Comprehensive Review of Anxiety
Disorders and Evidence-Based
Treatments: NU 664C Study Guide 2025
Edition
Graded Exposure
A. Sudden confrontation with feared situations
B. Avoidance of anxiety triggers
C. Incremental exposure to feared situations for mastery
D. Use of medication to suppress anxiety
Rationale: Correct because graded exposure involves gradual contact with feared stimuli to
reduce fear. Sudden confrontation (A) can worsen anxiety, avoidance (B) maintains fear, and
medication (D) doesn’t build mastery.
Thought Stopping
A. Encouraging rumination
B. Technique to interrupt negative thought patterns
C. Ignoring distressing thoughts
D. Journaling without control
Rationale: Correct because thought stopping helps break repetitive negative thinking.
Rumination (A) reinforces anxiety, ignoring (C) suppresses it temporarily, journaling (D) doesn’t
actively interrupt patterns.
Relaxation Techniques
A. Overexposure to stressors
B. Methods to reduce anxiety through physical relaxation
C. Avoidance of all stimuli
D. Excessive exercise
Rationale: Correct because relaxation reduces physiological arousal. Overexposure (A) or
avoidance (C) are maladaptive; excessive exercise (D) can heighten stress.
Self-Monitoring
A. Avoiding self-awareness
B. Tracking one’s thoughts and behaviors to identify patterns
C. Suppressing emotional responses
D. Ignoring anxiety symptoms
Rationale: Correct because self-monitoring identifies triggers and progress. Avoidance (A) and
suppression (C) hinder insight; ignoring (D) delays improvement.
,Hypnosis
A. Avoiding conscious awareness
B. Induced state to facilitate therapeutic change
C. Medication-induced sedation
D. Meditation practice
Rationale: Correct because hypnosis alters focus and receptivity to suggestion. Sedation (C) and
meditation (D) differ in mechanism; avoidance (A) is incorrect.
Interpersonal Skills Training
A. Focuses only on medication
B. Improves social interaction abilities in anxious patients
C. Encourages isolation
D. Uses avoidance conditioning
Rationale: Correct because it builds confidence in social settings. Medication (A) alone doesn’t
teach skills, isolation (C) worsens symptoms, conditioning (D) is unrelated.
Cultural Variables
A. Universal expression of anxiety
B. Genetic differences only
C. Anxiety disorder prevalence influenced by cultural context
D. Identical treatment outcomes across societies
Rationale: Correct because culture affects symptom expression and help-seeking. Genetics (B)
and universality (A) ignore sociocultural impact; (D) is empirically false.
Epidemiological Studies
A. Individual case reports
B. Research on prevalence rates of anxiety disorders
C. Laboratory genetic experiments
D. Qualitative interviews only
Rationale: Correct because epidemiology quantifies disorder frequency. Case reports (A) lack
scope; (C) and (D) serve other research aims.
Treatment Bias
A. Random error
B. Concerns affecting the validity of therapy studies
C. Complete objectivity in trials
D. A type of genetic error
Rationale: Correct because bias distorts findings. Random error (A) is unrelated to design flaws;
(C) is idealized; (D) irrelevant.
Adaptive Defenses
A. Maladaptive coping patterns
B. Coping mechanisms encouraged in supportive psychotherapy
C. Rigid behavioral patterns
D. Avoidance strategies
, Rationale: Correct because adaptive defenses manage stress healthily. Maladaptive (A) or rigid
(C) behaviors worsen distress; avoidance (D) is not adaptive.
Cognitive Distortions
A. Realistic appraisals
B. Misinterpretations of reality contributing to anxiety
C. Logical reasoning
D. Accurate emotional labeling
Rationale: Correct because distortions are irrational beliefs causing anxiety. The others reflect
healthy cognition.
Amygdala
A. Controls voluntary movement
B. Governs language
C. Brain region associated with fear and anxiety
D. Regulates hormonal secretion
Rationale: Correct because the amygdala activates fear processing. The other options describe
unrelated brain functions.
Hippocampus
A. Responsible for smell perception
B. Controls heart rate
C. Brain area implicated in memory and anxiety regulation
D. Produces hormones
Rationale: Correct because hippocampal dysfunction links to anxiety and memory issues. The
others involve different systems.
Fight-or-Flight Reaction
A. Relaxation response
B. Physiological response to perceived threats or stress
C. Digestive system activation
D. Hormonal suppression
Rationale: Correct because the fight-or-flight response prepares the body for threat. The others
contradict the stress response mechanism.
Monoamines
A. Enzymes breaking down hormones
B. Neurotransmitters involved in anxiety mechanisms
C. Structural brain tissue
D. Protein receptors
Rationale: Correct because monoamines (e.g., serotonin, dopamine) regulate mood and anxiety.
The others refer to different biological entities.
