Psychological Disorders Review

Mental health workers label behavior as psychologically disordered when they judge it 

• prejudicial, unconsciously motivated, ingenuine, and insane
• biologically based, unconsciously motivated, aggressive, and difficult to change
• selfish, habitual, and avoidable 
• atypical, disturbing, maladaptive, and unjustifiable

According to the medical model, psychological disorders are 

• sicknesses that need to be diagnosed and cured 
• maladaptive responses to a troubling environment 
• purely imaginary symptoms of distress 
• learned habits that need to be extinguished

A bio-psycho-social perspective on alcohol abuse would be most likely to emphasize 

• the distinction between neurotic and psychotic forms of alcoholism 
• the similarities between alcoholism and personality disorders
• the interactive influences of nature and nurture on maladaptive alcohol consumption 
• that alcoholism is a lifestyle choice and show not be considered a psychological disorder

Which perspective would have the most difficulty accounting for the fact that anorexia nervosa is mostly a disorder of Western cultures?

• psychoanalytic perspective
• cognitive perspective
• medical perspective
• behavioral perspective

DSM-5 is a widely used system for 

• distinguishing sanity from insanity
• treating depression
•  classifying psychological disorders
• doing all of the above

The greatest problem with the diagnostic labeling of psychologically disordered behaviors is that the labels often 

• bias our perceptions of the labeled person
• represent attempts by psychologists to explain behavior by simply naming it 
• interfere with effective research on the causes of these disorders 
• interfere with effective treatment of these disorders

A generalized anxiety disorder is characterized by 

• offensive and unwanted thoughts that persistently preoccupy a person 
• a continuous state of tension, apprehension, and autonomic nervous system arousal 
• hyperactive, wildly optimistic states of emotion
• alternations between extreme hopelessness and unrealistic optimism

While he was studying, Emmet was suddenly overwhelmed by feelings of intense apprehension. For several minutes he felt so agitated that he could not catch his breath. Emmet was most likely suffering from a(n) 

• bipolar disorder
• dissociative disorder 
• panic attack 
• obsessive-compulsive disorder

The avoidance of potentially anxiety-arousing situations from which escape might be difficult is indicative of 

• a mood disorder 
• schizophrenia 
• agoraphobia
• bipolar disorder

Which of the following is characterized by persistent, irrational fear of a specific object or situation? 

• generalized anxiety disorder
• phobia
• mood disorder 
• personality disorder