Question 1

Client-centered therapy (also known PCT and associated with Carl Rogers) is a form of talk therapy in which the therapist encourages and facilitates personal growth in a supportive environment. Which of the following concepts associated with this therapeutic model is NOT correctly defined?

Accepted Answer

In this therapeutic model, unconditional positive regard refers to a therapist accepting the client unconditionally and without judgment so that the client can start to become aware of how other's perceptions influence their own self-worth.

Question 2

Behavioral theory postulates that behavior is in response to external factors and situational stimuli; thus, behaviorists believe that psychopathology is a result of learned patterns, not innate deficits. One subset of behavioral intervention, classical extinction, deals with fears and phobias by presenting the conditioned stimulus to the patient. Which technique belongs to this type of intervention?

Accepted Answer

Flooding, a technique in which a patient is physically exposed to a conditioned stimulus and prevented from escaping until fear abates, is a one of two types of classical extinction. The other (implosive therapy) is similar but conducted in imagination only. Flooding is now thought to be more effective for treating specific phobias than another classical conditioning technique, systematic desensitization­-one session of more prolonged exposure has been more successful at eliminating fear than multiple sessions of brief exposure.

Question 3

Operant conditioning, a behaviorist-based treatment approach, involves using reinforcement and punishment as tools to control and maintain behaviors. There are different intervention strategies that use reinforcement. Stimulus control is one strategy; what does it involve?

Accepted Answer

Stimulus control is a self-control procedure that involves narrowing the range of stimuli that elicit a particular behavior. For instance, someone trying to eat less would limit himself to eating only at specific times and only at a certain table. Other self-control procedures include self-monitoring and self-reinforcement.

Question 4

Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) is a structured therapy program developed by Marsha Lineham. Although DBT has proven useful in treating a range of disorders, it was developed to treat one specific disorder (and is the first therapeutic method thought to be successful in doing so). Which disorder was DBT developed to treat?

Accepted Answer

DBT was developed to treat borderline personality disorder. This style of therapy combines standard cognitive approaches with mindfulness, distress tolerance, and other meditative practices. DBT is the first therapy thought to be successful in treating BPD and has more recently proven valuable for treatment of symptoms associated with mood disorders and sexual abuse histories.

Question 5

In the early 20th century, cognitive-behavioral theory (CBT) and a number of new therapy methods were developed as an alternative to behaviorist theory. Donald Meichenbaum developed cognitive behavioral modification (CBM). One method associated with CBM is self-instruction therapy. What disorder has CBM been empirically proven to treat?

Accepted Answer

CBM is an empirically-validated treatment for children with ADHD. This therapeutic method is designed to help patients who have trouble with completing tasks by providing a structured procedure to do so, first aided by a therapist and later performed independently.

Question 6

Rational emotive behavior therapy (REBT), developed by Ellis, is based on the belief that irrational beliefs are the cause of emotional disturbances. This method of therapy is based on the ABC model (activating events, beliefs about events, and consequences of events). Which of the following is NOT a technique used in REBT?

Accepted Answer

Decatastrophizing, the process of mentally preparing for a worst-case scenario, is not an REBT technique. REBT focuses on changing beliefs about events and consequences to resolve tension and behavioral problems.

Question 7

Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) is a structured therapy program developed by Marsha Linehan to treat borderline personality disorder. DBT includes attending a skills group where patients work on four skills modules. Which of the following is NOT one of those modules?

Accepted Answer

Confrontation of past trauma is not a specific aspect of DBT skills groups. DBT acknowledges the effect of the past on present behavior, but focuses on changing current behaviors rather than confronting the past. The four modules are: mindfulness, emotion regulation, distress tolerance, and interpersonal effectiveness.

Question 8

When normal coping becomes insufficient to deal with a problem, it is recognized as a crisis and crisis intervention becomes necessary. Which of the following ideas is not part of the basis of crisis intervention?

Accepted Answer

Crisis intervention is based on the idea that the present and future are more important than the past, so confronting past experiences are not as useful. There are multiple stages in crisis intervention that focus on mobilizing resources, processing the event, and developing strategies to cope with resultant emotions and problems.

Question 9

CNS stimulants are the primary drug treatment for ADHD. Which of the following statements is not true regarding this treatment?

Accepted Answer

Lower doses of CNS stimulants are used to improve attention and may have no effect on social behavior.

Question 10

There are different types of antidepressant medications: Tricyclics, Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs), Monoamine-Oxidase Inhibitors (MAOIs), and unclassified types. Which of the following brand name medications is not an SSRI?

