Deck 1: Abnormal Behavior in Historical Context

Question 1

Ron has just been diagnosed with schizophrenia and hospitalized.What would Thomas Szasz most likely argue?

A)Ron should not be hospitalized because doing so will only make his symptoms worse.
B)Ron's behaviour does not represent an illness like diabetes, and "schizophrenia" is merely a label applied on the basis of highly subjective judgments.
C)Ron's schizophrenia is a serious illness that is best treated with a combination of drugs and family therapy.
D)Ron should be assessed further because mistakes in diagnosis are made frequently.

Answer 1

Ron's behaviour does not represent an illness like diabetes, and "schizophrenia" is merely a label applied on the basis of highly subjective judgments.

Question 2

A four-year-old girl sucks her thumb, a teenager binges on food, and an adult woman bites her fingernails.According to the Freudian theory of psychosexual development, what underlies all these behaviours?

A)repression of aggressive impulses
B)a fixation at the oral stage of psychosexual development
C)a trauma during the toilet-training phase
D)denial of unacceptable feelings, thoughts, or wishes

Answer 2

a fixation at the oral stage of psychosexual development

Question 3

Which of the following is a characteristic of how defence mechanisms affect coping styles?

A)They are dependent upon the age of the person and how they are used.
B)They can be either adaptive or maladaptive.
C)They are self-defeating.
D)They are adaptive.

Answer 3

They can be either adaptive or maladaptive.

Question 4

In most Western societies, what happens when a person enters a trance state and believes he or she is possessed?

A)The person is believed to be suffering from a psychotic disorder.
B)The person is diagnosed with a dissociative disorder.
C)The person may be viewed as having a psychological disorder.
D)The person can be cured with antipsychotic medication.

Question 5

What is the name for learning in which a neutral stimulus is paired with a response until it elicits that response?

A)operant conditioning
B)classical conditioning
C)systematic desensitization
D)extinction

Question 6

In the Middle Ages, one of the chief advisers to France's King Charles V, Nicholas Oresme, suggested that which of the following was responsible for bizarre behaviour?

A)the moon
B)religion
C)melancholy
D)greed

Question 7

Who is the concept of a "hierarchy of needs" most strongly associated with?

A)Carl Rogers
B)Anna Freud
C)Abraham Maslow
D)Carl Jung

Question 8

When 20-year-old Larry was first identified as suffering from schizophrenia, his family wanted to know how the disorder would progress and how it would affect him in the future.In medical terms, what did the family want to know?

A)Larry's psychosocial profile
B)Larry's pathology
C)Larry's diagnosis
D)Larry's prognosis

Question 9

You are listening to old musical tunes, including "Melancholy Baby." Your friends are impressed when you tell them that "melancholic," referring to a depressive personality, derives from the Greek term melancholer.What does this term mean?

A)yellow bile
B)phlegm
C)blood
D)black bile

Question 10

Why was electroconvulsive therapy originally used as a therapy for schizophrenia?

A)It was (mistakenly) observed that schizophrenia was rarely found in people with epilepsy.
B)It was (mistakenly) observed that it could reduce brain seizures, providing a cure.
C)It was (mistakenly) observed to induce convulsions and stimulated appetite in psychotic patients.
D)It was (mistakenly) observed to alleviate the depression that often accompanies schizophrenia.

Question 11

How do most mental health professionals view psychoanalysis as a treatment technique?

A)It has been proven effective.
B)It has been subject to careful measurement criteria.
C)It is basically unscientific.
D)It is noted for consistency in analytic interpretation.

Question 12

Statistical data are relevant to researchers.For example, one major epidemiological study found that about 7.8 percent of people in North America have had a mood disorder at some point in their lives and 3.7 percent have experienced a mood disorder over the past year.What do the 7.8 percent and 3.7 percent statistics refer to, respectively?

A)incidence; prevalence
B)incidence; recurrence
C)proportion; prevalence
D)prevalence; incidence

Question 13

Who was the first theorist to argue that genetics were related to abnormal functioning?

A)Hippocrates
B)Galen
C)Freud
D)Grey

Question 14

Bloodletting, often through the use of leeches, was a treatment devised centuries ago.What was this treatment used for?

