Deck 1: Assessment

Question 1

Anxiety disorders are those in which anxiety becomes expressed somatically-there are physical symptoms that are disproportionally reactive to events. Panic disorder is one specific type of anxiety disorder. Which of the following statements is not true of panic disorder?

A)It is characterized by repeated and unexpected panic
B)Agoraphobia is sometimes a comorbid condition
C)It can be a serious problem for children
D)There is a genetic predisposition for the disorder

Answer 1

It can be a serious problem for children

Question 2

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and acute stress disorder follow the experience of a severe and traumatic life event to which an individual reacted with extreme fear, horror, or helplessness. Acute stress disorder is similar to PTSD, but has a more specific timeline. Which of the following describes that timeline?

A)Onset of symptoms within one month, symptoms last one month
B)Onset of symptoms within one month, symptoms last two months
C)Onset of symptoms within two months, symptoms last one month
D)Onset of symptoms within two months, symptoms last two months

Answer 2

Onset of symptoms within one month, symptoms last one month

Question 3

Dysthymia is a specific type of depressive disorder, differentiated from major depression disorder by a number of features. Which of the following differentiations between these two disorders is NOT valid?

A)Dysthymia often lasts longer than major depression.
B)Someone with dysthymia is likely to develop major depression.
C)Someone with major depression is likely to develop dysthymia.
D)More than half of those diagnosed with dysthymia have a comorbid psychiatric disorder or chronic physical illness.

Answer 3

Someone with major depression is likely to develop dysthymia.

Question 4

Which type of delusional disorder involves the belief that the self has a physical deformity or medical condition?

A)Persecutory type
B)Hypochondriac type
C)Somatic type
D)Mixed type

Question 5

Certain chromosomal abnormalities cause disorders that significantly impact physical and cognitive capabilities. Which of the following disorders is indicated by rapid speech, abnormal facial structure, and working memory impairment in males?

A)Klinefelter's syndrome
B)Fragile X syndrome
C)Down's syndrome
D)Asperger syndrome

Question 6

A patient has limited expressive language abilities, including limited vocabulary, poor word recall, and difficulty understanding specific concepts such as "if . . . then" or "here" vs. "there." What communication disorder might you diagnosis this patient with?

A)Expressive language disorder
B)Phonological disorder
C)Mixed expressive-receptive language disorder
D)Mixed expressive-phonological disorder

Question 7

You are evaluating a child who has difficulty socializing, displays unusual motion, performs repetitive behavior, and performs well on cognitive tests. Which diagnosis is most likely, given the symptoms?

A)Autism
B)Asperger's syndrome
C)Obsessive-compulsive personality disorder
D)Pervasive developmental disorder

Question 8

Conduct disorder is signified by an ongoing pattern of behavior that violates basic rights of others or age-appropriate societal norms. There are four main categories of behavior used to identify conduct disorder. Which of the following is NOT one of those categories?

A)Aggression toward people or animals
B)Destruction of property
C)Lying and theft
D)Excessive talking

Question 9

Tic disorders include Tourette's disorder and transient tic disorder, and are marked by recurrent, rapid motor movements or vocalizations. Which of the following behaviors is NOT considered a tic?

A)Coprolalia
B)Jumping
C)Sniffing
D)Chorea

Question 10

Amnestic disorders involve impairments in short- or long-term memory that significantly interfere with functioning. Korsakoff's syndrome, most often expressed in anterograde amnesia, is thought to be caused by what?

A)Alcoholism
B)Thiamine deficiency
C)Wernicke's encephalopathy
D)Lithium overdose

Question 11

The Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS III) is the most widely-used intelligence test. It allows for calculation of three IQ scores and includes several subtests. Which of the following is NOT one of the IQ scores calculated from this test?

A)Verbal
B)Performance
C)Full Scale
D)Mathematical

Question 12

What cognitive disorder involves both atypical movements and dementia in all cases?

A)Pick's disease
B)Huntington's disease
C)Parkinson's disease
D)Vascular dementia

Question 13

You want to administer an intelligence test to a 15-year-old who has significant performance problems in school to determine if there is a potential cognitive cause. What is the most appropriate test option?

A)WISC-IV
B)WAIS-III
C)MMPI-2
D)Stanford-Binet

Question 14

The Rorschach personality test aims to assess personality structure. There are a number of scoring systems used. However, each response is usually scored on a variety of dimensions. Which of the following is NOT one of those dimensions?

A)Content
B)Location
C)Developmental quality
D)Response time

Question 15

The MMPI-2 is an objective personality test that uses self-reporting and includes several clinical and validity scales. Someone whose scores suggest distress or an attempt at a cry for help likely scored how on which scale?

A)High on the L scale
B)High in the D scale
C)High on the F scale
D)Low on the K scale

Question 16

The child psychologist's task of conducting a clinical assessment on a new referral can be likened to that of which of the following?