Accepted Answer

Wellbutrin is an unclassified antidepressant; it does not work selectively on serotonin levels. SSRIs include: Prozac, Zoloft, Paxil, Cymbalta, Strattera, Serafem, Luvox, Celexa, and Lexapro.

Question 11

Antipsychotics are one class of drug used to treat certain disorders, such as schizophrenia, brief psychotic disorder, and delusional disorder. Which of the following is considered a novel (or atypical), rather than traditional, antipsychotic?

Accepted Answer

Clozaril was the first atypical antipsychotic to be developed, in 1990. Atypical antipsychotics are known as such because they do not work in the same way as typical and older antipsychotics do-by blocking dopamine receptors in the brain.

Question 12

Family therapy has been most influenced by general systems theory and by cybernetics. Cybernetics focuses on feedback loops-the circular nature of events and consequences. Which of the following is an example of a positive feedback loop?

Accepted Answer

A positive feedback loop is expressed as lasting change in family dynamic due to therapy. Negative feedback loops decrease deviation to maintain status quo; a family maintaining pre-established dynamic or reverting back to a prior dynamic would be a negative feedback loop.

Question 13

Working with object relations theory, James Framo developed new approaches to family therapy. What specific method is Framo known for in this field?

Accepted Answer

Framo is known for his family-of-origin therapy, in which a couple meets with one partner's family of origin and in a later session, with the other partner's family of origin. This method points to the importance of looking at intergenerational family dynamics brought into a particular family system

Question 14

Salvador Minuchin developed structural family therapy, which assesses a family along different dimensions. This theory considers a family to be a single system and identifies chronic boundary problems in that system. Which of the following is NOT one of the boundary problems identified by Minuchin?

Accepted Answer

The three chronic boundary problems identified in Minuchin's theory are triangulation, in which a child is caught in the middle of parents' conflicts; detouring, in which parents express and redirect distress to a child; and stable coalition, in which one parent and the child unite against the other parent. Individuation is a necessary trait in healthy families, not a boundary problem.

Question 15

Communications family therapy was developed by a group of therapists, known as the MRI group, for their work done at the Mental Research Institute in Palo Alto. Who among the following therapists was NOT part of the MRI group?

Accepted Answer

Theodore Lidz was a psychodynamic family therapist. In addition to the above three, Paul Watzlawick and Don Jackson were part of the MRI group.

Question 16

Communications family therapy, developed by the MRI group, developed specific techniques to address communication problems, some of which were paradoxical. Which of the following techniques might be implemented by a communications family therapist for a couple with marital problems and disagreements?

Accepted Answer

A paradoxical intervention for this couple is to fight at least two hours a day; this is known as prescribing the symptom. This type of intervention employs reverse psychology.

Question 17

Systemic family therapy, developed by the Milan group, involves elements of systems theory as well as elements of strategic theory. Which of the following therapeutic techniques is a key part of systemic therapy?

Accepted Answer

Circular questioning is a key aspect of systemic family therapy; this technique aims to both gather information about how a family functions while also introducing information into the family system. The goal of circular questioning is to shift each family member's mode of thinking from causal to interdependent.

Question 18

Steve de Shazer developed a type of family therapy known as solution-focused therapy based on the idea that expectations are powerful and can impact behavior and life events. What is the initial key technique employed in this style of therapy?

Accepted Answer

The miracle question refers to a question or questions aimed to elicit information about what a patient wants in their future and to establish goals. The standard miracle question asks, "Suppose there was a miracle and all your problems were solved overnight. How would you know this miracle had happened? What would be different?"

Question 19

Steve de Shazer developed a type of family therapy known as solution-focused therapy based on the idea that expectations are powerful and can impact behavior and life events. Solution-focused therapy uses several types of questions to discover wants and set goals. What type of question asks patients to rate their problem?

Accepted Answer

The scaling question asks patients to rate a problem on a 0 - 10 scale (0 being the worst). This question aims to reduce all-or-nothing thinking by highlighting any improvements.

Question 20

Community psychology uses organized community programs to support the prevention and treatment of mental disorders. Prevention is divided into three levels, primary, secondary, and tertiary. Which of the following is an example of primary prevention?

Accepted Answer

Primary prevention aims to reduce incidence of diseases and disorders by preventing (or reducing) their onset. Drug and alcohol education is an example of primary prevention because it aims to educate individuals about substance addiction before they develop a problem.

Quiz 6: Intervention