A)to reduce excessive blood in the brain
B)to correct a chemical imbalance in the brain
C)to reduce the negative effects of stress
D)to restore the balance of humors

Question 15

Which Greek philosopher suggested that maladaptive behaviour was rooted in social and cultural factors?

A)Galen
B)Hippocrates
C)Plato
D)Aristotle

Question 16

After receiving the results of four different sets of tests, Mary's doctor tells her that she has cancer.Mary states, "This can't be true; I'm going to get a second opinion." Which defence mechanism does this example illustrate?

A)displacement
B)denial
C)projection
D)repression

Question 17

According to Abraham Maslow's hierarchy of needs, individuals will be unable to achieve high levels of self-actualization and self-esteem unless which of the following has taken place?

A)unless they have been raised with unconditional positive regard from primary caregivers
B)unless they have first met more basic human requirements such as food, sex, and friendship
C)unless they have developed sufficient ego strength
D)unless they have gratified their basic needs and satisfied their drive for physical pleasure through the five psychosexual stages of development

Question 18

Why are operant conditioning techniques being applied in Canadian hospital settings?

A)to increase patients' insight into their fears and wishes
B)to reduce psychiatric patients' undesirable behaviour and increase their desirable behaviour
C)to reduce patients' fear of surgery
D)to increase nursing staff's empathy

Question 19

What is the relationship between a presenting problem and a clinical description?

A)Obtaining the patient's clinical description is the first step in determining what the patient's presenting problem is.
B)Describing the patient's presenting problem is the first step in determining the patient's clinical description.
C)The presenting problem refers to the current status of a distressed individual; the clinical description refers to the treatment plan.
D)The presenting problem refers to symptoms that last only a short time, whereas the clinical description refers to symptoms that are chronic.

Question 20

According to psychoanalytic theory, what function does a person develop early in life to ensure that they can adapt to the demands of the real world while still finding ways of meeting their basic needs?

A)id
B)conscience
C)superego
D)ego

Question 21

According to Freudian theory, anxiety is a signal for the ego to marshal its mechanisms of defence.This is a function of which of the following?

A)reality-based actions
B)conscious efforts to maintain control
C)unconscious protective processes
D)primitive emotional responses

Question 22

The ego operates according to one principle, and the id operates according to another principle.What are they, respectively?

A)reality; pleasure
B)conscious; unconscious
C)pleasure; aggression
D)reality; aggression

Question 23

Anton Mesmer, an early 18th-century physician, purported to cure patients by unblocking the flow of a bodily fluid he called "animal magnetism." Benjamin Franklin's double-blind experiment indicated that any effectiveness of Mesmer's methods was actually because of which of the following?

A)undetectable magnetic fields
B)chemically induced humoral balance
C)the power of suggestion
D)mental telepathy

Question 24

According to psychoanalytic theory, the id operates according to the pleasure principle.What does that mean?

A)It uses secondary-process thinking.
B)It thinks in an unemotional, logical, and rational manner.
C)It is sexual, aggressive, selfish, and envious.
D)It adheres to social rules and regulations.

Question 25

Jason has been having a lot of difficulty because of his irrational fears.His doctor advises Jason to participate in an anxiety-reduction procedure based on the work of Joseph Wolpe.What is this procedure?

A)aversive conditioning
B)person-centred therapy
C)systematic desensitization
D)mesmerism

Question 26

Realizing patients are often unaware of material previously recalled under hypnosis, Breuer and Freud hypothesized the existence of a concept considered one of the most important developments in the history of psychopathology.What was that concept?

A)psychosis
B)the unconscious mind
C)catharsis
D)repression

Question 27

During more superstitious times, which of the following was thought to be the cause of abnormal behaviour?

A)a demonic possession
B)black bile
C)homosexuality
D)punishment of the illiterate

Question 28

Which term refers to the study of the origins of a disorder?

A)prognosis
B)etiology
C)symptomology
D)prevalence

Question 29

Jack and Kelly have been dating for six months.Kelly is not interested in continuing their relationship.She calls Jack and informs him that although she cares about him, she must end their relationship.Jack laughs and says, "Funny joke." Kelly states, "This is not a joke; I am serious." Jack then says, "I'll pick you up in an hour for dinner." Which defence mechanism does this example illustrate?

A)displacement
B)projection
C)denial
D)repression

Question 30

The Oedipus complex is the psychosexual conflict occurring during the phallic stage of development in boys.How is this complex characterized?

