Deck 1: Abnormal Psychology and Life

Question 1

John has been diagnosed with having a mental disorder when he was found repeatedly cutting himself.Cutting behavior could be considered

A)deviant from the norm.
B)disappointing to people watching.
C)disturbing.
D)ritualistic.

Answer 1

deviant from the norm.

Question 2

Abnormal psychology is

A)the scientific study of troublesome feelings, thoughts, and behaviors associated with mental disorders.
B)assertions about what might be abnormal emotional experience.
C)a scientific study of how and why people become unique.
D)the opposite of biological psychology.

Answer 2

the scientific study of troublesome feelings, thoughts, and behaviors associated with mental disorders.

Question 3

Which of the following criteria is considered when determining whether a behavior is normal or abnormal?

A)Ability to learn from mistakes
B)Poor academic performance
C)Experience of personal distress
D)Traditions for a culture

Answer 3

Experience of personal distress

Question 4

John has been reading articles posted on the web by people who say they suffer from mental disorders.He tells his friend that he is engaging in the study of abnormal psychology.According to your text, what is missing from his definition of abnormal psychology?

A)Abnormal psychology involves scientific study
B)The study of troublesome feelings associated with mental disorders
C)Studying behavior that is considered abnormal
D)Applying the techniques of psychology to abnormal behavior

Question 5

Deviance, adaptation difficulties, and personal distress are concepts used to describe

A)mental retardation.
B)students on probation from college.
C)abnormal behavior.
D)psychological maladjustment.

Question 6

Amanda has been severely depressed in the past year.She is constantly sad, almost to the point of numbness.She ponders constantly about what a failure she is and how nothing she does is ever right.She finds it hard to get out of bed and get going.Which of these symptoms is an example of a cognitive symptom of Amanda's mental disorder?

A)Constant sadness
B)Feeling numb
C)Pondering her failures
D)Difficulty getting out of bed

Question 7

Which of the following is NOT one of the three criteria in the textbook that helps determine whether an emotion, thought, or behavior is abnormal?

A)Deviance from the norm
B)Presence of depression
C)Difficulty meeting the demands of daily life
D)Experience of personal distress

Question 8

Michael is experiencing a number of thoughts that are making it difficult for him to stay focused on his work, although he is still able to accomplish the tasks he is assigned to complete.He may be classified as having a mental disorder on the basis of his

A)behavioral symptoms that are causing distress in his coworkers.
B)feelings of rejection.
C)distress caused by his cognitive symptoms.
D)inability to stay focused on a task.

Question 9

Your textbook describes normal behavior as behaviors

A)we see in all people at all times.
B)observed in particular cultures.
C)that characterizes most people.
D)that interfere with one's ability to adapt to life's demands.

Question 10

A group of emotional, cognitive, or behavioral symptoms that cause significant distress or significant problems is a(n):

A)mental disorder.
B)deviation.
C)stressor.
D)abnormal concept.

Question 11

Less frequent or less probable behaviors are considered to be abnormal or

A)statistically deviant.
B)statistically significant.
C)statistically irrelevant.
D)statistically modifiable.

Question 12

Suppose you are trying to determine how much physical activity is normal.A definition of abnormal levels of physical activity based on the statistical approach would include

A)extremely high levels of activity.
B)extremely low levels of activity.
C)extremely high and low levels of activity.
D)average levels of activity.

Question 13

One disadvantage of the deviation-from-the-norm criterion for mental disorders is that

A)not all behaviors are maladaptive.
B)cultures differ in how they define what is normal.
C)daily problems prompt people to seek treatment.
D)statistical deviance offers clear guidelines for researchers.

Question 14

Dr.Elliot is teaching a course on different mental disorders.The course focuses on exploring scientific thought on problematic feelings, thoughts, and behaviors associated with mental disorders.The learning objectives include strategies for evaluating patients who might have a mental disorder, understanding the causes behind mental disorders, and prevention and treatment strategies for mental disorders.The title of Dr.Elliot's course is most likely

A)Abnormal Psychology.
B)Testing and Assessment.
C)Counseling Psychology.
D)Community Psychology.

