General Psychology

TEST 4 STUDY GUIDE

Chapters 12, 13, & 14

General Psychology

Textbook: Experience Psychology by Laura King

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Chapter 12 Study Guide

• What is abnormal behavior? Deviant, maladaptive, or personally distressful behavior over a long period of time
• What is maladaptive behavior? Interferes with one’s ability to function effectively in the world
• What is the psychological approach? Emphasizes the contributions of experiences, thoughts, emotions, and personality characteristics in explaining psychological disorders.
• What types of characteristics are taken into consideration when using the sociocultural approach? Gender, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, family relationships, and culture
• What are the main controversies surrounding the DMS-IV-TR? Treats psychological disorders as if they’re medical illnesses and taking an overly biological viewpoint of disorders that may have roots in social experience.
• What feelings or emotions are associated with anxiety disorders? Overwhelming sense of worry
• What are the characteristics of panic disorder? Severe palpitations, extreme shortness of breath, chest pains, trembling, sweating, dizziness, and feeling of helplessness
• What disorders fall under the category of anxiety disorders? Generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, specific phobia, social anxiety disorder
• What are the effects of PTSD? Flashbacks, avoiding emotional experiences, emotional numbness, excessive arousal, difficulties with memory and concentration, and impulsive behavior.
• What is the leading cause of disability in the US? Chronic diseases
• What brain structures are involved in depression?  Are the brain structures less or more active?  Lower levels of brain activity in a section of the prefrontal cortex
• What is learned helplessness? An individual’s feelings of powerlessness after exposure to aversive circumstances over which the person has no control.
• How many people who commit suicide are thought to have a diagnosable mental disorder?  90%
• In people suffering from anorexia nervosa, what is their weight when compared to normal people? Less than 85% normal weight
• What is the main feature of dissociative disorders? Persistently feel a sense of disconnect
• What is the least common dissociative disorder? Dissociative identity disorder
• What are the positive symptoms of schizophrenia? Hallucinations, delusions, thought disorders, and disorders of movement.
• What are hallucinations? Sensory experiences that occur in the absence of real stimuli

Chapter 13 Study Guide

• What type of disorders are benzodiazepines used to treat? What are some examples of them?  Anxiety. Valium.
• What are Tricylics and what disorder are they used to treat? Chemical compounds used primarily as antidepressants. Depression
• What have studies shown about the use of antidepressants in children? Their depression can be treated like an adult’s but the side effects are worse in them.
• What is electroconvulsive therapy used to treat? Depression
• What is the focus of psychodynamic therapy? The unconscious mind
• What is transference? Be able to recognize and example. Relating to the analyst in ways that reproduce or relive important relationships in the client’s life.
• What are the characteristics of client-centered therapy? The therapist provides a warm, supportive atmosphere to improve the client’s self-concept and to encourage the client to gain insight into problems
• What is the primary premise of the humanistic approach? Self-understanding and personal growth
• What is the goal of behavior therapy? Uses the principles of learning to reduce or eliminate maladaptive behavior
• What is cognitive therapy? They attempt to change the individual’s feeling and behaviors by changing cognitions
• What is the focus of Beck’s cognitive therapy? Getting people to recognize the connections between their thoughts and their feelings and helping them use thinking to change their feelings
• What are the advantages of group therapy?  It brings together individuals who share a psychological disorder in sessions.
• What techniques are used in family therapy? Validation, reframing, structural change, detriangulation
• What are some examples of self-help groups? AA, NA,
• What does research say about the effectiveness of psychotherapy? It works long after therapy stops
• What occurs for therapy to be considered effective?  The client shows improvement
• What is the most important factor in the outcome of therapy? Long lasting results in the decrease of maladaptive behavior

Chapter 14 Study Guide

• What is the belief of health psychology? Lifestyle choices, behaviors, and psychological characteristics can play important roles in health
• What is the difference between theory of reasoned action and theory of planned action?  Theory of reasoned action is why you’re doing it and theory of planned action is control over the outcome.
• Which state of change is consciousness raising associated with? contemplation
• What is the order of the stages of change model? Precontemplation, contemplation, preparation/determination, action/will power, maintenance
• What is associated with each stage in the stages of change model? Denial, consciousness, action, transcendence
• What is the strongest predictor of making successful life changes? Will power
• What have studies shown about the benefits of religious participation? Increased physical and mental health
• What is associated with an internal locus of control? Sense of personal control
• What is self-efficacy and what concept is it linked to? An individual’s belief that he or she can master a situation and produce positive outcomes. Success in positive life changes.
• What does Seligman say about optimists and pessimists? A matter of how a person explains the causes of bad events
• What is the general adaptation syndrome used to describe? Common effects on the body when demands are placed on it
• What are the stages of the general adaptation syndrome? Alarm, resistance, exhaustion
• What is primary appraisal? Individuals interpret whether an event involves harm or loss that has already occurred
• What is secondary appraisal? Individuals evaluate their resources and determine how effectively they can be marshaled to cope with the event
• What is emotion-focused coping and how does it reduce stress? Cognitive strategy of squarely facing one’s troubles and trying to solve them. You face the problem head on and get help.
• What is problem-focused coping and how does it reduce stress? Responding to the stress one is feeling. You manage the emotional reaction.
• What are the rates of teen pregnancy in the US when compared to other countries? They are higher