Lecture 20 and 21

Question 1

Which of the following is TRUE?

A. Treatment of mental-health problems is increasingly longer-term
B. Defense mechanisms play out in the relationship with the therapist
C. Short-term psychodynamic therapy focuses on unconscious conflicts in current
relationships
D. Relapse prevention is a method of dealing with returning clinical symptoms
E. Interpersonal therapy is the primary evidence-based approach to treatment

Answer 1

D. Relapse prevention is a method of dealing with returning clinical symptoms

Question 2

True or False: An intervention is a method of producing changes in behavior, thoughts, or
feelings, in the context of a professional relationship.

A. True
B. False

Answer 2

A. True

Question 3

Which of the following is NOT characteristic of the course of a typical intervention?

A. Initial contact
B. Assessment
C. Implementation
D. Monitoring of Treatment
E. Treatment duration of at least 1 year

Answer 3

E. Treatment duration of at least 1 year

Question 4

True or False: Most individuals pay for treatment out of pocket.

A. True
B. False

Answer 4

B. False

Question 5

Central concepts in short-term psychodynamic therapy include:

A. Transference
B. Unconscious Motives
C. Role transitions
D. A and B
E. A, B, and C

Answer 5

D. A and B

Question 6

Transference is defined as a process in which

A. The client lists all of the defense mechanisms they’ve used in the past week.
B. The client listens as the therapist interprets the client’s most recent dream.
C. The client writes a paragraph about reasons why their thoughts may be inaccurate.
D. The client reacts to the therapist as if the therapist is an important person from their
past.
E. The client describes all of their closest friends and family.

Answer 6

D. The client reacts to the therapist as if the therapist is an important person from their
past.

Question 7

True or False: Development of a briefer version of psychodynamic therapy was motivated
in part by difficulties getting third-party payment for long-term psychodynamic therapy.

A. True
B. False

Answer 7

A. True

Question 8

Within psychodynamic therapy, the therapist uses interpretation in an effort to

A. Establish rapport.
B. Comment on defense mechanisms, transference, and unconscious conflicts.
C. Better understand the client’s educational background.
D. Refer the client to other psychodynamic therapists.
E. Identify the likelihood of success in treatment.

Answer 8

B. Comment on defense mechanisms, transference, and unconscious conflicts.

Question 9

Client difficulties are conceptualized as falling into all but which one of the following
areas in Interpersonal Therapy (IPT)?

A. Adjustment Issue
B. Role Transitions
C. Role Disputes
D. Interpersonal Deficits
E. Grief

Answer 9

A. Adjustment Issue

Question 10

True or False: IPT therapists assume that psychopathology is caused and maintained by
interpersonal difficulties.

A. True
B. False

Answer 10

A. True

Question 11

Which of the following is NOT characteristic of IPT that is aimed at resolving difficulties with a role transition?

A. Typical duration of 12-16 weeks
B. Evaluation of new and old roles
C. Focus on childhood problems
D. Identifying sources of difficulty in new role
E. Problem-solving difficulties in new role

Answer 11

C. Focus on childhood problems

Question 12

Within the first phase of IPT, the therapist

A. Conducts a diagnostic interview and interpersonal inventory
B. Educates the client about the link between mood and interpersonal difficulties.
C. Establishes a clinical formulation of the patient’s difficulties
D. All of the above
E. None of the above

Answer 12

D. All of the above

Question 13

Relapse prevention is used to teach the client how to

A. Cope with symptoms if they return
B. Discuss their symptoms with their loved ones
C. Decide whether or not they want to continue treatment
D. Understand the difference between two therapies
E. Summarize the progress they have made in treatment

Answer 13

A. Cope with symptoms if they return

Question 14

IPT does not include which of the following techniques?

A. Communication analysis
B. Decision analysis
C. Encouragement of affect
D. Behavioral activation
E. Role playing

Answer 14

D. Behavioral activation

Question 15

True or False: The effectiveness of Cognitive- Behavioral Therapy (CBT) for a number of
psychological problems is supported by multiple research studies.

