All AP Psychology Resources
Example Questions
Example Question #101 : Psychological Abnormalities
Which of the following is true regarding lobotomies?
They were developed and popularized by G. Stanley Hall in the 1850s.
This psychosurgery involves severing connections in the frontal lobe.
They are commonly utilized in practice today.
They are highly effective in treating catatonic symptoms.
This psychosurgery involves creating new neuronal connections in the amygdala to foster appropriate emotional expression.
This psychosurgery involves severing connections in the frontal lobe.
A lobotomy is a psychosurgical procedure that involves cutting away most of an individual's connections to their prefrontal cortex. This technique was popularized in the 1940s and 1950s to treat highly violent and dangerous patients; however, this surgery rendered them catatonic and unable to express emotion. It is rarely used in practice today.
Example Question #102 : Treatments
Suzie, a first year medical student, is squeamish at the sight of blood. After months of practice in a medical facility, her reaction to blood begins to lessen. This is an example of which of the following?
Covert sensitization
Trial-and-error learning
Aversion
Conditioned response
Desensitization
Desensitization
In this instance, Suzie became more used to the sight of blood after periods of exposure. In this way, because of this gradual exposure, she was desensitized to the sight of blood.
Example Question #103 : Treatments
Which psychological disorder has the highest suicide rate?
Bipolar disorder
Obsessive-compulsive disorder
Histrionic personality disorder
Dementia
Schizophrenia
Bipolar disorder
Of all the psychological disorders, bipolar disorder has the highest rate of suicide at 15-20%. Is is directly followed by schizophrenia and borderline personality disorder, both around 10-15%. While the factors leading to suicide vary widely, these rates demonstrate the great difficulties that come with the inherent symptoms of disorder.
Example Question #201 : Ap Psychology
Which of these statements is true of pyrophobia and arachnophobia?
I. Pyrophobia is the fear of fire; arachnophobia is the fear of spiders
II. Pyrophobia is a specific phobia; arachnophobia is a social phobia
III. Pyrophobia is a social phobia; arachnophobia is a specific phobia
III only
I only
I and III
I and II
II only
I only
Pyrophobia and arachnophobia are each fears of a specific stimulus. Pyrophobia (from the Greek "piras") is the fear of fire, while arachnophobia (from the Greek "arachni") is the fear of spiders. Because they are fears of a specific stimulus, they are specific phobias as opposed to social phobias.
Example Question #1 : Defining Abnormalities And Disorders
Which of the following events could cause post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)?
Surviving a natural disaster
Surviving a serious bodily injury
Surviving a car accident
All of these could result in post-traumatic stress disorder
Surviving a war
All of these could result in post-traumatic stress disorder
Post-traumatic stress disorder develops after a person is exposed to one or more traumatic events, including war, injury, assault, and natural disasters. PTSD is characterized by recurring flashbacks of the traumatic event, nightmares, hyperarousal, and high levels of anxiety.
Example Question #1 : Defining Abnormalities And Disorders
Which of the following is not a type of anxiety disorder?
Trichotillomania
Post-traumatic stress disorder
Generalized anxiety disorder
Panic disorder
Agoraphobia
Trichotillomania
Trichotillomania is compulsive hair-pulling, including eyebrows and eyelashes. It is classified as an impulse-control disorder, not an anxiety disorder.
Example Question #2 : Types Of Disorders
A heightened sense of fear towards a situation or object is an example of which of the following?
A specific phobia
Manic depression
Fearfulness
Paranoia
Generalized anxiety disorder
A specific phobia
A specific phobia is a fear that is directly focused on some particular trigger, object, or situation. For instance, someone who has a phobia of being the dark will always experience a heightened sense of fear whenever they are in the dark. This is much different from generalizated anxiety, where the triggers for this kind of fear are unclear and the anxiety occurs more generally.
Example Question #1 : Anxiety And Trauma Related Disorders
Which of the following conditions causes the person to experience a strong fear response?
Obsessive-compulsive disorder
Dissociative disorder
Specific phobia
Somatoform disorder
Impulse control disorder
Specific phobia
Anxiety disorders are characterized by an unreasonable fear or anxiety. Specific phobias, a category of anxiety disorder, are a persistent and irrational fear of a specific object, activity, or situation.
Obsessions are recurrent thoughts, images, or impulses, while compulsions are recurrent, irresistible actions. A somatoform disorder occurs when there is no identifiable physical cause to explain physical symptoms. Dissociative disorders involve a splitting apart of past experiences from present memory or consciousness. Impulse control disorders are an inability to resist an impulse to perform an action that is harmful.
Example Question #1 : Defining Abnormalities And Disorders
Which of the following is not an anxiety disorder?
Panic disorder
Separation anxiety disorder
Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD)
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
Specific phobia disorder
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is not specifically an anxiety disorder; it involves hyperactive, inattentive, and impulsive symptomology. The other answer choices are all types of diagnosable anxiety disorders.
Example Question #3 : Types Of Disorders
What kind of phobia is often comorbid with panic disorder and often inspires people to not want to leave their houses?
Mysophobia
Arachnophobia
Agoraphobia
Acrophobia
Claustrophobia
Agoraphobia
Agoraphobia is the fear of open spaces . People who have this condition often want to stay within the closed space of their house. This phobia is often associated with panic disorder.
Claustrophobia is the fear of closed spaces, acrophobia is the fear of heights, arachnophobia is the fear of spiders, and mysophobia is the fear of germs.
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