Joan cannot stop thinking about jumping off a tall building. This causes her a great deal of stress. To escape from these thoughts, Joan recites nursery rhymes over and over again. This seems to reduce the stress. For Joan, the reciting of rhymes are

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Joan's behavior of reciting nursery rhymes to reduce stress caused by intrusive thoughts about jumping off a building is characteristic of compulsions. Compulsions are repetitive behaviors or mental acts that a person feels driven to perform in response to an obsession, or according to rules that must be applied rigidly, aimed at reducing distress or preventing some dreaded event or situation.

Joan Cannot Stop Thinking About Jumping Off a Tall Building