MCAT Psychology PArt 3 Flashcards
A tropic hormone produced by the anteiror pituitary gland that targets the adrenal cortex, stimulating it to release cortisol and aldosterone
Adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH)
A person’s visible emotion in the moment
Affect
The most prevalent form of dementia, characterized by severe memory impairment
Alzheimers disease
An inability to form new memories
Anterograde amnesia
A psychological disorder characterized by serious behavior problems beginning in adolescence, including significant aggression agaisnt people or animals, property destruction, lying or theft
Antisocial personality disorder
A disorder characterized by intense, frequent, and uncontrollable anxiety
Anxiety disorder
A disorder characterized by feelings of inadequacy, inferiority, and undesirability, and a preoccupation with fears of criticism
Avoidant personality disorder
Means of recording and feeding back information about autonomic responses to an individual in an attempt to train the individual to control previously involuntary responses
Biofeedback
A disorder characterized by cyclic mood and episodes of depression and mania
Bipolar disorder
A psychological disorder characterized by a preoccupation with a slight physical anomaly or imagined defect in appearance
Body dysmorphic disorder
A disorder characterized by enduring or recurrent instability in impulse control, mood, and image of self and others
Borderline personality disorder
A disorder characterized by a change in sensory or motor function that has no discernible physical or physiological cause
Conversion disorder
Steroid hormone released during chronic stress.
Cortisol
Prolonged release of this is associated with suppressed immunity and increased illness
Cortisol
A disorder that is similar to bipolar disorder but the moods are less extreme
Cyclothymic disorder
A false belief that is not due to culture, and is not relinquished despite evidence that it is false
Delusion
A disorder characterized by a need to be taken care of by others and an unrealistic fear of being unable to take care of himself or herself
Dependent personality disorder
A disorder characterized by a recurring or persistent feeling of being cut off or detached from one’s body or mental processes, as if observing one’s self from the outside
Depersonalization disorder
A disorder characterized by psychosis in the form of inappropriate affect, disorganized speech, and disorganized behavior
Disorganized-type schizophrenia
A disorder characterized by at least one episode of suddenly forgetting some important personal information, usually related to severe stress or trauma
Dissociative amnesia
A disorder characterized by a person’s thoughts, feelings, or behaviors being separated from conscious awareness and control, and not explainable as mere forgetfulness
Dissociative disorder
A disorder in which someone goes on a journey, during which he or she cannot recall personal history prior to the journey
Dissociative fugue
A disorder characterized by alternating between multiple personality states
Dissociative identity disorder
A disorder characterized as a less intense, less chronic form of depression
Dysthymic disorder
A disorder characterized by tension or axiety much of the time about many issues but without the presence of panic attacks
Generalized anxiety disorder GAD
A false sensory perception that occurs while a person is conscious (not during sleep or delirium)
Hallucination
A disorder characterized by a strong desire to be the center of attention
Histrionic personality disorder
A disorder characterized by one or more depressive episodes, in which a person has felt worse than usual for most of the day, nearly every day, for at least two weeks
Major depressive disorder
An experience of an abnormal euphoric, unrestrained, or irritable mood
Manic episode
A person’s sustained internal emotion that colors his or her view of life
Mood
A disorder characterized by a peristent pattern of abnormal mood serious enough to cause significant personal distress
Mood disorder
A disorder characterized by grandiosity, and inflated sense of self
Narcissistic personality disorder
A disorder characterized by repeated, intrusive, uncontrollable thoughts and repeated physical behaviors that are done in response to an obsession
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
A disorder characterized by clinically important pain affected by psychological factors
Pain disorder
A disorder characterized by panic attacks cued by certain situations or occur frequently and unexpectedly
Panic disorder
A disorder characterized by mistust and misinterpretation of others’ motives and actions and suspicion or harm or betrayal
Paranoid personality disorder
A disorder characterized by psychosis in the form of hallucinations and/or dellusions, usually related to certain theme
Paranoid-type schizophrenia
A movement disorder caused by the death of dopamine-releasing cells
Parkinson’s disease
A disorder characterized by enduring, rigid set of personality traits that deviates from cultural norms, impairs functioning, and causes distress
Personality disorder
A strong unreasonable fear that almost always causes either general anxiety or a full panic attack
Phobia
Disorder characterized by re-experiencing a traumatic event through flashbacks or nightmares
Post-traumatic stress disorder
Disorder in which the criteria for schizophrenia are no longer met, but some symptoms are still present in milder forms
Residual-type schizophrenia
Occurs when one is unable to recall information that was previously encoded
Retrograde amnesia
A disorder characterized by the combination of mood and psychotic symptoms
Schizoaffective disorder
A disorder chracterized by little interest or involvement in close relationships, even those with family members
Schizoid personality disorder
A disorder that is chronic and incapacitating and is characterized by psychosis and impairment in functioning
Schizophrenia
A disorder characterized by symptoms of schizophrenia present for a period of one to six months, during which the symptoms may or may not have interfered with functioning.
Schizophreniform disorder
A disorder characterized by constricted or inappropriate affect, magical, or paranoid thinking, and odd beliefs, speech, behavior, appearance, and perceptions
Schizotypal personality disorder
An unreasonable, paralyzing fear of feeling embarassed or humiliated while one is watched by others
Social phobia
A psychological disorder characterized by a variety of physical symptoms over an extended time period
Somatization disorder
A disorder characterized primarily by physical symptoms and concerns, but the symptoms are not explainable medically and do not improve with medical treatment
Somatoform disorder
A persistent, strong, and unreasonable fear of a certain object or situation
Specific phobia
A disorder characterized by the basic criteria for schizophrenia, but symptoms that do not fit into one of the other subtypes
Undifferentiated-type schizophrenia
Lack of motivation___
avolition
___ is the term for decreased or absent speech
Alogia
___ suggests that while genetic inheritance provides a biological predisposition for schizophrenia, stressors elicit the onset of the disease
Stress-diathesis theory
__ suggest that the pathway for the neurotransmitter dopamine is hyperactive in people with schizophrenia
Dopamine hypothesis
Depression has been linked to diminished functioning in pathways in the brain that involve the neurotransmitters __,___,and__
dopamine, serotonin, and norepinephrine
Alzheimer’s disease is a ___
cortical disease, affects the cortex
Alzheimers is caused by the formation of ___
neuritic plaques, hard formation of beta-amyloid protein and neurofibrillary tangles
There is some evidence of abnormal activity of the neurotransmitter __ in the hippocampus
Acetylcholine
PArkinsons’ disease is a movement disorder caused by the death of cells that generate dopamine in the __ and ___
basal ganglia and substantia nigra, two subcortical structures in the brain
Treatment for parkinsons is ___
L-dopa it is a precursor of dopamine and it able to pass the blood-brain barrier
___ refers to how something is interpreted by the individual
Appraisal