Question 15

Statistical methods would be used to assess abnormality based on the criterion of

A)survival of the fittest.
B)experience of personal distress.
C)deviance from the norm.
D)difficulty adapting to life's demands.

Question 16

The definition of abnormal psychology includes the practice of

A)scientific study.
B)introspection.
C)comparison of humans to animals.
D)reverse-psychology.

Question 17

Identification of deviance from the norm would be beneficial to

A)assess abnormality.
B)diagnose normalcy.
C)develop a prognosis.
D)establish treatment guidelines.

Question 18

Different cultures have different ideas about what normal behavior is.This is a key limitation of which of the following ideas about defining abnormal behavior?

A)Deviance from the norm
B)Presence of depression
C)Difficulties adapting to life demands
D)Experience of personal distress

Question 19

Treva Throneberry vanished as a young woman and turned up in another town insisting that she was a high-school student named Brianna Stewart.Her behavior was considered abnormal because it

A)was deviant from the norm.
B)caused difficulty for individuals who worked with her.
C)caused her significant personal distress.
D)resulted in failing grades in school.

Question 20

Patterns of behavior that deviate from the norms of society would be called

A)prosocial behavior.
B)normal behavior.
C)abnormal behavior.
D)college behavior.

Question 21

One problem that mental health professionals encounter when using personal distress as a measure of maladaptive behavior is

A)establishing a cut-off point that indicates abnormality.
B)establishing therapeutic guidelines.
C)combining culture and emotional response.
D)all of these may present as problems that must be negotiated.

Question 22

Sasha worries about her mother's cancer so much that she cannot concentrate on her schoolwork, causing it to suffer.Her continual thoughts about her mother and trouble concentrating would be considered maladaptive because she

A)deviated from the norm of her family.
B)presented difficulties adapting to life's demands.
C)expressed personal distress to her therapist.
D)was hospitalized for suicidal ideation.

Question 23

Suddenly disappearing from home and assuming a new identity, as Treva did, would be considered

A)statistically far from the norm.
B)statistically within the norm.
C)statistically close to the norm.
D)statistically irrelevant.

Question 24

In determining whether a behavior is abnormal, one key judgment that is often made by mental health professionals is

A)deciding how long a specific behavior has occurred.
B)to determine if a cultural bias exists within the therapeutic relationship.
C)whether the individual is experiencing sadness and irritability at the same time.
D)whether the behavior interferes with a person's ability to function effectively.

Question 25

Bob has always been a clean-shaven, well-kept individual.Lately he has failed to shower on a regular basis, neglected his oral care, and has not been able to eat as much as previously.It appears that Bob has begun to exhibit

A)damage to the occipital lobe.
B)maladaptive behavior.
C)suicidal tendencies.
D)personal distress.

Question 26

Emotional experience and expression are MOST clearly influenced by

A)IQ.
B)the experience of maladaptive behavior.
C)genetics.
D)culture.

Question 27

Which of the following limitations does the text cite regarding the interpretation of statistical deviance from the norm?

A)Labels solve everything
B)Culture conflict is quite minimal
C)Identification is always cut and dry
D)There are arbitrary cutoffs

Question 28

When a mental health professional treats someone from another culture, it is important for him/her to remember that

A)a uniform approach to mental disorder may be used cross-culturally.
B)symptoms of mental disorders differ from culture to culture.
C)cultural analysis of scores is nearly impossible to perform.
D)scoring high on an intelligence score may indicate culturally biased questions.

Question 29

Dr.Jones is working with a client from a culture other than his own.He would like to use the deviation-from-the- norm criteria.This would be inappropriate to use because

A)daily problems prompt people to seek treatment.
B)statistical deviance only offers guidelines for researchers.
C)cultures differ in how they define what is normal.
D)none of these - there is no reason why he cannot use this criteria.

