.
C) The underlying conflict in GAD is between the ego and the superego, while it is between the id and ego in specific phobias.
D) Different defense mechanisms are employed by those with with GAD and those with specific phobias.

Question 66

Derek's moods have always seemed to be unpredictable and irrational. Nancy, who has been diagnosed with generalized anxiety disorder, never knows when he is going to come home and yell at her and the kids. In family therapy it is revealed that Derek's moods are really not irrational, but a reflection of the day's sales at his store. Which of the following would be most likely to decrease Nancy's anxiety?

A) Derek could call home each day and let Nancy know how the day went.
B) Derek should sell the business.
C) Derek can commit more money to advertising so as to increase sales.
D) Derek and Nancy should separate.

Question 67

One of the main functions that worry seems to serve in generalized anxiety disorder is

A) it keeps people from feeling the emotional and physiological consequences of anxiety.
B) it keeps people distracted from what is really bothering them.
C) it prevents people with the disorder from developing depression.
D) it keeps people with the disorder feeling happier than if they didn't worry.

Question 68

One of the main problems with the worry in generalized anxiety disorders is

A) it increases the effects of operant conditioning on their fears.
B) it keeps people with the disorder feeling happier than if they don't worry.
C) it is a form of avoidance and prevents extinction.
D) it keeps people distracted from what is really bothering them.

Question 69

Amber feels anxious almost all the time. She finds herself worrying that her husband will leave her although he has never shown any indication that he would), that she chose the wrong job, that her children might not be safe at their school and that she might get sick and leave her family in financial ruin. She calls her husband almost everyday to find out when he will be home. She complains to her physician that she is always tired but cannot sleep or relax. Amber's most likely diagnosis is

A) panic disorder with agoraphobia.
B) obsessive compulsive disorder.
C) generalized anxiety disorder.
D) generalized social phobia.

Question 70

The effectiveness of Valium in treating GAD supports the hypothesis that

A) anxiety increases noradrenergic activity.
B) a GABA deficiency underlies GAD.
C) heightened autonomic arousal causes the anxiety of those with GAD.
D) a serotonin deficiency underlies GAD.

Question 71

Quentin is seeking medication to treat his panic disorder. Due to Quentin's history of substance abuse, his doctor hesitates. After some consideration, the doctor is most likely to write Quentin a prescription for a ________, confident that abuse won't be an issue.

A) SSRI
B) monamine oxidase inhibitor
C) tricyclic
D) benzodiazepine

Question 72

Neurobiological factors involved in panic disorder and generalized anxiety disorder provide evidence for the hypothesis that

A) both disorders are caused by an excess of the GABA neurotransmitter.
B) the two disorders are genetically identical.
C) panic may be an acute version of generalized anxiety disorder.
D) fear and anxiety are fundamentally distinct.

Question 73

What disorder does GAD appear to be most related to?

A) PTSD
B) specific phobia
C) major depression
D) panic disorder

Question 74

Why do many people with panic disorder continue to believe they are having a heart attack despite the fact that they never have?

A) They continue to go through classical conditioned learning experiences each time they have a panic attack.
B) They tell themselves that physicians may have missed earlier heart attacks.
C) They tend to engage in "safety behaviors" that they believe are the reason the catastrophe didn't happen.
D) They have such a high level of fear that learning is not possible.

Question 75

If a pharmaceutical company were looking for a drug that would maximally treat generalized anxiety disorder they would want one that

A) decreased serotonin levels and suppressed activity in the locus coeruleus.
B) increased GABA levels while regulating serotonin.
C) suppressed the activity of the locus coeruleus in the brain stem and the central gray in the midbrain.
D) decreased GABA levels while increasing norepinephrine.

Question 76

Which of the following is a disadvantage of treating GAD with a benzodiazepine?

A) a therapeutic response is not seen for several weeks
B) there is a high risk of overdose
C) the somatic symptoms are not treated
D) such drugs are frequently misused

Question 77

Harold's panic attacks have become so severe that he has finally sought treatment. He sees a psychiatrist who writes Harold a prescription that should offer him some immediate relief. Which of the following drugs is Harold most likely to have been prescribed?

A) tricyclics
B) benzodiazepines
C) SSRIs
D) monamine oxidase inhibitors

Question 78

The cognitive model does not account for

A) findings from panic provocation studies.
B) nocturnal panic attacks.
C) the effectiveness of cognitive-behavioral therapies.
D) evidence of a role for genes in anxiety disorders.

Question 79

Which of the following are the antidepressants most widely prescribed today for the treatment of panic disorder?

A) tricyclics
B) benzodiazepines
C) SSRIs
D) anxiolytics

Question 80

While in treatment for panic disorder, Leroy is asked to engage in behaviors that activate the sympathetic nervous system. In other words, Leroy is engaging in behaviors that produce the physical sensation of fear. What type of treatment does this appear to be?

A) interoceptive exposure
B) exteroceptive exposure
C) anxiety sensitivity training
D) cognitive reconditioning