Quiz 3

Question 1

Which of the following is true about the occurrence of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder in males and females:

a. the disorder is about twice as common in males than females
b. the disorder is about twice as common in females than males
c. in children, the disorder is more common in males hut, in adults, it is about equally

common in males and females

d. in children, the disorder is more common in females but, in adults, it is about equally

common in males and females

Answer 1

1. Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is about equally common in male and female adults
   a. Incorrect See explanation for response c.
   b. Incorrect See explanation for response c
   c. CORRECT OCD has an earlier peak onset for males than females, which means that, in children, the disorder is more common in males. (For males the peak onset is between 6 and 15 years; for females, between 20 and 29.)
   d. Incorrect See explanation for response c

Question 2

2. In adults, Major Depressive Disorder occurs about twice as often in females than males

This gender difference:

a, is the opposite of what is found in prepubertal children

b. is the same as what is found in prepubertal children

c, does not become evident until mid-adolescence

d. does not become evident until early adulthood

Answer 2

2. In adults, the rate of Major Depressive Disorder for females is twice as high as the rate for males.
   a. Incorrect See explanation for response c.
   b. Incorrect See explanation for response c.
   c. CORRECT Although there is some evidence that young girls exhibit more risk factors for

depression during childhood, it is not until puberty that the gender difference in the rates for Major Depressive Disorder becomes evident. (See, e.g., S. Nolen-Hoeksema and J. S. Girgus, The emergence of gender differences in depression during adolescence, Psychological Bulletin, 1994, 1 15, 424-443.)

d. See explanation for response c.

Question 3

3. Alcohol-Induced Sleep Disorder most often involves which of the following symptoms:

a, increased wakefulness, restless sleep, and vivid dreams

b. abnormal physiological and behavioral symptoms during sleep
c. excessively long nocturnal sleep and excessive sleepiness during the day
d. difficulty falling and staying asleep with a reduction in REM (dream) sleep

Answer 3

3. DSM-IV-TR states that Alcohol Induced Sleep Disorder “typically occurs as the Insomnia Type” (p. 657).
   a. CORRECT Although alcohol initially produces sleepiness, this is followed by insomnia, restless sleep, and increased REM sleep, often with vivid, anxiety-laden dreams. Note that the diagnosis of Alcohol Induced Sleep Disorder requires that the sleep disturbance be etiologically related to alcohol intoxication or withdrawal.
   b. Incorrect See explanation above.
   c. Incorrect See explanation above.
   d. Incorrect See explanation above.

Question 4

4. A therapist relying on a solution-focused family therapy approach would be most interested in which of the following:
   a. miracle and scaling questions
   b. boundary disturbances
   c. joining and mimesis
   d. schism and skew

Answer 4

4. If you are unfamiliar with solution-focused therapy, you may have been able to choose the correct answer to this question through the process of elimination.
   a. CORRECT Solution-focused therapists use various types of questions to identify solutions to a client’s problems. The miracle question involves asking what the individual would notice first if, as the result of a miracle, his/her problem is suddenly gone. The scaling question involves asking members of a couple or family to individually rate a situation in order to help them see how the problem is perceived by others.
   b. Incorrect Boundary disturbances are of concern to Gestalt psychologists.
   c. Incorrect Joining and mimesis are techniques used by structural family therapists.
   d. Incorrect Marital schism and skew are terms used by Theodore Lidz to describe dysfunctional marital relationships.

Question 5

5. According to Cross, an African-American adult in which of the following stages of identity development is likely to say that racial discrimination is not a contributor to his problems and that he prefers to see a white therapist:
   a. disintegration
   b. pre-encounter
   c. emersion
   cd. pseudo-independence

Answer 5

5. Cross’s Nigrescence identity development model distinguishes between four stages - pre-encounter, encounter, immerslon/emersion. and intel-nalization/commitment.
   a. Incorrect See explanation for response b.
   b. CORRECT According to Cross, race has low salience for those in the pre-encounter phase. People in this stage are likely to deny the impact of racial oppression and to prefer a white therapist.
   c. Incorrect See explanation for response b.
   d. Incorrect See explanation for response b.