Question 30

Josh is 18 and believes that something outside of him is controlling his thoughts and that he must retrace his steps four times to keep them under control.This behavior causes him to be released from his job due to tardiness.A mental health professional would say that his behavior is abnormal because it

A)interferes with his ability to function effectively.
B)has presented abnormally early in life.
C)is not accepted in his culture.
D)exposes him to ridicule.

Question 31

Margarette has an irrational fear of entering tunnels.As a result, she experiences a high level of personal distress.Jason is highly disruptive in school and does not experience personal distress, but his behavior is still considered abnormal because

A)it produces a high level of distress for others around him.
B)his parents experience the same behaviors outside of school.
C)his actions occur in public.
D)none of these would be reasons for identifying his behavior as abnormal.

Question 32

One difficulty of using the deviation-from-the-norm criterion in determining if a behavior is abnormal is deciding

A)the statistical point at which a behavior is abnormal.
B)who will be responsible for determining statistical cut-off points.
C)the definition of maladaptive behavior.
D)the definition of deviance.

Question 33

Maladaptive behavior may result in

A)changing one's environment to better accommodate the behavior.
B)seeking professional assistance.
C)not seeking treatment.
D)any of these may be responses to maladaptive behavior.

Question 34

Problems with interpreting difficulty-adapting-to-life demands criterion include

A)that people often do not recognize their problems.
B)nature and nurture become confused.
C)challenges in measuring the difference between good functioning and maladaptive behavior.
D)being too judgmental and harsh.

Question 35

One problem with the difficulties-adapting-to-life-demands criterion in diagnosing a person as having a mental disorder is that people may engage in unusual behaviors that

A)do not harm others.
B)do not affect family members.
C)are seen as normal in other cultures.
D)do not interfere in daily functioning.

Question 36

Terrance refuses to leave home due to the belief that there are too many free radicals that are specifically aiming to harm him and his complexion.He works from home, has all of his food and other needs delivered to him, and communicates on a regular basis with friends and family.The above illustrates the problem with the difficulties- adapting-to-life-demands criterion for diagnosing a mental disorder because people engage in

A)behaviors that harm others from birth.
B)behaviors to become self-actualizing.
C)behaviors that are normal in other cultures than their own.
D)odd behaviors that do not interfere with their daily functioning.

Question 37

The fact that symptoms of mental disorders vary from culture to culture is important when

A)a professional treats someone from another culture.
B)studying abnormal psychology.
C)identifying causes of a disorder.
D)researching medical records.

Question 38

According to the textbook, a behavior is one that interferes with a person's life, including ability to care for oneself, have good relationships with others, and function well at school or at work.

A)useless
B)withdrawn
C)depressed
D)maladaptive

Question 39

Defining abnormality successfully involves identifying

A)thoughts, movements, and intentions.
B)deviance, dysfunction, and personal distress.
C)time, date, and place.
D)measures developed by each practitioner.

Question 40

How does the Einstein example in your text illustrate a drawback of the statistical deviance approach to defining abnormality?

A)Deviance is always a disorder
B)The measurement accuracy is limited
C)Too many people have high intelligence
D)Statistical deviance from the norm is not necessarily a disorder

Question 41

A standard or consistent definition of partner abuse is important because individuals who are physically violent against a partner may

A)differ from those who are emotionally or sexually violent.
B)use multiple forms of abuse against their partner.
C)be resistant to therapeutic interventions.
D)impede our understanding of abnormal psychology.

Question 42

John's thoughts of death are causing him to lose sleep, eat poorly, and constantly worry.He expresses much concern over his current mental state, so much so that he has made an appointment to see a counselor.We would refer to his thoughts as abnormal since they

A)are statistically in the mean.
B)interfere with pursuing career goals.
C)cause great personal distress.
D)are seen by others as abnormal.

Question 43

Experts in abnormal psychology view the abnormality of emotions, thoughts, or behaviors as

A)a dichotomous distinction between normal and abnormal.
B)a matter of degree.
C)a matter of kind.
D)dependent on the environmental context.

Question 44

Which of the following study mental problems to see how disorders develop and continue and how they can be prevented or alleviated?