A)A doctor treating a cancer patient.
B)A detective investigating a fire that may be the result of arson.
C)A teacher assigning a letter grade on a child's report card.
D)A defense attorney preparing his or her opening statement to present to the court.

Question 17

Which of the following factors might influence the type of assessment that a clinical psychologist conducts on a particular child and how comprehensive it is?

A)The reason for the referral.
B)Whether the psychologist is in private practice or working at a hospital or clinic.
C)The age of the child.
D)All of the above.

Question 18

One of the better known psychological tests for children is the CAT. What do the letters CAT stand for?

A)Children's Achievement Test
B)Children's Anagrams Test
C)Children's Anxiety Test
D)Children's Apperception Test

Question 19

In what format are the items on the CAT presented?

A)Incomplete sentences
B)Pictures
C)Anagrams
D)Analogies

Question 20

Which of the following terms is currently the preferred way of describing children whose IQ on the WISC-IV falls below 70?

A)Mentally retarded
B)Mentally deficient
C)Extremely low intelligence
D)Lacking in intelligence

Question 21

When should a comprehensive medical examination be ordered in conjunction with a request for a psychological assessment?

A)Before the psychological assessment to either pinpoint or rule out a medical or organic cause for the child's aberrant behavior.
B)After the psychological assessment when all of the psychological test results come back normal.
C)Only when the medical history of the child or the child's family indicates the presence of serious physical illness.
D)Only when the medical information on the child is sketchy or outdated.

Question 22

David's IQ score on the WISC-IV placed him in the low average range of intelligence. One month later, his mother who was very upset, complained to the school that she wants a re-testing because there is no way her could son possibly have an IQ below 120. She suggested that maybe David wasn't feeling well that day or maybe some mistake was made in the scoring, but either way the IQ is wrong. However, the psychologist refused to repeat the test, claiming it would be both a waste of time and a violation of policy. Who is right, and why?

A)The mother, because David should be given the benefit of the doubt. When children don't feel well they tend not to perform at their best. Also psychologists aren't perfect, and while it is unlikely the psychologist made a scoring error, it is possible.
B)The mother. Nobody knows her son better than she, so what she says about her son's intelligence is more valid than a number on a single test.
C)The psychologist. Not only is a person's IQ score highly accurate, it rarely varies by more than a point or two. Therefore, it would be a waste of time to repeat the test.
D)The psychologist. Research has shown that re-administering the WISC IV less than a year later leads to invalidly inflated scores on the second test due to practice effect.

Question 23

Clinical psychologists seeking more information about a child's behavior can obtain that information from a variety of sources. In fact, utilizing several different sources, rather than relying on one source exclusively, often helps to provide a fuller picture. One assessment tool that employs this concept is the Behavioral Assessment System for Children (BASC). Which of the following sources of information is not considered in determining the BASC rankings?

A)The child
B)The child's parents
C)The pediatrician
D)The child's teacher

Question 24

Which of the following statements about projective tests is the most accurate?

A)Projective tests are used more commonly as a psychological assessment tool with adults than with children.
B)Projective tests can be administered by a teacher or social worker when no clinical psychologist is available.
C)What makes projective tests subjective rather than objective is exclusively the open-ended nature of the responses, not the scoring standards.
D)Projective tests are preferred over objective tests as an assessment tool in the differential diagnosis of severe mental illness.

Question 25

Which of the following would not be part of a clinical psychologist's assessment process to aid in the differential diagnosis of childhood schizophrenia?

A)WISC-IV
B)An MRI of the brain
C)Interviews with the child
D)All of the above

Question 26

10-year-old Juan, who has been exhibiting disturbed behavior for quite a while, is enrolled in a special education program. Several years ago his near inability to speak and several other regressive behaviors led to the diagnosis of autism. However, he is also showing signs of being a musical prodigy. Now he is being referred to you, a clinical psychologist and specialist in exceptional children, for further evaluation. Before you even begin testing, you have good reason to believe that Juan might actually be afflicted with what condition?

A)ADHD
B)OCD
C)Asperger's Syndrome
D)Borderline Schizophrenia

Question 27

How can a neuropsychological test help differentiate between a child with a learning disability and a child with ADHD?

A)The symptomatology is more pronounced in a child with ADHD.
B)The symptomatology is more pronounced in a child with a learning disability.
C)For a child with a learning disorder, attention deficit is most prevalent in the specific area of the disability, while for the child with ADHD, the attention deficit is equally likely to occur in any activity.
D)For a child with a learning disorder, attention deficit is equally applicable to all school subjects, while for a child with ADHD, the attention deficit is more subject-specific.

