Mental Health Terms

Question 0

Antidepressants

Answer 0

Drugs are used to alleviate he symptoms of depression and are also sometimes used to treat other psychological disorders, including anxiety disorders, seasonal affective disorder, and some eating disorders

Question 1

Affect

Answer 1

A person’s affect is the expression of emotion or feelings displayed to others through facial expressions, hand gestures, voice tone, and other emotional signs such as laughter or tears

Question 2

Antisocial personality disorder

Answer 2

Also known as psychopathy, sociopathy, dissocial personality disorder, or dyssocial personality disorder, APD is a diagnosis applied to people who routinely behave with little or no reguard for the rights, safety, or feelings of others

Question 3

Anxiety/anxiety disorders

Answer 3

A group of mental disturbances characterized by anxiety as a central or core symptom. Although anxiety is a commonplace experience, not everyone who experiences it has an anxiety disorder

Question 4

Apathy

Answer 4

An absence or suppression of emotion, feeling, concern, or passion. An indifference to things generally found to be exciting or moving

Question 5

Attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)

Answer 5

A chronic development disorder characterized by attention problems including distractibility, hyperactivity, impulsive behaviors, and the inability to remain focused on tasks or activities

Question 6

Autism

Answer 6

a complex developmental disorder distinguished by difficulties with social interaction, verbal and nonverbal communication, and behavioral problems, including repetitive behaviors and narrow focus of interest.

Question 7

Behavior therapy/behavior modification

Answer 7

an empirically based psychological treatment approach founded on the principles of operant conditioning. The goal is to replace undesirable behaviors with more desirable ones through positive or negative reinforcement of adaptive behavior.

Question 8

Biofeedback

Answer 8

or applied psychophysiological feedback is a patient-guided treatment that teaches an individual to control muscle tension, pain, body temperature, brain waves, and other bodily functions and processes through relaxation, visualization, and other cognitive control techniques.

Question 9

Bipolar disorder

Answer 9

formerly known as manic depression is a psychiatric disorder characterized by severe and unusual changes in energy level, mood, and interactions with others.

Question 10

Body image

Answer 10

a mental opinion or description that individuals have of their own physical appearance. It is a subjective concept, based on comparisons to socially constructed standards or ideals.

Question 11

Cognitive behavior therapy (CBT)

Answer 11

is an action-oriented form of psychosocial therapy that assumes that maladaptive, or faulty, thinking patterns cause maladaptive behavior and negative emotions. The treatment focuses on changing individuals’ thoughts (cognitive patterns) in order to change their behavior and emotional state.

Question 12

Delusion/delusional disorders

Answer 12

a psychotic condition characterized by recurrent or persistent non-bizarre delusions, without other obvious symptoms of mental illness. Delusions are false beliefs, based on a mistaken interpretation of reality.

Question 13

Depression

Answer 13

the general name for a family of illnesses known as depressive disorders. As an illness, depression can affect not only the personal mood and internal thoughts of a person, but also the outwardly physical functions of affected individuals.

Question 14

Desensitization

Answer 14

a treatment method which weakens the learned association between anxiety and feared objects or situations by strengthening another response—in this case, relaxation—that is incompatible with anxiety.

Question 15

Ego

Answer 15

that portion of the personality that imposes realistic limitations on the id.

Question 16

Emotional intelligence

Answer 16

ability to perceive and constructively act on both one’s own emotions and the feelings of others.

Question 17

Empathy

Answer 17

The capacity to vicariously experience and understand the thoughts and feelings of another person by putting oneself in that person’s place.

Question 18

Extroversion

Answer 18

A term used to characterize people who are typically outgoing, friendly, and open toward others.

Question 19

Forgetting curve

Answer 19

The general, predictable pattern of the process of forgetting learned information

Question 20

ID

Answer 20

The id is the part of the personality that includes such basic biological impulses or drives as eating, drinking, eliminating wastes, avoiding pain, attaining sexual pleasure, and aggression. The id operates on the “pleasure principle,” seeking to satisfy these basic urges immediately with no regard to consequences.

Question 21

Impulse control disorders

Answer 21

A psychological disorder characterized by the repeated inability to refrain from performing a particular action that is harmful either to oneself or others.

Question 22

Inferiority complex

Answer 22

A psychological condition that exists when a person’s feelings of inadequacy are so intense that daily living is impaired.

Question 23

Introversion

Answer 23

A commonly used term for people who are quiet, reserved, thoughtful, and self-reliant and who tend to prefer solitary work and leisure activities.

Question 24

Mania

Answer 24

A description of the condition opposite depression in manic-depressive psychosis, or bipolar disorder. It is characterized by a mood of elation without apparent reason.

Question 25

Mental imagery

Answer 25

A picture created by the imagination with no visual stimulus required.

Question 26

Narcissism

Answer 26

Excessive preoccupation with self and lack of empathy for others.

Question 27

OCD

Answer 27

Mental illness characterized by the recurrence of intrusive, anxiety-producing thoughts (obsessions) accompanied by repeated attempts to suppress these thoughts through the performance of certain irrational, often ritualistic, behaviors (compulsions)

Question 28

Panic/panic disorders

Answer 28

An acute feeling of intense fear, accentuated by increased heart rate, shortness of breath, sweating, and mild convulsions.

Question 29

Passive aggressive personality

Answer 29

Its main distinguishing feature is indirect resistance to the demands or expectations of others through stubbornness, forgetfulness, inefficiency, procrastination, and other covert means.

Question 30

Placebo

Answer 30

substances with no known pharmacological value that are given to members of a control group in an experiment.

Question 31

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)

Answer 31

A psychological disorder that develops in response to an extremely traumatic event that threatens a person’s safety or life.

Question 32

Psychosis

Answer 32

A symptom of mental illness characterized by a radical change in personality and a distorted or diminished sense of objective reality.

Question 33

Rapid eye movement

Answer 33

rapid eye movement (REM) sleep is also called active sleep because the EEG (electroencephalogram) patterns in this stage are similar to the patterns during the awake stage.

Question 34

Self esteem

Answer 34

an important component of emotional health, self-esteem encompasses both self-confidence and self-acceptance.

Question 35

Self fulfilling prophecy

Answer 35

An initial expectation that is confirmed by the behavior it elicits.

Question 36

Superego

Answer 36

In psychoanalytic theory, the part of the human personality that represents a person’s inner values and morals; also known as conscience.