A)by love for the mother and feelings of anger and envy toward the father
B)by a repressed need for oral gratification
C)by a love for the father and feelings of repulsion toward the mother
D)by a repressed need for genital self-stimulation

Question 31

What do humanistic therapists regard as the most positive influence in facilitating human growth?

A)therapist interpretations of the patient's verbalizations
B)self-esteem
C)ego development
D)relationships (including the therapeutic relationship)

Question 32

Frank drinks three bottles of wine each day and believes he would be fine if people would just "mind their own business." Which criterion for abnormality is absent from this scenario?

A)objective harm to others
B)personal distress
C)maladaptiveness
D)qualitative uniqueness

Question 33

Which of the following is associated with the humanistic theories of Carl Rogers?

A)hierarchy of needs
B)dream analysis
C)moral hygiene
D)person-centred therapy

Question 34

Psychological disorders can be described as following a typical course or individual pattern.Disorders that tend to last a long time follow one type of course, whereas disorders that show a discontinuous, recurrent pattern follow another type of course.What are these courses, respectively?

A)chronic; episodic
B)chronic; time-limited
C)pervasive; time-limited
D)insidious; recurrent

Question 35

You are in a mall when a young child begins to scream and shout because his parents will not buy him the latest toy.What would B.F.Skinner most likely say about the child's behaviour?

A)It is an expression of repressed Oedipal anger toward his father and it will diminish naturally as he gets older.
B)It is a classically conditioned response to being in the mall.
C)It would be most effectively altered over the long term by simply ignoring it.
D)It would be most effectively altered over the long term by scolding him and positively reinforcing more appropriate behaviour.

Question 36

When using the psychological disorder criteria, when would an individual be assessed as having psychological dysfunction?

A)when his or her thought processes are totally out of touch with reality
B)when he or she is extremely distressed
C)when his or her behaviour violates social norms
D)when he or she avoids interactions with other people

Question 37

What is the formal definition of psychopathology?

A)the medications used to treat some psychological disorders
B)the criteria used to define psychological disorders
C)the psychological therapies used to treat psychological disorders
D)the scientific study of psychological disorders

Question 38

In classical psychoanalysis, why is the process whereby the therapist interprets a patient's dreams often difficult?

A)because the patient may resist uncovering repressed material and deny the interpretation
B)because patients often forget their dreams
C)because the patient may relate to the therapist much as he or she did toward a parent figure
D)because the therapist may wish not to upset the patient with a negative interpretation

Question 39

According to psychoanalytic theory, what do the conflicts between the id and the superego often lead to?

A)anxiety
B)anger
C)violent behaviour
D)depression

Question 40

Based on Hippocrates' humoral theory, what type of person does the term "sanguine" describe?

A)humorous
B)pessimistic
C)pale
D)cheerful

Question 41

When did moral therapy work best?

A)when it was used with groups of patients, rather than through individual attention to patients
B)when the number of patients in an institution was 200 or fewer
C)when it was used in populations of immigrants and the poor
D)when it was supplemented by the use of restraint and seclusion

Question 42

In the middle of the 20th century, what were some of the first effective drugs for psychological disorders?

A)benzodiazepines to treat depression
B)bromides and opium for sedation
C)insulin and neuroleptics for sedation
D)neuroleptics for psychotic symptoms

Question 43

As compared to her father, Sigmund Freud, Anna Freud (1895-1982) focused her work on the way our behaviour is influenced.Which of the following did she write?

A)Id and the Mechanisms of Defense
B)Our Neurosis and the Mechanisms of Defense
C)Our Self-actualization and the Mechanisms of Defense
D)Ego and the Mechanisms of Defense

Question 44

In 14th- and 15th-century Europe, to what was inexplicable behaviour attributed?

A)evil
B)stupidity
C)humors
D)astrology

Question 45

Sarah underwent chemotherapy treatment for cancer.She now reports experiencing mild nausea when she drives by the hospital and severe nausea when she enters the hospital where her chemotherapy was administered.What phenomenon best explains these reactions to stimuli she associates with her chemotherapy?

A)reconditioning
B)introspection
C)operant conditioning
D)stimulus generalization

Question 46

Why is a patient's age important information in the clinical description?

