During an interview, the nurse notes that the patient gets up several times to wash her hands even though they are not dirty. This is an example of what behavior?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Repetitive ritualistic actions, such as handwashing, that a person feels driven to perform are compulsions. These behaviors are done to decrease anxiety and prevent a catastrophe (e.g. contamination [fear of germs], violence, perfectionism, and superstitions). A social phobia is a persistent and irrational fear of being in social situations. Generalized anxiety disorder is a pattern of excessive worrying and morbid fear about anticipated "disasters" in the job, personal relationships, health, or finances. With PSTD the person relieves the trauma many times, intrusively and unwillingly. The same feelings of helplessness, fear, or horror recur. Avoidance of any trigger associated with the trauma occurs, and the person has hypervigilance, sleep problems, and difficulty concentrating, leading to feelings of being permanently damaged. The repetitive behavior of handwashing in this question is a behavior characteristic of compulsive disorder. People with compulsive disorder feel driven to perform repetitive, ritualistic actions in an attempt to decrease anxiety and prevent a catastrophe (e.g. contamination [fear of germs], violence, perfectionism, and superstitions.

During an Interview, the Nurse Notes That the Patient Gets