Deck 2: Causes of Abnormal Behavior

Question 1

You are reading a biography of Sigmund Freud and find that he was trained as a

A) neurologist.
B) psychiatrist.
C) clinical psychologist.
D) counseling psychologist.

Answer 1

neurologist.

Question 2

According to Freudian theory, what part of the mind is roughly equivalent to the conscience?

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

Answer 2

superego

Question 3

The correct biological explanation for general paresis

A) was discovered very quickly.
B) is still a mystery to scientists.
C) will never be discovered.
D) was only discovered after more than 100 years of study.

Answer 3

was only discovered after more than 100 years of study.

Question 4

The search for explanations of the etiology of abnormal behavior dates to ancient times. It was not until the 19^th and 20^th centuries that three major advances occurred. Which of the following is NOT one of these advances?

A) The discovery of the cause of general paresis.
B) The work of Sigmund Freud.
C) The development of the germ theory.
D) The development of academic psychology.

Question 5

Both Jean Charcot and Sigmund Freud focused on a disorder called hysteria. Which of the following patients is most likely to have received this diagnosis from these two well-known clinicians?

A) Hazel, who experiences delusions
B) Amy, who screams during bouts of "night terrors"
C) Laura, whose "blindness" has no organic explanation
D) Zelda, who cannot sit still for more than 5 seconds

Question 6

The case of Meghan B. in your text illustrates

A) many plausible alternative causes.
B) that disorders can often have a single cause.
C) the importance of genetic factors.
D) how objective tools can be used to pinpoint causation.

Question 7

A distinguished researcher reviewed the current findings on the etiology of mental disorders. Which of the following is the best summary of the consensus of opinion?

A) Most mental disorders are the result of genetic abnormalities.
B) We do not currently know all of the specific causes of most mental disorders.
C) Unconscious factors have been overlooked as the root cause of mental disorders.
D) Environmental factors have been overlooked in the wake of recent findings on biological etiologies.

Question 8

According to Sigmund Freud, what are the three parts of the mind?

A) id, ego, superego
B) oral, anal, phallic
C) reality, pleasure, spiritual
D) conscious, preconscious, unconscious

Question 9

According to Sigmund Freud, what is the purpose of defense mechanisms?

A) to reduce anxiety
B) to establish reality contact
C) to develop self‑actualization
D) to reduce reliance on social support

Question 10

What approach do the authors use when considering the etiology of various mental disorders?

A) systems
B) confluence
C) reductionism
D) biopsychosocial

Question 11

A physician at a hospital in the late 1800s has read about the disease called general paresis. Which of the following patients is most likely to receive such a diagnosis?

A) Alice, whose symptoms include restlessness and agitation
B) Brenda, whose symptoms include insomnia and obsessiveness
C) Bob, whose symptoms include lack of appetite and thoughts of suicide
D) Al, whose symptoms include delusions of grandeur and progressive paralysis

Question 12

Most forms of abnormal behavior are thought to be caused by

A) genetics.
B) learning.
C) a single cause.
D) multiple factors.

Question 13

In psychoanalytic theory, sexual and aggressive drives are part of the

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

Question 14

According to Freudian theory, the reality principle is the framework of operation for the

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

Question 15

Confirming a specific biological cause of general paresis was greatly aided by eventually discovering that

A) all such patients had a history of syphilis.
B) most such patients developed syphilis later in life.
C) very few such patients had ever been treated with penicillin.
D) most such patients had lied about their sexual history.

Question 16

The discovery of the etiology of which disorder was an important scientific advance for the biological paradigm?

A) general paresis
B) Alzheimer's disease
C) bipolar mood disorder
D) dissociative identity disorder

Question 17

Which term is used for a set of shared assumptions that includes both the substance of a theory and beliefs about how scientists should collect data and test a theory?

A) etiology
B) paradigm
C) diagnosis
D) prognosis

Question 18

The etiology of a problem behavior is its

A) cause.
B) paradigm.
C) treatment.
D) classification.

Question 19

General paresis was virtually eliminated because

A) the patients died before they could have children.
B) antibiotics were developed to treat syphilis.
C) most older patients now develop Alzheimer's disease.
D) psychiatrists developed the tools to diagnose it.

Question 20

A researcher described her approach to understanding mental disorders as biopsychosocial. When you ask her to explain what she means, what is she likely to say?

A) Biological abnormalities give rise to psychological disturbances that have social consequences.
B) Biological, psychological, and social factors are just as likely to be the cause of these disorders.
C) The integration of biological, psychological, and social factors provides the most fruitful avenue for discovering the cause of most mental disorders.
D) The search for etiologies is best accomplished by viewing the evidence through the lens provided by one of the major paradigms.

