Historical & Conceptual Foundations
Explain the wandering uterus theory and its historical significance.
Answer: Galen proposed that a displaced uterus caused mental illness in women, treated by marriage.
Explanation: This reflects early gender-biased, non-scientific theories before biological and psychological models.
Differentiate between social anxiety disorder and specific phobia.
Answer: Social anxiety disorder involves fear of negative evaluation in social situations; specific phobia is fear of particular objects or events.
Explanation: Both cause avoidance but differ in scope and triggers.
Summarize the key symptoms that distinguish major depressive disorder from normal sadness.
Answer: Duration of at least two weeks, significant impairment, and symptoms like anhedonia, fatigue, and suicidal ideation.
Explanation: MDD is a clinical syndrome, not a transient mood.
Compare dissociative amnesia and dissociative fugue.
Answer: Amnesia is memory loss for personal info; fugue includes unexpected travel and amnesia for the trip.
Explanation: Fugue is a more severe dissociative state involving physical displacement. (memory trick: F in fugue = Flight, for travel)
What neurotransmitter system do benzodiazepines target, and what is a major risk of their use?
Answer: They enhance GABA activity; risk includes dependence and withdrawal symptoms.
Explanation: Used for short-term anxiety relief.
Describe the biopsychosocial model of abnormal behavior.
Answer: It integrates biological, psychological, and sociocultural factors to explain mental disorders.
Explanation: This model recognizes the complex interplay of genetics, cognition, and environment.
Explain the diagnostic criteria for agoraphobia.
Answer: Fear of at least two of five situations where escape might be difficult, causing significant anxiety.
Explanation: It often leads to severe social withdrawal.
Outline the phases and symptoms of a manic episode in bipolar __ disorder.
Answer: Bipolar I is marked with 7+ days (or hospitalization) of a manic episode, including elevated mood, increased energy, decreased need for sleep, grandiosity, impulsivity, and sometimes psychosis.
Explanation: Mania contrasts sharply with depressive episodes.
Describe the psychodynamic explanation for dissociative identity disorder.
Answer: DID results from repression of traumatic memories as a defense mechanism.
Explanation: Splitting identity protects the conscious mind from trauma.
Contrast first-generation (typical) and second-generation (atypical) antipsychotics regarding efficacy and side effects.
Answer:
First-generation block dopamine strongly but causes tardive dyskinesia and extrapyramidal systems
Second-generation have fewer motor side effects, but risk lowering white blood cell count and also target serotonin.
Explanation: Second-generation preferred for better safety profile.
What are cultural-bound syndromes? Provide two examples.
Answer: Disorders found only in specific cultures, such as Koro in China and eating disorders in Western cultures.
Explanation: Highlights the importance of cultural relativity in diagnosis
Describe the mechanism of exposure with response prevention in OCD treatment.
Answer: Clients are exposed to anxiety-provoking stimuli but prevented from performing compulsions, reducing anxiety over time.
Explanation: This breaks the negative reinforcement cycle maintaining OCD.
Explain the stress-vulnerability (diathesis-stress) model with an example.
Answer: Genetic predisposition plus environmental stress triggers disorder onset, e.g., bipolar disorder triggered by college stress.
Explanation: Both biology and environment are necessary for disease expression.
Identify two positive and two negative symptoms of schizophrenia.
Answer:
Positive: hallucinations, delusions
Negative: flat affect, alogia (poverty of speech).
Explanation: Positive symptoms reflect excess dopamine; negative symptoms reflect deficits.
How do SSRIs differ mechanistically from MAOIs in treating depression?
Answer: SSRIs block serotonin reuptake; MAOI block breakdown of monoamines but require dietary restrictions.
Explanation: SSRIs are safer and more commonly prescribed.
Define comorbidity and explain its significance in mental health diagnosis.
Answer: The simultaneous presence of two or more disorders, e.g., anxiety and depression.
Explanation: Comorbidity complicates diagnosis and treatment planning.
What is free-floating anxiety and how does it differ from phobic anxiety?
Answer: Anxiety without a specific cause (free-floating) versus anxiety triggered by a particular object or situation (phobic).
Explanation: Free-floating anxiety is more generalized and persistent.
Differentiate between Acute Stress Disorder (ASD) and PTSD in terms of symptom onset and duration.
Answer: ASD symptoms begin within 3 days and last up to 1 month; PTSD symptoms persist beyond 1 month and may have delayed onset.
Explanation: Early intervention in ASD may prevent PTSD.
Discuss the genetic evidence supporting schizophrenia’s heritability.
Answer: Risk increases with genetic relatedness, highest in identical twins (~48%), indicating strong genetic influence.
Explanation: Environmental factors also modulate expression.
Describe the therapeutic rationale and procedure for electroconvulsive therapy (ECT).
Answer: Induces controlled seizures to rapidly alter brain chemistry in severe, treatment-resistant depression; performed under anesthesia with muscle relaxants.
Explanation: Modern ECT is safe and effective.
Critically evaluate one major limitation of the DSM-5.
Answer: Labeling can lead to stigma and prejudice against mentally ill individuals.
Explanation: Diagnostic categories may oversimplify complex human experiences.
Discuss the role of cognitive distortions in maintaining generalized anxiety disorder.
Answer: Patterns like catastrophizing and selective thinking amplify worry and prevent realistic appraisal.
Explanation: Cognitive therapy targets these distortions to reduce anxiety.
Describe the exaggerated startle reflex in PTSD and its neurobiological basis.
Answer: Heightened automatic response to stimuli due to hyperactive amygdala and impaired prefrontal regulation.
Explanation: Reflects persistent hyperarousal in PTSD.
Explain the role of dopamine in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia.
Answer: Excess dopamine activity in certain brain regions causes positive symptoms, while decreased dopamine in others relates to negative symptoms.
Explanation: Basis for antipsychotic drug action.
Describe how cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) targets specific cognitive distortions such as arbitrary inference and magnification, and explain how these interventions are integrated with behavioral techniques to treat disorders like OCD and generalized anxiety disorder.
Answer: CBT first helps clients recognize and critically evaluate distorted thinking patterns like arbitrary inference (drawing conclusions without evidence) and magnification (exaggerating negative events). Therapists then guide clients to replace these irrational thoughts with balanced, evidence-based reasoning. Simultaneously, CBT incorporates behavioral strategies—such as exposure and response prevention—to modify maladaptive behaviors, creating a comprehensive approach that reduces anxiety and compulsive behaviors in disorders like OCD and GAD.