A. True
B. False

Answer 15

A. True

Question 16

Cognitive therapy suggests __________, while behavioral therapy suggests_______.

A. Problem behaviors are learned; cognitions mediate between environmental events
and problem behavior.
B. Problem behaviors are learned; maladaptive cognitions lead to problem behaviors.
C. Cognitions mediate between environmental events and problem behavior; problem
behaviors are learned.
D. Cognitions mediate between environmental events and problem behavior;
childhood functioning is key to understanding problem behavior.
E. Present functioning is key to understanding problem behavior; problem behaviors
are learned.

Answer 16

C. Cognitions mediate between environmental events and problem behavior; problem
behaviors are learned.

Question 17

Behavioral techniques in CBT do NOT include

A. Identifying distorted cognitions
B. Social skills training
C. Problem solving
D. Behavioral activation
E. Exposure therapy

Answer 17

A. Identifying distorted cognitions

Question 18

True or False: Behavioral activation works particularly well for depressed individuals,
since it encourages decreasing rates of pleasurable activities.

A. True
B. False

Answer 18

B. False

Question 19

True or False: CBT includes a technique in which the therapist helps the client to challenge and replace irrational cognitions.

A. True
B. False

Answer 19

A. True

Question 20

Which of the following is TRUE?

A. CBT, IPT, and short-term psychodynamic therapy are brief treatment approaches
B. CBT, IPT, and short-term psychodynamic therapy vary in the assumed causal and
maintaining factors for clinical problems
C. Both CBT and IPT focus more on the present than short-term psychodynamic
therapy
D. B and C
E. A, B, and C

Answer 20

E. A, B, and C

Question 21

Which of the following is FALSE?

A. Problem solving involves defining a problem and then generating, selecting, and
implementing solutions
B. Contingency management involves implementing reinforcements and punishments
to change problematic behavior
C. Behavioral activation involves scheduling activities to reduce inactivity and
increase rates of pleasurable activities
D. Social skills training in a behavioral technique
E. Relaxation training involves rehearsal of increasingly complex behavioral skills

Answer 21

E. Relaxation training involves rehearsal of increasingly complex behavioral skills

Question 22

Exposure therapy involves

A. Scheduling activities to reduce inactivity
B. Retraining the way a person breaths
C. Gradually approaching feared or avoided stimuli or situations
D. Rehearsing increasingly complex behavioral skills
E. Improving problem-solving skills

Answer 22

C. Gradually approaching feared or avoided stimuli or situations

Question 23

Which therapeutic approach(es) focus(es) more on problems in the present rather than
childhood or developmental issues?

A. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
B. Interpersonal Therapy
C. Short-Term Psychodynamic Therapy
D. A and B
E. A, B, and C

Answer 23

D. A and B

Question 24

Which therapeutic approach(es) focus(es) on helping the client to gain insight into issues of which the client was unaware?

A. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
B. Interpersonal Therapy
C. Short-Term Psychodynamic Therapy
D. B and C

Answer 24

C. Short-Term Psychodynamic Therapy

Question 25

True or False: Practitioners of short-term psychodynamic therapy assume that deficient emotional processing is a central component of psychopathology. A. True B. False

Answer 25

B. False

Question 26

Cognitive restructuring aims to A. Increase emotion awareness B. Increase the accuracy of client’s estimates of the probability of negative events C. Improve a client’s perception that negative events are survivable and manageable D. B and C E. A, B, and C

Answer 26

D. B and C

Question 27

Which of the following is TRUE about behavioral activation (BA)? A. BA initially was developed to treat autism B. BA involves increasing rates of previously pleasurable and meaningful activities C. BA introduces progressive muscle relaxation to help the client become more activated D. A and B E. A, B, AND C

Answer 27

B. BA involves increasing rates of previously pleasurable and meaningful activities

Question 28

Consider the three major approaches to intervention that we discussed in class, each of which proposes a particular reason that psychopathology develops. For each intervention, specify the underlying belief about the etiology of psychopathology and the main goal of the intervention.