Question 21

You get a paper back and briefly feel angry at the low grade you received, but this feeling is upsetting because you like the professor so much. You quickly turn your attention to other matters. Later that day you pick a fight with your roommate because of the unfair manner in which the week's chores were divided. This fight could be an example of a defense mechanism called

A) projection.
B) sublimation.
C) displacement.
D) rationalization.

Question 22

The textbook suggests that Freud's ideas were

A) scientifically valid.
B) metaphors.
C) of little value.
D) dangerous.

Question 23

When we are around someone we dislike intensely we often "bend over backward" to be nice to this individual. Which defense mechanism is illustrated here?

A) denial
B) projection
C) sublimation
D) reaction formation

Question 24

Watson made the very important assumption that all behavior is

A) under the control of free will.
B) inborn rather than learned.
C) the result of hidden desires and unconscious conflicts.
D) a result of learning.

Question 25

Humanistic psychologists objected to the biological, psychoanalytic, and behavioral theories of abnormal behavior because these other approaches assume that

A) free will exists.
B) behavior is a paradigm.
C) human nature is inherently good.
D) behavior is predictably determined.

Question 26

According to Sigmund Freud, how does a boy resolve forbidden sexual desire for his mother?

A) by becoming attracted to girls
B) by identifying with his father
C) by developing an Electra complex
D) by developing aggressive urges toward his mother

Question 27

Your neighbors are playing loud music late at night and it annoys you. You ask them to turn down the music and they do. The next time they play loud music, you call them even sooner. B. F. Skinner would say this happens because

A) your assertiveness is like a punishment.
B) the noise was an unconditioned stimulus.
C) the decreased noise negatively reinforced your assertiveness.
D) the decreased noise positively reinforced your assertiveness.

Question 28

What is the primary concept in operant conditioning?

A) a conditioned stimulus is neutral
B) conditioned response leads to extinction
C) behavior is determined by its consequences
D) negative reinforcement is the same as punishment

Question 29

According to the principles of operant conditioning, what happens when negative reinforcement is applied?

A) behavior increases
B) behavior decreases
C) behavior is punished
D) behavior remains at the same level

Question 30

John B. Watson was best known for

A) founding humanism.
B) promoting behaviorism.
C) developing the theory of modeling.
D) developing the theory of operant conditioning.

Question 31

Which paradigm views human nature as basically good, attributes abnormal behavior to frustrations of society, and uses nondirective therapy to treat abnormal behavior?

A) biomedical
B) humanistic
C) psychoanalytic
D) cognitive behavioral

Question 32

Mary and Jim took their two-year-old to the supermarket this past week. For more than an hour all Little Jimmy did was yell and scream because in the past this would have obtained him an ice cream cone. Jim managed to ignore him. Finally, Little Jimmy stopped yelling and screaming. What operant conditioning concept is illustrated by this story?

A) shaping
B) extinction
C) punishment
D) token economy

Question 33

Though easily confused, negative reinforcement and punishment are quite different; with negative reinforcement, behavior __________ when the aversive stimulus is ____________, and with punishment, behavior __________ when the aversive stimulus is ____________.

A) increases; removed; increases; introduced
B) increases; removed; decreases; introduced
C) decreases; removed; increases; introduced
D) decreases; introduced; increases; removed

Question 34

According to Ivan Pavlov's ideas on classical conditioning, extinction occurs when a conditioned stimulus is no longer presented along with

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

Question 35

The cognitive-behavioral paradigm views all of the following as the product of learning except

A) abnormal behavior.
B) normal behavior.
C) unconscious processes.
D) mental disorders.

Question 36

Who is credited with beginning the modern science of psychology at the University of Leipzig?

A) Ivan Pavlov
B) Wilhelm Wundt
C) B. F. Skinner
D) Sigmund Freud

Question 37

What is the purpose of the enigma written by Lord Byron that was included in the text?

A) to show how writing can reveal one's unconscious memories
B) to provide an example of the integration of different etiologies
C) to reveal how paradigms can either help or hinder our search for answers
D) to demonstrate that a psychotic process can often be uncovered in the words of even greater writers

Question 38

Beth received a painful shock while turning on her television. Now she reacts with fear whenever she sees a television. What is the television in this example?

A) neutral stimulus
B) reinforced stimulus
C) conditioned stimulus
D) unconditioned stimulus

Question 39

Who is the historian and philosopher who has written about the nature of paradigms?