A)Young children do not experience true psychological disorders.
B)Older adults are reluctant to report psychological symptoms.
C)Children are not reliable sources of information about symptoms.
D)Disorders occurring in childhood may present differently at older ages.

Question 47

In psychoanalytic psychotherapy, which of the following is most important for patients?

A)to strive to reach their full potential
B)to remain emotionally detached from the analyst
C)to find an effective medication
D)to describe the content of their dreams to the analyst

Question 48

After graduation, two of your friends express an interest in psychology careers.Carl wants to work with relatively healthy individuals who are experiencing adjustment or vocational difficulties.Anna wishes to focus on the more severe psychological disorders and conduct research into their causes.Because you are studying abnormal psychology, they ask you for career advice.What do you tell them?

A)Carl should study psychology at the graduate level, and Anna should apply to medical school.
B)Carl should study clinical psychology at the graduate level, and Anna should study counselling psychology at the graduate level.
C)Both of them should apply to medical school.
D)Anna should study clinical psychology at the graduate level, and Carl should study counselling psychology at the graduate level.

Question 49

In many parts of the world during the 1970s, what would an individual suffering from an anxiety disorder most likely have been prescribed?

A)bromides
B)neuroleptics
C)benzodiazepines
D)electroconvulsive therapy

Question 50

In 1895, how did neurologist Josef Breuer treat Anna O.'s hysterical symptoms?

A)using mesmerism
B)using hydrotherapy
C)using the placebo effect
D)using hypnosis

Question 51

What does Wolpe's technique of systematic desensitization involve?

A)reinforcing successive approximations to a final behaviour or set of behaviours
B)gradually introducing the feared objects or situations so that fear can be extinguished
C)gradually reinforcing fearless behaviour and punishing fear responses
D)reinforcing an incompatible response to a feared situation

Question 52

In Freudian theory, the terms "libido" and "thanatos" represent two basic but opposing drives.What are they?

A)life and death
B)pleasure and pain
C)sex and celibacy
D)good and evil

Question 53

What was Erikson's greatest contribution to psychoanalytical theorizing?

A)his idea that development occurs across the life span
B)his idea that sexual arousal and interest occur during the latency stage
C)his idea that societal factors influence our behaviour
D)his idea that intrapsychic conflicts are resolved in early childhood

Question 54

What is one of the three ways a mental health practitioner can function as a scientist-practitioner?

A)by writing textbooks
B)by evaluating clinical practice
C)by prescribing medications
D)by teaching students

Question 55

Which of the following terms for mental illness is related to movements of the moon and stars?

A)lunatic
B)mental defective
C)maniac
D)idiot

Question 56

Whose work lead to a decline in moral therapy?

A)John Grey
B)Dorothea Dix
C)Aristotle
D)Sigmund Freud

Question 57

Popular musician Lady Gaga has performed with blood spurting out of her clothes.Why might having blood spurt from her clothes be considered abnormal?

A)because her behaviour demonstrates a sense of subjective discomfort
B)because she has an inability to distinguish right from wrong
C)because it is a deviation from what is typical in her society
D)because she shows an inability to function effectively

Question 58

Louie was barking like a dog and walking on his hands and knees.A professional thought the cause of Louie's problem was an excess of a specific neurotransmitter and prescribed a drug to treat him.What kind of professional was this most likely to be?

A)a clinical psychologist
B)a social worker
C)a psychiatric social worker
D)a psychiatrist

Question 59

As a result of moral therapy, what was eliminated in asylums in the mid-18th century?

A)physical restraints and seclusion
B)individual attention from the hospital staff
C)lectures on interesting subjects for hospitalized patients
D)opportunities for normal social interaction

Question 60

In ancient Greece, a woman suffering from hysteria might be told that her condition could be cured by which of the following?

A)induced seizures
B)bloodletting
C)marriage
D)rest and relaxation

Question 61

A classmate in your psychology course is worried about the selfish and sometimes dangerous drives of the id.What should you say to your classmate to address this fear?

A)Because id impulses are usually part of conscious awareness, we can learn to control them.
B)Id fantasies never become part of conscious awareness, so we never act on them.
C)Each of us develops an ego to help us behave more realistically.
D)The selfish drives of the id are transformed to positive emotional expressions.

Question 62

Why are hysterical disorders no longer considered to be caused by a "wandering" uterus?