Question 6

6. A husband and wife avoid conflicts with one another by focusing their attentton on helping their child overcome his difficulties at school. As described by Minuchin, this is an

example of:

a. reframing
b. detouring

c, stable coalition

d. triangulation

Answer 6

6. Minuchin distinguished between three types of rigid triangles that help alleviate tension

between two family members - detouring, stable coalition, and triangulation.

a. Incorrect Reframing is a paradoxical technique that involves providing an alternative

meaning for a behavior so that it can be seen from a new perspective.

b. CORRECT Detouring occurs when parents avoid the tension between them by either blaming or overprotecting a child.
c. Incorrect A stable coalition occurs when a parent and child consistently “gang up” against the other parent.
d. Incorrect Triangulation occurs when both parents attempt to get the child to side with him or her.

Question 7

7. Research on Kohlberg’s theory of moral development has found that very few people ever reach Stage 6. However, some do engage in Stage 5 reasoning and base their moral judgments on:
   a. social contracts
   b. self-chosen universally-applicable standards
   c. the social order
   d. the motivation underlying an act

Answer 7

7. Kohlberg’s theory distinguishes between six stages that represent three levels of moral development - preconventional, conventional, and postconventional.
   a. CORRECT Stage 5 is the first stage in the postconventional level. People in this stage consider social contracts and democratically-chosen laws when making moral judgments.
   b. Incorrect Internalized universal moral principles underlie the judgments made by people in Stage 6.
   c. Incorrect People in Stage 4 consider the need to maintain social order when making moral judgments about an act.
   d. Incorrect An actor’s intentions are of concern to people in Piaget’s autonomous stage of moral development.

Question 8

8. In the case of Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka (1954), research by Kenneth and Mamie Clark was used to support the argument that:

a, school segregation contributes to a negative self-image among African-American

children

b. school segregation contributes to low school achievement among African-American children
c. low IQ test scores obtained by African-American children are due, in large part, to test bias
d. academic underachievement of African-American children is related to low teacher

expectations

Answer 8

8. Kenneth and Mamie Clark are best known for their work on ethnic racial identity in young children.
   a. CORRECT These investigators found that young African-American children usually exhibited a preference for a white (vs. African-American) doll, and concluded that this was indicative of a poor self-image. Their findings were used by the plaintiffs in the evidence of the negative effects of segregation on the self-image of African American Children
   b. Incorrect See explanation above.
   c. Incorrect See explanation above.
   d. Incorrect See explanation above.

Question 9

9. The minimal meaningful unit of speech is referred to as
   a. homophone

b, morpheme

c. phoneme
d. sememe

Answer 9

9. A number of terms are used to describe the elements of written and spoken speech.
   a. Incorrect The term “homophone” refers to two or more letters or groups of letters that have the same sound (e.g,, “c” in cite and “s” in song).
   b. Incorrect A morpheme is the smallest meaningful unit in a language. Suffixes and prefixes are examples of morphemes.
   c. CORRECT A phoneme is the smallest unit of distinct sound in a language. Phonemes combine to form morphemes and words.
   d. Incorrect The term sememe refers to the meaning of a morpheme.

Question 10

10. Research investigating the usefulness of fluoxetine (Prozac) for treating bulimia suggests that level of serotonin:
    a. is not an etiological factor
    b. may be an etiological factor for females only
    c. may be an etiological factor for males only
    d. may be an etiological factor

Answer 10

10. Recent research on the biological causes of eating disorders has focused on the role of the neurotransmitters.
    a. Incorrect See explanation for response d.
    b. Incorrect See explanation for response d.
    c. Incorrect See explanation for response d.
    d. CORRECT Several neurotransmitters have been implicated in the eating disorders, but the greatest amount of evidence links low serotonin levels to bulimia. For example, fluoxetine and other SSRIs have been found useful for alleviating the symptoms of bulimia.

Question 11

11. Difficulty in repeating words just spoken by another person and recalling the name of a familiar object are characteristic symptoms of:
    a. Wernicke’s aphasia only
    b. Wernicke’s and conduction aphasia only
    c. Wernicke’s and Broca’s aphasia only
    d. Wernicke’s, Broca’s, and conduction aphasia

Answer 11

11. The three aphasias listed in the responses - Wernicke’s, Broca’s and conduction - share

several characteristics.

a. Incorrect See explanation for response d.
b. Incorrect See explanation for response d.
c. Incorrect See explanation for response d.
d. CORRECT All three types of aphasia involve the two symptoms listed in the question

(difficulty in repeating words and recalling the names of familiar objects). Note that conduction

aphasia is due to damage to nerve fibers that connect Broca’s area to Wernicke’s area.

