PSY 333 Exam 3 Study Guide: Abnormal Psychology Disorders and Treatment
Review
anxiety versus fear versus panic - ANS ✔✔Strong negative emotions, Bodily symptoms of
tension, Future-oriented mood state, May occur in absence of realistic danger, Feelings of
apprehension and lack of control over upcoming events, A tense emotional state where you
have no control of the outcome; Present-oriented, Current danger, Strong escape tendencies,
Surge in sympathetic nervous system; Group of physical symptoms, Fight/flight response,
Unexpectedly occur, Absence of obvious danger or threat, High Alert
role of avoidance in all anxiety disorders; avoidance can take many different forms - ANS
✔✔Avoidance perpetuates anxiety. Why? Negative reinforcement cycle= failure to habituate.
Know the core features of the various anxiety disorders we reviewed in class (GAD, OCD, Social
phobia, panic disorder, agoraphobia, specific phobia, PTSD, acute stress disorder)—e.g.,
compulsions and obsessions characterize OCD; 3 core symptoms of PTSD - ANS ✔✔GAD:
Generalized Anxiety Disorder
excessive, uncontrollable anxiety and worry about many events and activities on most days
worry feels uncontrollable
Accompanied by at least one somatic symptom (e.g, headaches, stomach aches, muscle
tension) prevalence: 3-6% of children, Childhood: Early, common in boys and girls, Adolescence:
Higher in females, Onset, course, and outcome, Average age of onset:10-14 years, symptoms
persist over time; OCD: Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Recurrent, time-consuming , disturbing,
Obsessions: persistent and intrusive thoughts, ideas, impulses, or images, Compulsions:
repetitive, purposeful, and intentional behaviors or mental acts, Rituals are performed to relieve
or neutralize anxiety, OCD children often involve family members in rituals
rituals fail to provide long term relief from anxiety, resulting in time consuming, never ending
cycle of obsessions and compulsions, OCD is extremely resistant to reason often leads to severe
disruptions in normal activities, health, social and family relations, and school functioning,
prevalence: 1-3% Comorbidities: other anxiety disorders, depression, disruptive behavior
disorders
, age of onset: 9-12 years old chronic disorder: as many as two thirds continue to have OCD 2-14
years after initial diagnosis; Social Phobia: A marked, persistent fear of social or performance
requirements that expose the child to scrutiny and possible embarrassment
Most common fear is doing something in front of others More likely to be highly emotional,
socially fearful, and inhibited, sad, and lonely.Prevalence: 6-12%, nearly twice as many girls than
boys May be due to girls being more concerned with social competence and attaching greater
importance to interpersonal relationships and evaluations by peers than boys do; Panic
Disorder: Recurrent unexpected panic attacks, A
gender differences in anxiety—i.e., girls more likely to experience anxiety compared to males -
ANS ✔✔Prevalence & Comorbidity: ⅔ children in U.S. experience at least one potentially
traumatic event by 16, most do not develop PTSD, A large national sample: six-month
prevalence was 3.7% for boys & 6.3% for girls (ages 12-17), Nearly 75%: comorbid diagnosis of
depression and/or substance abuse, Prevalence of symptoms is strongly correlated with degree
of exposure
selective mutism and school refusal - ANS ✔✔The child is unable to speak in some settings and
some people, May talk normally at home but cannot speak at all or above a whisper in other
social settings
child will often get labeled as willful or oppositional can create severe distress and impact child's
participation in school and social activities most are fine talking with immediate family only
occur in 0.5% of children, average age of onset is 3-4 years may be an extreme type of social
phobia and associated with other risk factors like behavioral inhibition. Treatment: provide
opportunities to practice being brave, gradual steps, increasing difficulty (see hierarchy of goals
ladder); Refusal to attend classes or difficulty remaining in school for an entire day Equally
common in boys and girls Occurs most often between ages 5-11 → peaks in 2nd grade Fear of
school may be fear of leaving parents (separation anxiety) but can occur for many other reasons
Serious long-term consequences if it remains untreated
3 systems of anxiety - ANS ✔✔Physical System: The brain sends message to the sympathetic
nervous system (SNS), Produces the fight/flight response, Activates important chemicals
(Feelings in my body) eg; tummy ache, headache, heart racing- pounding heart, rapid breathing,
dizziness, sweating, nausea, tingling, muscle tension, trembling/shaking, chest pain, feeling of
choking, unreality, hot or cold flashes. Cognitive System: Anxious thinking (negative thoughts
Review
anxiety versus fear versus panic - ANS ✔✔Strong negative emotions, Bodily symptoms of
tension, Future-oriented mood state, May occur in absence of realistic danger, Feelings of
apprehension and lack of control over upcoming events, A tense emotional state where you
have no control of the outcome; Present-oriented, Current danger, Strong escape tendencies,
Surge in sympathetic nervous system; Group of physical symptoms, Fight/flight response,
Unexpectedly occur, Absence of obvious danger or threat, High Alert
role of avoidance in all anxiety disorders; avoidance can take many different forms - ANS
✔✔Avoidance perpetuates anxiety. Why? Negative reinforcement cycle= failure to habituate.