Question 28

14-year-old honor student Justin was referred for a psychological assessment after being caught smoking marijuana on the school premises. His parents, who are not poor, but not extremely wealthy either, were given a choice between having the evaluation done by the school psychologist or by a private psychologist of their choosing. Since the school psychologist's examination would be free and would not involve extra travel time, one would think Justin's parents would have chosen that route. But they chose a private clinical psychologist instead. What do you think would have been a valid reason?

A)The examination by the psychologist in private practice would probably be more comprehensive and informative due to the greater availability of time and resources.
B)The parents would hate to have a single unfortunate incident mess up Justin's enrollment in a prestigious high school. The psychologist in private practice would probably write a more favorable report.
C)Since the parents are paying the private psychologist, they would have more input into the content of the psychologist's report.
D)The psychologist in private practice has more training and experience than a school psychologist.

Question 29

You, a clinical psychologist, have been called in to do a preliminary assessment of a 12-year-old girl who is allegedly the victim of sexual abuse by the mother's boyfriend. You know you have your work cut out for you, but your immediate challenge is how to deal with the existing file's conflicting versions of events given by different parties. Whose account, or all of them or none of them, should you give the most weight to in preparing your own report, which is due the day after tomorrow?

A)The child's. She is the one who was traumatized and would have no reason to lie about who was responsible.
B)The mother's. She loves her child and wants nothing more than to see the perpetrator punished.
C)The teacher's. Unlike the mother, she is specially trained to diagnose and deal with children's problems. As a licensed professional, her account would be the most credible.
D)The prosecuting attorney's. The DA prosecuting the case would not be doing so without sufficient evidence that he or she has the right suspect and all the facts necessary to bring a conviction.
E)None of the above.

Question 30

You are a clinical psychologist frequently asked to give expert opinion in court cases. As a scientific investigator, you consider factual accuracy of prime importance, a point of view reinforced by the high esteem you hold for your brother who is a police officer and your sister who is an attorney. So understandably, you are greatly perturbed by the glaring inconsistencies in a file you were handed on an allegedly sexually abused child. Now the court is asking for your assessment. What do you do?

A)Sit down with each party and demand a clarification of the facts and retraction of false information and conjectures.
B)Determine which version comes from a responsible professional source.
C)Refuse to take on the case because there are too many inconsistencies and bits of contradictory information.
D)Proceed with your independent investigation as best you can, duly noting the significant inconsistencies in your preliminary report.

Question 31

Clinical psychologists working with children and adolescents sometimes use an assessment tool called ABC. What does ABC refer to?

A)Assessment of Behavior in Children
B)Atypical Behavior Criteria
C)Aberrant Behavior Checklist
D)Aggressive Behavior Checklist

Question 32

What kind of a test is the Children's Depression Inventory?

A)A multiple choice test that children take themselves.
B)A checklist that the parents complete.
C)A checklist the psychologist completes while observing the child.
D)One set of questions for the child to complete and another set of questions for the parents to complete.

Question 33

Which of the following statements about the intelligence test known as UNIT isnot correct?

A)There are three different versions of the test: Abbreviated, Standard, and Extended.
B)The test takes substantially less time to administer than the WISC.
C)The test is approved for use with both learning disabled and hearing impaired students.
D)While the questions are given verbally, the responses are given with hand and body gestures.

Question 34

Young children love to play with cars and those age 16 and up love to drive them, but clinical psychologists working with children use CARS in an entirely different way, as an assessment tool! To the psychologist, what does the testing acronym CARS stand for?

A)Children's Academic Readiness Scale
B)Childhood Autism Rating Scale
C)Child Anxiety Response Survey
D)Child and Adolescent Reactions to Stress

Question 35

The MMPI-A (for adolescents) differs from the MMPI-2 (revised version of the test for adults) in what other respect besides the examinee's age?

A)It is shorter.
B)The items are multiple choice rather than True or False.
C)The MMPI-A can be administered and scored by someone other than a licensed clinical psychologist.
D)A language version of the MMPI-A has not yet been developed.

Question 36

Which of the following personality measures is generally not used with adolescents with special needs in institutionalized settings?

A)MMPI-A
B)Millon Adolescent Personality Inventory
C)Millon Adolescent Clinical Inventory
D)Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales

Question 37

How are the latest versions of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Text Revision (DSM-TR), superior to early DSM versions?

A)Better allowance for the fact that the symptomatology associated with particular disorders varies with the child's age.
B)Better allowance for the fact that certain diagnoses should not even be considered below a certain age.
C)More sensitivity to culture and gender.
D)All of the above.
E)None of the above.

Question 38

How is the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th Edition, Text Revision, commonly referred to as DSM-IV-TR, superior to previous DSM versions?

A)DSM-IV-TR better allows for the fact that the symptomatology associated with particular disorders varies with the child's age.
B)DSM-IV-TR better allows for the fact that certain diagnoses should not even be considered below a certain age.
C)DSM-IV-TR is more sensitive to culture and gender.
D)All of the above
E)None of the above

Question 39

Anhedonia is an emotional state typically associated with what type of childhood mental illness?