A)Counseling psychologists
B)Psychopathologists
C)Mentalists
D)Social workers

Question 45

As you read the textbook you will undoubtedly identify with some of the symptoms and disorders that are presented.This

A)most likely indicates that you have a mental disorder.
B)does not necessarily mean that you have a mental disorder.
C)indicates abnormal behavior that should be evaluated immediately.
D)confirms that a high percentage of the population suffers from mental disorders.

Question 46

Which of the following is an example of a person's cognitive style?

A)Elliot tends to avoid people.
B)Shannon tends to feel nervous a lot.
C)Zoe likes to maintain an active lifestyle.
D)Brandon thinks pessimistic thoughts constantly.

Question 47

A mental disorder characterized by avoidance of social situations, intense anxiety, and clinically significant impairment in functioning is

A)social anxiety disorder.
B)phobic disorder.
C)dissociation disorder.
D)antisocial personality disorder.

Question 48

During times of political conservatism and economic hardship, people tend to emphasize

A)individual causes of abnormal behavior.
B)physical causes of abnormal behavior.
C)biological treatments such as psychosurgery.
D)all of these.

Question 49

When mental health professionals say that behaviors exist on a continuum they are describing

A)the possible magnitude of a potential problem behavior.
B)how they believe a disorder developed.
C)how many similar behaviors exist in a population.
D)none of these are related to the continuum concept.

Question 50

Approximately adults in the United States will experience a mental disorder every year.

A)five in ten
B)two in three
C)one in ten
D)one in four

Question 51

A person's overall mood is also known as his/her

A)cognitive state.
B)self-esteem.
C)emotional state.
D)cognitive style.

Question 52

Applying a judgment about abnormality relative to deviance requires an understanding of

A)normality as an all or nothing phenomenon.
B)how to determine the reliability and validity of an assessment.
C)a person's alter ego.
D)normality as a continuum.

Question 53

When a mental health clinician describes an individual's emotional state, he/she is referring to

A)overall mood.
B)avoidance behavior.
C)cognitive outlook.
D)emotional tendencies.

Question 54

Research has suggested that social, political, and economic forces

A)have had little to do with trends in mental health and treatment.
B)have shaped ideas concerning mental health and disorders.
C)have been shown to be inconsistent toward mental health influences.
D)only influence the lower socioeconomic strata.

Question 55

An important consideration when identifying anxiety and stress levels of an individual is

A)how much of the stress they create themselves.
B)the amount of impairment of daily functioning.
C)if they are labeled or not.
D)levels of isolation.

Question 56

One critical aspect of being able to understand and effectively treat mental disorders such as partner abuse is

A)a necessity for standard or consistent definition.
B)the use of counter conditioning and reciprocal abuse.
C)the admission of the behavior.
D)to distinguish the abuser from the abuse.

Question 57

Research suggests that the same causal factors are responsible for the following levels of anxiety-related symptoms:

A)mild and moderate.
B)moderate and severe.
C)mild and severe.
D)mild, moderate, and severe.

Question 58

We refer to emotions, thoughts, or behaviors as abnormal when they

A)are statistically in the mean.
B)interfere with functioning.
C)are seen by the legal system as being abnormal.
D)cause minimal distress to self or others.

Question 59

The occurrence of mental disorders among adults on a yearly basis is estimated to be

A)1 in 20.
B)1 in 10.
C)1 in 4.
D)1 in 3.

Question 60

The text example on neatness and OCD is meant to point out

A)having a symptom that does not cause dysfunction is not a disorder.
B)everyone is susceptible to OCD if given enough stress.
C)OCD is an entirely genetic predisposition.
D)all anxiety disorders are interchangeable.

Question 61

According to your text, all of the following were early treatments for mental disorder EXCEPT

A)casting out the demonic spirit.
B)making the person an unpleasant host for the demon.
C)driving unwanted thoughts from the body.
D)altering maladaptive behaviors.

Question 62

New approaches to treating people with mental disorder in the Renaissance period included which of the following?