Question 12

12. Broca’s aphasia is to Wernicke’s aphasia as:
    a. the temporal lobe is to the parietal lobe
    b. the frontal lobe is to the parietal lobe
    c. the parietal lobe is to the occipital lobe
    d. the frontal lobe is to the temporal lobe

Answer 12

12. Broca’s (expressive) aphasia is caused by damage to Broca’s area, while Wernicke’s (receptive) aphasia is caused by damage to Wernicke’s area.
    a. Incorrect See explanation for response d.
    b. Incorrect See explanation for response d.
    c. Incorrect See explanation for response d.
    d. CORRECT Broca’s area is located in the frontal lobe adjacent to the primary motor cortex, while Wernicke’s area is located in the temporal lobe adjacent to the primary auditory area.

Question 13

13. Dr. Tout, a psychologist, has been asked to serve as a fact witness by the plaintiffs attorney. The plaintiff was in a car accident three months ago and is claiming that he has suffered from persistent emotional problems as a result of the accident. He has been seeing Dr. Tout in therapy for these problems for several weeks. During her testimony in court, Dr. Tout is asked by the plaintiffs attorney whether, in her opinion, the patient’s emotional
    difficulties are directly related to the accident. Dr. Tout should:

a. comply with the request as long as she also presents any information regarding possible limitations of her opinion
b. comply with request only if her evaluation of the defendant has provided her with sufficient information for an informed opinion

C. comply with the request only if the defendant has waived his right to confidentiality

d. not comply with the request unless she is ordered to do so by the court

Answer 13

13. The distinction between a fact witness and an expert witness is an important one. As the names imply, a fact witness testifies only to the facts, while an expert witness can offer an opinion. Note that, in this question, Dr. Tout has been asked to serve as a fact witness.
    a. Incorrect See explanation for response d
    b. Incorrect See explanation for response d.
    c. Incorrect See explanation for response d.
    d. CORRECT This issue is addressed by T. P. Remley in Preparing for Court Appearances. American Counseling Association, Alexandria, VA, 1991. Remley notes that a fact witness should not render an opinion at a bearing or trial and, if asked to give an opinion, should note that he/she is not in a position to do so because of potential bias, insufficient information on which to base an opinion, etc. (A psychologist may be required to give an opinion when ordered to do so by the court. However, even in this situation, the psychologist should qualify the opinion with a statement about its potential limitations.)

Question 14

14. You are asked by one of the parties in a custody case to offer an opinion as to the best custody arrangement for the couple’s child at an upcoming hearing. The party making the request believes you are the best person to offer an opinion since you have been seeing the child in therapy since her parents separated 12 months ago. You should:
    a. agree to the request and make sure that you base your opinion on the best interests of the child
    b. agree to the request only if you are also able to evaluate both parents
    c. agree to the request only if both parents sign a consent
    d. refuse to do so

Answer 14

14. This issue is addressed in APA’s Guidelines for Child Custody Evaluations in Divorce Proceedings.
    a. Incorrect See explanation for response d
    b. Incorrect See explanation for response d
    c. Incorrect See explanation for response d.
    d. CORRECT The Guidelines states that psychologists must avoid multiple relationships. For example, they should avoid assuming an evaluative role in custody cases where they already have established a therapeutic relationship with the child andlor the child’s parents.

Question 15

15. A third-grade teacher puts a student in the “time-out chair” for 15 minutes when he is disruptive. After 10 minutes in time-out, the boy tells the teacher that he is sorry, that he knows what he did was wrong, and that he won’t bother the other children again. The
    teacher lets him rejoin the other students in the classroom. Three days later, the boy again
    disturbs the other students and the teacher sends him to time-out for 15 minutes. This time. the boy apologizes and promises he won’t misbehave again after only 8 minutes. The teacher again lets the boy rejoin his classmates. In this situation, the boy’s expression of remorse is being controlled by:

a. positive reinforcement

b, avoidance conditioning

c. escape conditioning
d. higher-order conditioning

Answer 15

15. In the situation described in this question, the boy’s apology is being controlled by negative reinforcement - it occurs because it causes an undesirable event [the time-out) to be removed.
    a. Incorrect See explanation for response c.
    b. Incorrect See explanation for response c.
    c. CORRECT Escape conditioning is a type of negative reinforcement in which a behavior occurs because it allows the individual to escape an undesirable stimulus or event. (Avoidance conditioning is another application of negative reinforcement. It involves presenting a cue that signals that an undesirable event is about to occur so that the individual can avoid the undesirable event by engaging in the target behavior as soon as the cue is presented.)
    d. Incorrect See explanation for response c.

