Concept Review Quiz 2 Flashcards
What are the similarities and differences among anxiety, fear, and panic attacks?
Anxiety is a future-oriented state characterized by negative affect in which a person focuses on the possibility of uncontrollable danger or misfortune; in contrast, fear is a present-oriented state characterized by strong escapist tendencies and a surge in the sympathetic branch of the autonomic nervous system in response to current danger. A panic attack represents the alarm response of real fear, but there is no actual danger.
What are the essential features, possible causes, and available treatment approaches for generalized anxiety disorder?
In generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), anxiety focuses on minor, everyday events and not on one major worry or concern. Both genetic and psychological vulnerabilities seem to contribute to the development of GAD. Although drug and psychological treatments may be effective in the short term, drug treatments are no more effective in the long term than placebo treatments.
What are the essential features of panic disorder and agoraphobia?
In panic disorder, which may or may not be accompanied by agoraphobia (a fear and avoidance of situations considered to be “unsafe”), anxiety is focused on the next panic attack. For some people, agoraphobia develops in the absence of panic attacks or panic-like symptoms.
What are the essential features and possible causes of posttraumatic stress disorder?
Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) focuses on avoiding thoughts or images of past traumatic experiences. The precipitating cause of PTSD is obvious—a traumatic
experience. But mere exposure to trauma is not enough. The intensity of the experience seems to be a factor in remind them of their panic attacks. For agoraphobia, therapeutically-supervised exposure to feared situations is most effective.
What are the principal causes of specific phobia?
In phobic disorders, the individual avoids situations that produce severe anxiety, panic, or both. In specific phobia, the fear is focused on a particular object or situation. Phobias can be acquired by experiencing some traumatic event; they can also be learned vicariously or even be taught.
What strategies are typically used to treat specific phobia?
Treatment of phobias is rather straightforward, with a focus on structured and consistent exposure-based exercises.
What are the principal causes of social anxiety disorder (social phobia)?
Social anxiety disorder is a fear of being around others, particularly in situations that call for some kind of “performance” in front of other people.
What strategies are used to treat social anxiety disorder (social phobia)?
Although the causes of social anxiety disorder are similar to those of specific phobias, treatment has a different focus that includes rehearsing or role-playing socially phobic situations. In addition, drug treatments have been effective.
What are the origins of other trauma- and stress-related disorders?
Adjustment disorder is the development of anxiety or depression in response to stressful, but not traumatic, life events. Individuals prone to anxiety or depression gener- ally may experience increases during stressful life events. Children experiencing inadequate, abusive, or absent caregiving in early childhood fail to develop normal attachment relationships with caregivers, resulting in reactive attachment disorder and disinhibited social engagement disorder.
Reactive attachment disorder
describes children who are inhibited and emotionally withdrawn and unable to form attachment with caregivers.
Disinhibited social engagement disorder
describes children who inappropriately approach all strangers, behaving as if they had always had strong loving relationships with them.
What are the symptoms of obsessive-compulsive disorder?
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) focuses on avoiding frightening or repulsive intrusive thoughts (obsessions) or neutralizing these thoughts through the use of ritualistic behavior (compulsions).
How is obsessive-compulsive disorder treated?
Drug treatment seems to be only modestly successful in treating OCD. The most effective treatment approach is a psychological treatment called exposure and ritual prevention (ERP).
What are the features of body dysmorphic disorder and how is it treated?
In body dysmorphic disorder (BDD), a person who looks normal is obsessively preoccupied with some imagined defect in appearance (imagined ugliness). These patients typically have more insight into their problem and may seek out plastic surgery as a remedy. Psychological treatment approaches are also similar to those for OCD and are approximately equally successful.
What are the other obsessive-compulsive and related disorders and how are they treated?
Hoarding disorder is characterized by excessive acquisi- tion of things, difficulty discarding anything, and living
with excessive clutter under conditions best characterized as gross disorganization. Treatment approaches are similar to those for OCD but are less successful. Repetitive and compulsive hair pulling, resulting in significant noticeable loss of hair or repetitive and compulsive picking of the skin, leading to tissue damage, characterize trichotillomania and excoriation disorders respectively.
