ASPPB Abnormal Psychology 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A veteran experiences nightmares, avoids driving past the site of an accident, and feels emotionally numb three months after a traumatic event. Which diagnosis is most appropriate?
- Acute Stress Disorder
- Adjustment Disorder
- Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (Correct answer)
- Major Depressive Disorder
Correct answer: Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
PTSD is diagnosed when symptoms of re-experiencing, avoidance, negative cognitions/mood, and hyperarousal persist for more than one month following trauma.
Question 2: Which eating disorder is characterized by recurrent episodes of eating large amounts of food followed by compensatory behaviors such as self-induced vomiting?
- Anorexia Nervosa, binge-eating/purging type
- Bulimia Nervosa (Correct answer)
- Binge-Eating Disorder
- Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder
Correct answer: Bulimia Nervosa
Bulimia Nervosa involves binge eating followed by purging behaviors and occurs in individuals who are typically at or above normal weight.
Question 3: According to the DSM-5, which criterion differentiates a manic episode from hypomania?
- Grandiosity is present only in mania
- Manic episodes require hospitalization or cause marked impairment or psychosis (Correct answer)
- Hypomania lasts less than two days
- Racing thoughts occur only in mania
Correct answer: Manic episodes require hospitalization or cause marked impairment or psychosis
A manic episode is severe enough to cause marked impairment, require hospitalization, or include psychotic features; hypomania does not reach this threshold.
Question 4: Learned helplessness, a model relevant to depression, was originally demonstrated by Seligman using:
- Operant conditioning chambers with food rewards
- Inescapable electric shocks administered to dogs (Correct answer)
- Classical conditioning with salivation responses in dogs
- Observational learning paradigms with monkeys
Correct answer: Inescapable electric shocks administered to dogs
Seligman showed that dogs exposed to inescapable shocks later failed to escape even when escape was possible, modeling the passivity seen in depression.
Question 5: In the context of substance use disorders, 'tolerance' is best defined as:
- Inability to stop using despite wanting to
- Needing increased amounts of a substance to achieve the same effect (Correct answer)
- Experiencing withdrawal when use is discontinued
- Using the substance in larger amounts than intended
Correct answer: Needing increased amounts of a substance to achieve the same effect
Tolerance refers to needing markedly increased amounts of a substance to achieve intoxication or the desired effect, or diminished effect with continued use of the same amount.
Question 6: A 7-year-old boy is impulsive, often interrupts others, cannot stay seated in class, and these behaviors have been present since age 4 across home and school settings. The most likely diagnosis is:
- Oppositional Defiant Disorder
- Conduct Disorder
- Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (Correct answer)
- Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder
Correct answer: Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder
ADHD requires symptoms of inattention and/or hyperactivity-impulsivity present in two or more settings before age 12, causing functional impairment.
Question 7: The two-factor theory of anxiety proposed by Mowrer suggests that phobias are acquired through classical conditioning and maintained by:
- Positive reinforcement of approach behavior
- Negative reinforcement via operant avoidance (Correct answer)
- Modeling of fearful responses from parents
- Biological preparedness alone
Correct answer: Negative reinforcement via operant avoidance
Mowrer proposed that avoidance behavior is negatively reinforced because it reduces anxiety, thereby maintaining the phobia.
ASPPB Abnormal Psychology 3
A veteran experiences nightmares, avoids driving past the site of an accident, and feels emotionally numb three months after a traumatic event.
Which diagnosis is most appropriate?