HPA Axis
A. Brainstem reflex circuit
B. Hormonal system regulating stress response
Disorders and Evidence-Based
Treatments: NU 664C Study Guide 2025
Edition
Graded Exposure
A. Sudden confrontation with feared situations
B. Avoidance of anxiety triggers
C. Incremental exposure to feared situations for mastery
D. Use of medication to suppress anxiety
Rationale: Correct because graded exposure involves gradual contact with feared stimuli to
reduce fear. Sudden confrontation (A) can worsen anxiety, avoidance (B) maintains fear, and
medication (D) doesn’t build mastery.
Thought Stopping
A. Encouraging rumination
B. Technique to interrupt negative thought patterns
C. Ignoring distressing thoughts
D. Journaling without control
Rationale: Correct because thought stopping helps break repetitive negative thinking.
Rumination (A) reinforces anxiety, ignoring (C) suppresses it temporarily, journaling (D) doesn’t
actively interrupt patterns.
Relaxation Techniques
A. Overexposure to stressors
B. Methods to reduce anxiety through physical relaxation
C. Avoidance of all stimuli
D. Excessive exercise
Rationale: Correct because relaxation reduces physiological arousal. Overexposure (A) or
avoidance (C) are maladaptive; excessive exercise (D) can heighten stress.
Self-Monitoring
A. Avoiding self-awareness
B. Tracking one’s thoughts and behaviors to identify patterns
C. Suppressing emotional responses
D. Ignoring anxiety symptoms
Rationale: Correct because self-monitoring identifies triggers and progress. Avoidance (A) and
suppression (C) hinder insight; ignoring (D) delays improvement.
,Hypnosis
A. Avoiding conscious awareness
B. Induced state to facilitate therapeutic change
C. Medication-induced sedation
D. Meditation practice
Rationale: Correct because hypnosis alters focus and receptivity to suggestion. Sedation (C) and
meditation (D) differ in mechanism; avoidance (A) is incorrect.
Interpersonal Skills Training
A. Focuses only on medication
B. Improves social interaction abilities in anxious patients
C. Encourages isolation
D. Uses avoidance conditioning
Rationale: Correct because it builds confidence in social settings. Medication (A) alone doesn’t
teach skills, isolation (C) worsens symptoms, conditioning (D) is unrelated.
Cultural Variables
A. Universal expression of anxiety
B. Genetic differences only
C. Anxiety disorder prevalence influenced by cultural context
D. Identical treatment outcomes across societies
Rationale: Correct because culture affects symptom expression and help-seeking. Genetics (B)
and universality (A) ignore sociocultural impact; (D) is empirically false.
Epidemiological Studies
A. Individual case reports
B. Research on prevalence rates of anxiety disorders
C. Laboratory genetic experiments
D. Qualitative interviews only
Rationale: Correct because epidemiology quantifies disorder frequency. Case reports (A) lack
scope; (C) and (D) serve other research aims.
Treatment Bias
A. Random error
B. Concerns affecting the validity of therapy studies
C. Complete objectivity in trials
D. A type of genetic error
Rationale: Correct because bias distorts findings. Random error (A) is unrelated to design flaws;
(C) is idealized; (D) irrelevant.
Adaptive Defenses
A. Maladaptive coping patterns
B. Coping mechanisms encouraged in supportive psychotherapy
C. Rigid behavioral patterns
D. Avoidance strategies
, Rationale: Correct because adaptive defenses manage stress healthily. Maladaptive (A) or rigid
(C) behaviors worsen distress; avoidance (D) is not adaptive.
Cognitive Distortions
A. Realistic appraisals
B. Misinterpretations of reality contributing to anxiety
C. Logical reasoning
D. Accurate emotional labeling
Rationale: Correct because distortions are irrational beliefs causing anxiety. The others reflect
healthy cognition.
Amygdala
A. Controls voluntary movement
B. Governs language
C. Brain region associated with fear and anxiety
D. Regulates hormonal secretion
Rationale: Correct because the amygdala activates fear processing. The other options describe
unrelated brain functions.
Hippocampus
A. Responsible for smell perception
B. Controls heart rate
C. Brain area implicated in memory and anxiety regulation
D. Produces hormones
Rationale: Correct because hippocampal dysfunction links to anxiety and memory issues. The
others involve different systems.
Fight-or-Flight Reaction
A. Relaxation response
B. Physiological response to perceived threats or stress
C. Digestive system activation
D. Hormonal suppression
Rationale: Correct because the fight-or-flight response prepares the body for threat. The others
contradict the stress response mechanism.
Monoamines
A. Enzymes breaking down hormones
B. Neurotransmitters involved in anxiety mechanisms
C. Structural brain tissue
D. Protein receptors
Rationale: Correct because monoamines (e.g., serotonin, dopamine) regulate mood and anxiety.
The others refer to different biological entities.
HPA Axis
A. Brainstem reflex circuit
B. Hormonal system regulating stress response