A) Sigmund Freud
B) Karl Byron
C) Thomas Kuhn
D) John Watson

Question 40

Ivan Pavlov rang a bell every time he fed meat powder to dogs. After repeated trials, the dogs began to salivate when they heard the bell, even if there was no food in sight. According to Pavlov, the dogs' salivation in the absence of food, following the ringing of the bell, is called the

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

Question 41

Assume that variables X and Y are significantly correlated; the third variable problem means that

A) the correlation could be explained by their joint relation with some other factor.
B) another variable must correlate with X but not Y.
C) another variable must correlate with Y but not X.
D) X causes Y and Y causes X.

Question 42

A synapse is a

A) cell body.
B) nerve cell.
C) chemical substance in the brain.
D) fluid-filled gap between neurons.

Question 43

Which of the following correlation coefficients indicates the strongest association between two variables?

A) -0.74
B) -0.15
C) +0.26
D) +0.62

Question 44

A study has found a positive correlation between smoking cigarettes and schizophrenia. Which is/are possible explanations for this finding?

A) A third variable could be causing both.
B) Some property of nicotine could be part of the cause of schizophrenia.
C) Something about the nature of schizophrenia could be a factor in the cause of smoking.
D) All of the above are possible explanations for this finding.

Question 45

Some researchers view alcoholism as the result of a genetic predisposition to be addicted to alcohol plus life experiences that drive a person to drink more and more. This type of analysis is an example of

A) circular thinking.
B) biological etiology.
C) the diathesis-stress model.
D) the nature-nurture controversy.

Question 46

All four of the paradigms presented in your text make assumptions about the causes of abnormal behavior that can be too

A) broad.
B) narrow.
C) untestable.
D) vague.

Question 47

What is a diathesis?

A) a form of stress
B) a predisposition
C) a biological cause of mental illness
D) an observable symptom of mental illness

Question 48

Thinking of the different academic disciplines as representing different levels of analysis in trying to understand the causes of abnormal behavior, systems theory asserts that

A) no single academic discipline has a corner on the truth.
B) the molar level is more helpful than the molecular level.
C) the molecular level is more helpful than the molar level.
D) only the molar level lends itself to rigorous research.

Question 49

Which of the following is NOT a part of a neuron?

A) dendrite
B) nerve
C) axon
D) soma

Question 50

You are watching a movie about a mental hospital. In one scene two mental health professionals are talking about a patient. One of them asks about the patient's prognosis. The response to this question will deal with the patient's

A) diagnosis.
B) predicted course.
C) premorbid history.
D) developmental norm.

Question 51

Neuroanatomy focuses on brain _________ while neurophysiology focuses on brain __________.

A) functions; structures
B) structures; functions
C) dendrites; axons
D) axons; dendrites

Question 52

The principle of equifinality, or the concept of multiple pathways, means that

A) many risk factors might be involved in a disorder's etiology.
B) disorders must always be explained in terms of many different risk factors.
C) a diathesis must always be combined with some form of stress.
D) the same risk factors can produce many different disorders.

Question 53

What term is used to describe the pattern of behavior that is apparent before a disorder develops?

A) premorbid history
B) prognosis
C) homeostasis
D) developmental history

Question 54

The correlation between scores on a measure of hostility and age at death is -.64. We could conclude from this correlation coefficient that people

A) with high hostility scores tend to live longer.
B) who have low hostility scores tend to die younger.
C) who have high hostility scores tend to die younger.
D) who have low hostility scores die 64 percent sooner than those with high hostility scores.

Question 55

Developmental psychopathology is a new approach to abnormal psychology that emphasizes the importance of analyzing behavior in terms of

A) cybernetics.
B) early childhood trauma.
C) learned patterns that are ingrained over time.
D) comparisons of individual behavior to age-based norms.

Question 56

Holism is the idea that

A) humans have free will.
B) behavior is determined.
C) human nature is basically good.
D) the whole is more than the sum of its parts.

Question 57

Assume that variables X and Y are significantly correlated; the concept of reverse causality tells us that

A) X causes Y but not the reverse.
B) Y causes X but not the reverse.
C) X might cause Y or Y might cause X.
D) X causes Y and Y causes X.

Question 58

A newspaper headline heralds a finding that an excess of a particular brain chemical is the cause of a certain mental disorder. The article is not convincing to you. What potential flaw do you note in the report?

A) The chemical change could be due to other variables.
B) Chemical changes cannot bring about changes in behavior.
C) The genetic code associated with the chemical has not been identified.
D) Such findings are very difficult to generalize to the entire population.

Question 59

Which of the following best illustrates reciprocal causality?

A) Parents influence their children and are also influenced by their own parents.
B) Parents influence their children both through heredity and through socialization.
C) Parents influence their children and children influence their parents.
D) Children are influenced both by their parents and by their peers.

