ASPPB Assessment & Diagnosis of Psychological Disorders 4

Question 1

Which assessment instrument is MOST specifically designed to evaluate dementia and neurocognitive disorders in older adults?

Accepted Answer

Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA)

Answer

The MoCA is a brief, validated cognitive screening tool specifically designed to detect mild cognitive impairment and dementia in older adults across multiple cognitive domains.

Question 2

A psychologist is asked to assess for factitious disorder. Which of the following BEST characterizes this condition in DSM-5?

Accepted Answer

Falsification of physical or psychological symptoms without external incentives

Answer

Factitious Disorder involves deliberate falsification of illness in the absence of external incentives, distinguishing it from malingering where secondary gain (e.g., financial) is present.

Question 3

In a multi-method assessment, which combination of data sources does the MOST comprehensive approach include?

Accepted Answer

Self-report, performance-based tests, behavioral observation, and collateral information

Answer

A multi-method battery drawing on self-report, performance-based measures, direct observation, and third-party information maximizes convergent validity and reduces mono-method bias.

Question 4

According to DSM-5, Somatic Symptom Disorder differs from Illness Anxiety Disorder primarily in that Somatic Symptom Disorder requires:

Accepted Answer

The presence of at least one distressing somatic symptom

Answer

Somatic Symptom Disorder requires one or more distressing somatic symptoms, while Illness Anxiety Disorder is characterized by health anxiety with minimal or no somatic symptoms.

Question 5

A client receives a T-score of 80 on the Schizophrenia scale of the PAI. In PAI interpretation, T-scores are standardized with a mean of 50 and SD of 10. What does this score indicate?

Accepted Answer

The score is 3 standard deviations above the mean, suggesting clinically significant elevation

Answer

A T-score of 80 on the PAI is 3 SDs above the mean (50), which represents a clinically significant elevation indicating prominent psychotic features.

(ASPPB) Association of State and Provincial Psychology Boards Practice Test

(ASPPB) Association of State and Provincial Psychology Boards Practice Test

ASPPB Assessment & Diagnosis of Psychological Disorders 4