Answer 28

Short-term Psychodynamic Therapy assumes that psychopathology arises from unresolved unconscious conflicts (mostly from childhood). Accordingly, the main goal of this intervention is to make the unconscious conscious in order to resolve psychological distress. This approach is often called “insight-oriented therapy.” Interpersonal Therapy posits that clinical problems result from difficulties in interpersonal relationships. Therefore, the main goal here is to address interpersonal issues. Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy assumes that psychological problems develop from maladaptive cognitions and maladaptive behaviors. Thus, CBT has two major components: a cognitive component and a behavioral component. The behavioral component suggests problem behaviors are learned and thus can be unlearned. The aim is to decrease unwanted behavior and increase desired behavior. The cognitive component suggests that maladaptive cognitions contribute to psychological disorders because cognitions mediate the link between what happens in the environment and the behavioral/emotional response to that environment. Accordingly, the cognitive component of CBT aims to identify, challenge and replace distorted/maladaptive cognitions.

Question 29

Suppose that you were treating a client diagnosed with social phobia and are focusing in particular on her marked fear and avoidance of social situations. How would you use cognitive techniques to approach her treatment?

Answer 29

A cognitive therapist would focus initially on helping her to identify distorted or maladaptive cognitions. Then she would learn how to challenge and replace these cognitions, by (a) examining the accuracy of her estimates of the probability of a negative outcome in social situations; (b) decatastrophizing her assumptions about the unmanageability of social situations; and (c) developing adaptive cognitive responses to social situations.

Question 30

Suppose that you were treating a client diagnosed with social phobia and are focusing in particular on her marked fear and avoidance of social situations. How would you use exposure techniques to approach her treatment?

Answer 30

An exposure therapist would help the client to develop a hierarchy of feared social situations and then gradually exposure herself to increasingly feared situations until she habituated to them (i.e., until her anxiety decreased).

Question 31

Suppose that you were treating a depressed college student. How might you use behavioral-activation techniques to approach his treatment?

Answer 31

Behavioral activation therapy would be used to help the client engage in behaviors that are important to her and/or make feel better (e.g. exercising, spending time with friends, attending classes), even in the absence of motivation to engage in these behaviors (e.g. the client feels like all she wants to do is lay in bed). In order to use this technique, you would begin by finding out what is important to the client and what experiences might typically be (or have been) pleasurable for the client. Next, you would use this information to come up with behaviors for the client to engage in, even if she doesn’t “feel” like engaging in them. Engaging in healthy/positive/valued behaviors helps individuals feel good even when they have low motivation to engage in these behaviors (e.g. because they are experiencing depression).

Question 32

Suppose that you were treating a couple seeking therapy because they are fighting a lot. How might training them to use problem-solving techniques help them?

Answer 32

You potentially could help this couple by helping them develop more effective problem solving strategies when dealing with one of topics with which they experience significant conflict. For each topic, you might have them focus first on defining the problem (without trying to solve it), then on generating a range of potential solutions (regardless of their effectiveness), then on selecting the best solution, and finally on implementing the solution and evaluating how well it’s working.

Question 33

Suppose that parents bring their 8-year-old son in for treatment. They describe him as very socially anxious, and he has begun refusing to go to school. How might you help the parents use contingency-management techniques to approach his treatment?

Answer 33

Contingency management would be used to increase desired behaviors and decrease undesirable behaviors via a system of reinforcements and punishments. Examples include taking the child out to dinner on the weekend if he goes to school every day that week or not allowing the child to have dessert if he does not attend school on time due to tantrums.

Question 34

Suppose that you were treating an elderly client who continues to be very depressed and isolated over three years after the death of his partner. How might you approach his treatment from the perspective of IPT?

Answer 34

You would treat this problem from an IPT perspective by conducting a diagnostic interview and taking an interpersonal inventory to assess the patient’s current interpersonal functioning. Based on his presenting concern, you likely would focus specifically on grief processes. This would involve helping him to reconstruct his relationship with deceased, encouraging his expression of affect and facilitating the mourning process, and helping him to establish new relationships.