A)Schizophrenia
B)Bipolar disorder
C)Depression
D)Antisocial personality

Question 40

Conducting an interview with the child has proven to be especially helpful in the differential diagnosis of what type of psychological disorder?

A)Schizoid personality disorder
B)Antisocial personality disorder
C)Anxiety and depression disorders
D)Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorders

Question 41

Which of the following psychological tests measures a child's level of functioning on a numerical scale from 1 to 100?

A)Universal Non-Verbal Intelligence Test
B)Children's Global Assessment Scale
C)Children's Personality Questionnaire
D)Behavior Assessment System for Children

Question 42

Which of the following procedures is generally not included as part of a child's psychological assessment?

A)Physical examination
B)Non-verbal exercises and activities
C)Paper and pencil tests
D)Parental interview

Question 43

Clinical psychologists commonly use assessment tools such as the WPPSI to evaluate children's intelligence beginning at what age?

A)Age 2
B)Age 3
C)Age 4
D)Age 5

Question 44

Baker brought her out-of-control 3-year-old son Johnny to the children's wing at Therapists R Us for an initial evaluation, including a 30-minute parental interview. Johnny was brought to a separate playroom to wait for his mother while she was going to be interviewed by the psychologist in a different room. There were a few cars and trucks in the playroom but no other children. Johnny didn't take to his new surroundings at all and almost immediately started crying loudly. His mother was unable to console him and had to take him home without the interview ever taking place. What could Mrs. Baker have done differently to alleviate the problem?

A)Bring along some of Johnny's own favorite toys from home.
B)Bring along some candy for Johnny to enjoy while he was waiting.
C)Promise Johnny something special later if he stops crying and behaves himself.
D)Tell him that if he doesn't stop crying, Daddy will punish him when he comes home from work.

Question 45

The guidance counselor at 11-year-old Lisa's school called Lisa's mother, asking her to come to the school for a one-on-one conference. At the conference, Mrs. Stevens learned that her daughter was identified as someone who was cyber-bullying one of her classmates. In addition, Lisa's grades were slipping. The guidance counselor recommended that Lisa receive a psychological evaluation. Mrs. Stevens agreed to cooperate, but what should she tell her daughter?

A)She is going to take some tests to see if another school might be better for her.
B)The school is on the verge of recommending that she be expelled.
C)The guidance counselor wants her to take some tests because they might have assigned her to the wrong class.
D)She is very disappointed with her behavior and agrees with the guidance counselor that therapy, after some preliminary testing, might be helpful.

Question 46

Which of the following statements about the Eyberg Child Behavior Inventory (ECBI) is not true?

A)There is no need to pay a psychologist to administer the test. Many parents can handle the sample task themselves.
B)The ECBI measures not only what kinds of undesirable child behaviors are occurring but how often.
C)The ECBI was specifically designed to assess the behavior of preschool age children, not older children.
D)The ECBI is potentially a good source of information not only about the child's inappropriate behavior, but also the parent's.

Question 47

Clinical psychologists frequently use a test called the WISC as part of their assessment. What do the letters WISC stand for?

A)The Wechsler Interest Scale for Children
B)The Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children
C)The Wechsler Incomplete Sentences Test for Children
D)The Wechsler Test of Word Reasoning, Information, Similarities, and Coding

Question 48

Which of the following was not a valid criticism of the original WISC, eventually leading to the development of subsequent versions of the test?

A)Some of the items were potentially discriminatory against certain subgroups of the population.
B)There are additional areas of intellectual functioning that the test could have tapped into but didn't.
C)The test provided little, if any, helpful clinical information other than a verbal, performance, and overall IQ score which a simpler written intelligence test could do equally well.
D)The test could be likened in some ways to a "dinosaur," worthy of "extinction" because it was not fully in keeping with current theories about intelligence and had outrun its usefulness.

Question 49

Three of the four pairs of WISC-IV subtests listed below include one subtest that also appeared on the original WISC and one that did not. Identify the one remaining pair of subtests, neither of which appeared on the original WISC.

A)Similarities and Symbol Search
B)Block Design and Matrix Reasoning
C)Comprehension and Word Reasoning
D)Word Reasoning and Picture Concepts

Question 50

How many subtests are there all together in the WISC-IV and how much time would the clinical psychologist typically require to administer all of them?

A)10 subtests, about 45 minutes.
B)10 subtests, about an hour.
C)13 subtests, about an hour.
D)15 subtests, more than an hour.

Question 51

It would be appropriate for a clinical psychologist to measure the intelligence of a slow learning child of no older than what age with either the WPSSI or the WISC-IV?

A)Age 5
B)Age 6
C)Age 7
D)None of the above