Chapter Four Concept Checks
Concept Check 4.1
Complete the following statements about anxiety and its causes with the following terms:
(a) comorbidity, (b) panic attack, (c) situationally bound, (d) neurotransmitter, (e) brain
circuits, (f) stressful
1. A ____________ is an abrupt experience of intense fear or acute discomfort
accompanied by physical symptoms, such as chest pain and shortness of breath.
2. A ____________panic attack often occurs in certain situations but not anywhere else.
3. Anxiety is associated with specific ____________ (e.g., behavioral inhibition system
or fight/flight system) and ____________ systems (e.g., noradrenergic).
4. The rates of ____________ among anxiety disorders are high because they share the
common features of anxiety and panic.
5. ____________ life events can trigger our biological and psychological vulnerabilities
to anxiety.
Concept Check 4.2
True or False?
1. ___ GAD is characterized by muscle tension, mental agitation, irritability, sleeping
difficulties, and susceptibility to fatigue.
2. ___ Most studies show that the majority of cases of GAD onset early in adulthood as
an immediate response to a life stressor.
3. ___ GAD is very prevalent in the elderly and in females in our society.
4. ___ GAD has no genetic basis.
5. ___ Cognitive behavioral treatment and other psychological treatments for GAD are
probably better than drug therapies in the long run.
Concept Check 4.3
True or False?
1. ___ Panic disorder without agoraphobia (PD) is a disorder in which an individual
experiences anxiety and panic with phobic avoidance of what s/he considers an
“unsafe” situation.
2. ___ About 40% of the population meets the criteria for panic disorder at some point
in their lives.
3. ___ Some individuals with PD are suicidal, have nocturnal panic, and/or are
agoraphobic.
4. ___ Psychological treatments like panic control treatment or CBT are highly
effective for treating this disorder.
Concept Check 4.4
Identify the following specific phobias: (a) blood-injection-injury, (b) acrophobia, (c)
animal, (d) social, (e) natural environment, (f) other
1. Mark had no friends at school and hid in the boys’ bathroom during both lunch and
recess. ____________
2. Dennis fears and strenuously avoids storms. Not surprisingly, on his first oceangoing
cruise, he found that deep water terrified him too. ____________
3. Rita was comfortable at the zoo until the old terror gripped her at the insect display.
____________
4. Armando would love to eat fish with his fishing buddies, but he experiences an
inordinate fear of choking on a bone. ____________
5. John had to give up his dream of becoming a surgeon because he faints at the sight of
blood. ____________
6. Rachel turned down several lucrative job offers that involved public speaking for a
low-paying desk job. ____________
7. Farrah can’t visit her rural friends because of her fear of snakes. ____________
Concept Check 4.5
Match the correct preliminary diagnosis with the following cases: (a) acute posttraumatic
stress disorder, (b) acute stress disorder, (c) delayed onset posttraumatic stress disorder
1. Judy witnessed a horrific tornado level her farm 3 weeks ago. Since then, she’s had
many flashbacks of the incident, trouble sleeping, and a fear of going outside in
storms. ____________
2. Jack was involved in a car accident 6 weeks ago in which the driver of the other car
was killed. Since then, Jack has been unable to get in a car because it brings back the
horrible scene he witnessed. Nightmares of the incident haunt him and interfere with
his sleep. He is irritable and has lost interest in his work and hobbies. ____________
3. Patricia was raped at the age of 17, thirty years ago. Just recently, she has been
having flashbacks of the event, difficulty sleeping, and fear of sexual contact with her
husband. ____________
Concept Check 4.6
Fill in the blanks to form facts about obsessive-compulsive disorder.
1. ____________ are intrusive and nonsensical thoughts, images, or urges an individual
tries to eliminate or suppress.
2. The practices of washing, counting, and hoarding to suppress obsessions and provide
relief are called ____________.
3. The lifetime prevalence of OCD is approximately ____________%, or even lower.
4. ____________ is a radical treatment for OCD involving a surgical lesion to the
cingulate bundle.
Answers to Concept Checks
4.1
1. b
2. c
4.2
1. T
2. F (more gradual)
3. e, d 4. a
5. f
4. F
5. T
4.3
1. F (with agoraphobia)
2. F (3.5%)
3. T
4.4
1. d
2. e
3. c
5. a
7. c
4.5
1. b
2. a
3. c
4. f
3. T
4.6
1. obsessions 2. compulsions
6. d
3. 2.6%
4. T
4. psychosurgery