Question 16

16. Procedural memory is to declarative memory as:
    a. echoic is to iconic
    b. fact is to experience
    c. explicit is to implicit
    d. skill is to fact

Answer 16

16. Long-term memory can be conceptualized in terms of two basic types or categories - procedural and declarative.
    a. Incorrect See explanation for response d.
    b. Incorrect See explanation for response d.

Psychology Written Post-Test 10 Answer Key and Rationale

c. Incorrect See explanation for response d.
d. CORRECT As its name implies, procedural memory contains memories for procedures - that is, perceptual, cognitive, and motor skills. Declarative memory (which is subdivided into

semantic and episodic memory) contains memories for facts and events.

Question 17

17. Of the intermittent schedules of reinforcement, the variable ratio schedule produces the quickest acquisition of a behavior and the greatest resistance to extinction once reinforcement is terminated. This is because:
    a. reinforcement is presented after a predictable number of responses
    b. reinforcement is presented after an unpredictable number of responses
    c. reinforcement is presented after a predictable interval of time
    d. reinforcement is presented after an unpredictable interval of time

Answer 17

17. Ratio schedules provide reinforcement after a prespecified number of responses, while interval schedules provide reinforcement after a prespecified period of time (as long as at least one response is made during that interval). Knowing this would have helped you choose the correct answer to this question.
    a. Incorrect This is true about a fixed ratio schedule.
    b. CORRECT When using a variable ratio schedule, the number of responses required for reinforcement varies from trial to trial but, on the average, requires a specific number of responses. For example on a VR-10 schedule, the individual might be reinforced for 8 responses, then 12 responses, and then 10 responses. It is apparently this unpredictability that accounts for the effectiveness of this schedule in establishing and maintaining behaviors.
    c. Incorrect This is characteristic of a fixed interval schedule
    d. Incorrect This is true about a variable interval schedule

Question 18

18. During the sixth week of the semester, students in an introductory psychology class meet on a Saturday morning to discuss their class project. In the first meeting, a couple of the students say they think the instructor is boring and a "bad" teacher. The other students 
say they disagree and that he "isn't so bad." At the end of their meeting, however, one of the students says, "Let's take a vote - how many of you agree that our instructor is the worst teacher you've ever had?" and every student raises his or her hand. The students' agreement about the instructor's lack of ability is an example of which of the following: 

a. social facilitation
b. group polarization
c. the fundamental attribution bias
d. negative framing

Answer 18

18. In this situation, the evaluation of the instructor has become more extreme for some group members as a result of their participation in the group.
    a. Incorrect Social facilitation occurs when performance on a task is improved as the result of the presence of other people.
    b. CORRECT Group polarization refers to the tendency of groups to make more extreme decisions than individual group members would make alone. Of the responses given, group polarization best “fits” the situation described in this question.
    c. Incorrect The fundamental attribution bias refers to the tendency to make dispositional attributions when judging the behavior of others.
    d. Incorrect Negative framing refers to presenting a problem to a person in negative terms.

Question 19

19. In organizations, employee surveys are most often conducted to:
    a. determine the effects of an organization-wide intervention
    b. evaluate employee attitudes and opinions about an intervention
    c. identify employees who would benefit from an intervention
    d. allow employees to evaluate the job performance of their co-workers

Answer 19

19. The term “survey” is rather vague and refers to a variety of information-gathering techniques. However, in general, surveys are used to obtain information about respondents’ feelings and opinions.
    a. Incorrect See explanation for response b.
    b. CORRECT Survey feedback is one example of the use of surveys in organizations. It is an organizational development (OD) strategy that involves obtaining information about employees’ opinions about specific aspects of the organization and using this information to identify and correct problems.
    c. Incorrect See explanation for response b.
    d. Incorrect See explanation for response b.