A)because men also suffer from hysterical disorders
B)because of greater knowledge of physiology
C)because the theory is considered insulting to women
D)because when the uterus is removed, symptoms tend to remain

Question 63

The Electra complex is the psychosexual conflict that occurs at the phallic stage of development in girls.How is this complex characterized?

A)by latency lust
B)by feelings of anger and envy toward the mother
C)by castration anxiety
D)by a desire to replace the mother and possess the father

Question 64

In the 14th century, what did the physician who first treated France's King Charles VI suggest as a cure?

A)reducing his responsibilities
B)bloodletting
C)exorcism
D)sexual abstinence

Question 65

In the psychosocial approach called "moral therapy," what does the term "moral" mean?

A)emotional
B)ethical
C)religious
D)story

Question 66

According to psychoanalytic theory, what is the role of the ego?

A)to counteract the aggressive and sexual drives of the id
B)to maximize pleasure and reduce tension
C)to mediate conflict between the id and the superego
D)to increase self-esteem and a strong sense of identity

Question 67

According to Freud, what are all nonpsychotic psychological disorders called?

A)anxiety
B)neuroses
C)thanatos
D)intrapsychic conflict

Question 68

In classical psychoanalysis, what does the concept of "transference" refer to?

A)the process whereby the patient falsely attributes his or her own unacceptable feelings or thoughts to the therapist
B)the process whereby the therapist projects some of his or her own personal feelings onto the patient
C)the process whereby the patient relates to the therapist as he or she would toward a parent figure
D)the process whereby the patient directs potentially maladaptive impulses to socially acceptable behaviour

Question 69

Induced vomiting was a 17th-century treatment for depression.As described in Anatomy of Melancholy (1621), this could be accomplished by eating what?

A)tobacco
B)ice
C)raw meat
D)onions

Question 70

According to the ancient Greek physician Hippocrates, which factor could negatively influence psychological functioning?

A)bodily fluids
B)birth order
C)believing in astrology
D)supernatural forces

Question 71

In contrast to Freud, how did Jung and Adler view human nature?

A)They believed that cognitive and personality factors shape human potential.
B)They believed that humans are born with a strong drive toward self-actualization.
C)They believed that the ego is much stronger than Freud postulated.
D)They believed that humans are shaped through learning from their environment.

Question 72

A dog had been conditioned to salivate to the sound of a bell because of its association with the presentation of food.Later, when exposed to the bell without food for a long period, the dog eventually stopped salivating to the sound of the bell.What is this phenomenon known as?

A)extinction
B)response fading
C)conditioned forgetting
D)stimulus fading

Question 73

William lived in the 19th century and had the cognitive disorder known as "general paresis."Based on this information, what other disease do you know William suffered from?

A)epilepsy
B)hysteria
C)malaria
D)syphilis

Question 74

Which of the following is an example of a healthy defence mechanism?

A)sublimation
B)projection
C)denial
D)repression

Question 75

In Freud's structure of the mind, which two elements are almost entirely unconscious?

A)the ego and the id
B)the id and the superego
C)the conscience and the ego
D)the superego and the ego

Question 76

If a psychological disorder is said to have an acute onset, how did the symptoms develop?

A)atypically
B)suddenly
C)gradually
D)sporadically

Question 77

Which of the following is NOT included as part of Freud's structure of the mind?

A)psyche
B)superego
C)ego
D)id

Question 78

What did Jean Charcot find when he used a variation of Mesmer's techniques?

A)These methods were effective in treating a number of psychological disorders.
B)These methods were no more effective than previous methods he had used.
C)Patients were better able to understand the link between their emotional problems and their psychological disorder.
D)The symptoms of some patients actually worsened.

Question 79

Alonso believes that Hedwig's behaviour disturbance is due to an excess of black bile.Whose ideas about psychiatry does Alonso's belief best align with?

A)Blueler
B)Aristotle
C)Newton
D)Hippocrates

Question 80

Why was Emil Kraeplin's lasting contribution to modern psychiatry in the area of diagnosis and classification of psychological disorders, rather than that of treatment?

A)because of his discomfort with actually working with patients
B)because of his conviction that better diagnosis was necessary for more effective treatment
C)because of his belief that these disorders were due to brain pathology
D)because of his belief in the influence of the social environment in mental illness