A)Psychogenicism
B)Lycanthropy
C)Asylums
D)Tarantism

Question 63

An individual who was key to the movement to change the deplorable conditions found in asylums was

A)Hippocrates.
B)Aristotle.
C)William James.
D)Philippe Pinel.

Question 64

The development of medical concepts among Egyptians and Greeks helped to

A)replace supernatural theories with natural ones.
B)restore normal brain function through electro-convulsive therapy.
C)provide a rationale for the dissection of human cadavers.
D)none of these resulted from the development of medical concepts.

Question 65

Mass madness occurred during which historical period?

A)Middle Ages
B)Stone Ages
C)Renaissance
D)Reform Movement

Question 66

The asylums created during the Renaissance were generally

A)highly therapeutic with first rate treatment.
B)lacking in treatment with poor living conditions.
C)about the same as the community center punishment corridors.
D)nonexistent.

Question 67

During the Renaissance, were places set aside for people with mental disorder.

A)asylums
B)developmental centers
C)psychiatric hospitals
D)psychiatric prisons

Question 68

If you were a person living in the times of ancient Egypt and developed a mental disorder, what sort of treatment would you be most likely to receive?

A)A stay in an asylum
B)Rest and abstinence from alcohol
C)Bleeding and purging
D)Exorcism

Question 69

One possible cause of mass hysteria that occurred during the Middle Ages is

A)lack of emotional stability.
B)lack of feelings such as fear and panic.
C)ingestion of fungi on food.
D)belief that a person with mental disorders would undergo transformation into a werewolf.

Question 70

The earliest known practitioner who believed that brain dysfunction, not demons and evil spirits, was the cause of abnormal behavior was

A)Socrates.
B)Hippocrates.
C)Plato.
D)Bhutto.

Question 71

If you were to travel in time to meet Philippe Pinel and ask him what his life's work involved, he would probably tell you,

A)"to rid the world of supernatural approaches to treating mental disorders."
B)"to promote mental health through exorcism and religiosity."
C)"to create more humane conditions in mental hospitals."
D)"to integrate biological methods into the treatment of mental illness."

Question 72

Throughout Greece and Rome, physicians emphasized a approach to learning about the causes of abnormal behavior.

A)theoretical
B)spiritual
C)scientific
D)theological

Question 73

Examining the development of abnormal psychology over time is important

A)to help understand modern-day conceptualizations of abnormal psychology.
B)to help understand modern-day attitudes toward abnormal psychology.
C)to help understand modern-day treatment approaches to abnormal psychology.
D)all of these.

Question 74

The father of modern medicine who believed the brain was the central organ of the body and that brain dysfunction caused abnormal behavior was

A)Plato.
B)Socrates.
C)Hippocrates.
D)Bhutto.

Question 75

Treatment during the Middle Ages focused on

A)confinement and exorcism.
B)holy objects or relics.
C)pilgrimages to holy places.
D)all of these were focus of treatment.

Question 76

The Middle Ages had continued scientific progress in the Middle East while post-Roman empire Europe

A)discovered many natural drug substances.
B)returned to supernatural theories.
C)was polarized between humane treatment and torture.
D)reverted to Neanderthal morphology.

Question 77

During the Renaissance period, treatment for abnormality

A)continued on a dismal path of superstition and torture.
B)sought a total abandonment of the concept.
C)often portrayed insanity.
D)saw a return of natural and scientific approaches.

Question 78

Early attempts at treating abnormal behavior have a predominant belief in

A)the mind-brain connection.
B)rejuvenation and experimentation.
C)how community elders diagnosed that disorder.
D)the supernatural.

Question 79

Paracelsus introduced the notion of psychic or mental causes for abnormal behavior and posed a treatment that would become known as

A)behaviorism.
B)hypnosis.
C)asylums.
D)tarantism.

Question 80

Which of the following involves cutting a hole in a person's skull to help release a harmful spirit?

A)Exorcism
B)Excision
C)Trephination
D)Tumorization