NBME Behavioral Science 2

Question 1

A patient newly diagnosed with terminal cancer angrily blames her physician for missing the diagnosis earlier. According to Kübler-Ross, which stage of grief is she most likely experiencing?

Accepted Answer

Anger

Answer

Anger is the second stage of Kübler-Ross grief, often directed at caregivers or loved ones.

Question 2

A man who harbors unconscious hostility toward his boss instead becomes overly kind and complimentary toward him. This defense mechanism is best described as:

Accepted Answer

Reaction formation

Answer

Reaction formation converts an unacceptable impulse into its opposite conscious behavior.

Question 3

A student studies harder after failing a quiz to avoid receiving a failing grade for the course. This best illustrates:

Accepted Answer

Negative reinforcement

Answer

Negative reinforcement increases a behavior by removing an aversive stimulus (the threat of failing).

Question 4

A screening test for disease X has a sensitivity of 90% and specificity of 80%. If a patient tests negative, the most useful statistic for counseling them is:

Accepted Answer

Negative predictive value

Answer

Negative predictive value (NPV) tells you the probability that a person with a negative test truly does not have the disease.

Question 5

In a town of 10,000 people, 200 have diabetes at the start of the year and 50 new cases are diagnosed during that year. What is the incidence of diabetes in that year?

Accepted Answer

0.5%

Answer

Incidence = new cases / population at risk = 50 / (10,000 − 200) = 50/9,800 ≈ 0.51%.

NBME Practice Test

NBME Practice Test

NBME Behavioral Science 2