Question 60

The idea that ultimate explanations for abnormal behavior are found when problems are analyzed in terms of their smallest components is known as

A) deduction.
B) paradigms.
C) determinism.
D) reductionism.

Question 61

What is the process by which some neurotransmitters in the synapse return to the axon terminals of the neuron that released them?

A) reuptake
B) regeneration
C) neuromodulation
D) neuroregeneration

Question 62

Changes in the brains of individuals with Alzheimer's disease have been found, but they are of limited value because

A) they are too similar to the changes seen in Parkinson's disease.
B) they can only be seen by very expensive imaging techniques.
C) they appear in women, but not men.
D) they are only seen during autopsy.

Question 63

Chemicals that may be released from neurons or from endocrine glands and that affect the functioning of neurotransmitters are known as

A) adrenotransmitters.
B) neuromodulators.
C) reuptake inhibitors.
D) reuptake facilitators.

Question 64

If blood vessels in the brain rupture, cutting off the supply of oxygen to parts of the brain and thereby killing surrounding brain tissue, the person is said to have suffered a

A) stroke.
B) broken ventricle.
C) tangle of neurons.
D) nervous breakdown.

Question 65

A report of research on physiological psychology contains a description of a substance that can influence communication among neurons and can act some distance from where the substance was released. What is the topic of this report?

A) axons
B) humors
C) neuromodulators
D) neurotransmitters

Question 66

The region of the brain responsible for the regulation of emotion and some aspects of learning, memory, and language reception is called the

A) occipital love.
B) cerebellum.
C) corpus callosum.
D) temporal lobe.

Question 67

The ________ is involved with some motor activities associated with fighting and sexual behavior.

A) midbrain
B) forebrain
C) hindbrain
D) corpus callosum

Question 68

Which of the following is most likely to be affected by a tumor on the hypothalamus?

A) creativity
B) long-term memory
C) motor coordination
D) basic biological urges

Question 69

A police officer pulls over a driver suspected of driving under the influence of alcohol. The driver is asked to exit the car and walk a straight line. This test is designed to detect the effects of alcohol on the

A) cerebellum.
B) hypothalamus.
C) temporal lobe.
D) limbic system.

Question 70

The reticular activating system regulates

A) eating and drinking.
B) sleeping and waking.
C) sex drive and eating.
D) aggression and emotions.

Question 71

Basic bodily functions such as heart rate, blood pressure, and respiration are regulated by which region of the brain?

A) pons
B) medulla
C) midbrain
D) corpus callosum

Question 72

Researchers are interested in the ventricles in the brain because

A) they become enlarged in some disorders.
B) they fill with cerebrospinal fluid.
C) they are often found to be absent in people with severe mental disorders.
D) they connect the forebrain, midbrain, hindbrain, and cerebellum.

Question 73

Which region of the brain plays a key role in regulating emotion?

A) cerebellum
B) limbic system
C) corpus callosum
D) reticular activating system

Question 74

How is information transmitted between nerve cells?

A) by release of neurotransmitters at the synapse
B) by release of neurotransmitters along the axon
C) by changes in electrical potential along the axon
D) by changes in electrical potential in the synapse

Question 75

Evidence that effective treatments for depression inhibit the reuptake of a neurotransmitter links a depletion of that neurotransmitter to mood disorders. That neurotransmitter is

A) dopamine.
B) GABA.
C) serotonin.
D) Prozac.

Question 76

Your patient shows signs of restlessness, agitation, and anxiety. One of the first disorders to test for would be Graves' disease, so you order tests of

A) dopamine levels.
B) blood sugar levels.
C) thyroid function.
D) cerebral blood flow.

Question 77

Which of the following neurotransmitters was first implicated in the development of schizophrenia?

A) GABA
B) dopamine
C) serotonin
D) norepinephrine

Question 78

Dualism refers to the out-of-date idea that

A) mind and body are separate.
B) the whole is more than the sum of its parts.
C) the brain is made up of structures and functions.
D) behavior is influenced by free will and determinism.

Question 79

All of the following have been suggested as a way that neurotransmitters could play a role in abnormal behavior except

A) an oversupply of a certain neurotransmitter.
B) an undersupply of a neurotransmitter.
C) faulty genes that misfold the proteins that make up a given neurotransmitter.
D) a disturbance in the reuptake mechanism for a given neurotransmitter.

Question 80

A patient has just undergone a complete examination of the brain using the most sophisticated imaging tools available. The neurosurgeon found a tumor in the frontal lobe. Which of the following is most likely to be affected by this tumor?

A) sleep
B) biological urges
C) reasoning and planning
D) hearing and vision