Know the core features of the various anxiety disorders we reviewed in class (GAD, OCD, Social
phobia, panic disorder, agoraphobia, specific phobia, PTSD, acute stress disorder)—e.g.,
compulsions and obsessions characterize OCD; 3 core symptoms of PTSD - ANS ✔✔GAD:
Generalized Anxiety Disorder
excessive, uncontrollable anxiety and worry about many events and activities on most days
worry feels uncontrollable
Accompanied by at least one somatic symptom (e.g, headaches, stomach aches, muscle
tension) prevalence: 3-6% of children, Childhood: Early, common in boys and girls, Adolescence:
Higher in females, Onset, course, and outcome, Average age of onset:10-14 years, symptoms
persist over time; OCD: Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Recurrent, time-consuming , disturbing,
Obsessions: persistent and intrusive thoughts, ideas, impulses, or images, Compulsions:
repetitive, purposeful, and intentional behaviors or mental acts, Rituals are performed to relieve
or neutralize anxiety, OCD children often involve family members in rituals
rituals fail to provide long term relief from anxiety, resulting in time consuming, never ending
cycle of obsessions and compulsions, OCD is extremely resistant to reason often leads to severe
disruptions in normal activities, health, social and family relations, and school functioning,
prevalence: 1-3% Comorbidities: other anxiety disorders, depression, disruptive behavior
disorders
, age of onset: 9-12 years old chronic disorder: as many as two thirds continue to have OCD 2-14
years after initial diagnosis; Social Phobia: A marked, persistent fear of social or performance
requirements that expose the child to scrutiny and possible embarrassment
Most common fear is doing something in front of others More likely to be highly emotional,
socially fearful, and inhibited, sad, and lonely.Prevalence: 6-12%, nearly twice as many girls than
boys May be due to girls being more concerned with social competence and attaching greater
importance to interpersonal relationships and evaluations by peers than boys do; Panic
Disorder: Recurrent unexpected panic attacks, A
gender differences in anxiety—i.e., girls more likely to experience anxiety compared to males -
ANS ✔✔Prevalence & Comorbidity: ⅔ children in U.S. experience at least one potentially
traumatic event by 16, most do not develop PTSD, A large national sample: six-month
prevalence was 3.7% for boys & 6.3% for girls (ages 12-17), Nearly 75%: comorbid diagnosis of
depression and/or substance abuse, Prevalence of symptoms is strongly correlated with degree
of exposure
selective mutism and school refusal - ANS ✔✔The child is unable to speak in some settings and
some people, May talk normally at home but cannot speak at all or above a whisper in other
social settings
child will often get labeled as willful or oppositional can create severe distress and impact child's
participation in school and social activities most are fine talking with immediate family only
occur in 0.5% of children, average age of onset is 3-4 years may be an extreme type of social
phobia and associated with other risk factors like behavioral inhibition. Treatment: provide
opportunities to practice being brave, gradual steps, increasing difficulty (see hierarchy of goals
ladder); Refusal to attend classes or difficulty remaining in school for an entire day Equally
common in boys and girls Occurs most often between ages 5-11 → peaks in 2nd grade Fear of
school may be fear of leaving parents (separation anxiety) but can occur for many other reasons
Serious long-term consequences if it remains untreated
3 systems of anxiety - ANS ✔✔Physical System: The brain sends message to the sympathetic
nervous system (SNS), Produces the fight/flight response, Activates important chemicals
(Feelings in my body) eg; tummy ache, headache, heart racing- pounding heart, rapid breathing,
dizziness, sweating, nausea, tingling, muscle tension, trembling/shaking, chest pain, feeling of
choking, unreality, hot or cold flashes. Cognitive System: Anxious thinking (negative thoughts
