Psychology Exam 2: Psychosis, Mood, Anxiety, Trauma, and Legal

What is psychosis?

A state in which a person has difficulty distinguishing what is real from what is not real.

What are the five major symptom areas of psychosis?

1. Delusions 2. Hallucinations 3. Disorganized thinking and speech 4. Grossly disorganized behavior or catatonia 5. Negative symptoms

What are positive symptoms in the context of psychosis?

Symptoms where something unusual has been added to normal psychological functioning, such as hallucinations or delusions.

What are negative symptoms in the context of psychosis?

Symptoms where something normal has been reduced or lost, such as emotional expression or motivation.

What is a hallucination?

A sensory experience that feels real but occurs without an actual external stimulus.

What is the difference between an illusion and a hallucination?

A hallucination happens without a real stimulus, while an illusion is a misinterpretation of something actually there.

What is a delusion?

A strongly held false belief that does not change easily despite contradictory evidence.

What is a persecutory delusion?

Believing that someone is trying to harm, follow, spy on, or plot against you.

What is a grandiose delusion?

Believing you have extraordinary importance, power, talent, or identity.

What is erotomanic delusion?

Believing that another person, often someone famous or higher-status, is in love with you.

What is a jealous delusion?

Believing that a partner is unfaithful without adequate evidence.

What is a somatic delusion?

Having a false belief about the body or health.

What is a delusion of control or passivity?

Believing that an outside force controls your thoughts, feelings, or actions.

What is thought broadcasting?

Believing that other people can hear or access your thoughts.

What are ideas of reference?

Interpreting ordinary events as having a special personal meaning.

What is avolition?

Reduced motivation to start or complete activities.

What is asociality?

Reduced desire for social interaction.

What is anhedonia?

Reduced ability to feel pleasure.

What is alogia?

Reduced amount of speech.

What is flat or diminished affect?

Very little outward emotional expression.

What is apathy?

Reduced interest, concern, or emotional investment.

What is catatonia?

A marked disturbance in movement or responsiveness.

What are derailment or loose associations?

Shifting from one topic to another with weak or unclear connections.

What is tangentiality?

Going off-topic and not returning to answer the original question.

What is incoherence or word salad?

Words or sentences so disorganized that overall meaning is impossible to understand.

What are clang associations?

Connecting words because they rhyme or sound similar rather than making sense.

What are neologisms?

Creating new words or using unusual words with a personal meaning.

What is echolalia?

Repeating another person's words or phrases.

What are the core diagnostic criteria for schizophrenia?

At least 2 of 5 symptom types for active phase (at least one must be delusions, hallucinations, or disorganized speech), active disturbance lasting 1 month, and continuous disturbance lasting at least 6 months.

What are the four phases of schizophrenia?

Premorbid, prodromal, active phase, and residual phase.

What is brief psychotic disorder?

Psychotic symptoms lasting at least 1 day but less than 1 month, with return to previous functioning.

What is schizophreniform disorder?

Symptoms resembling schizophrenia lasting at least 1 month but less than 6 months.

What is delusional disorder?

One or more delusions lasting at least 1 month without full schizophrenia criteria or broad functional impairment outside the delusion.

What is schizoaffective disorder?

A mood episode occurring alongside schizophrenia symptoms, with at least 2 weeks of delusions or hallucinations without a major mood episode.

What does monochorionic twin concordance suggest about schizophrenia?

Higher concordance in twins sharing a placenta suggests that prenatal environmental conditions contribute beyond shared genetics.

What is the dopamine hypothesis of schizophrenia?

The proposal that abnormal, excessive dopamine activity contributes to psychosis.

What is aberrant salience?

The idea that excessive dopamine activity makes ordinary, unimportant events feel unusually significant.

What is the glutamate hypothesis of schizophrenia?

The suggestion that deficient or disrupted glutamate transmission contributes to schizophrenia symptoms.

What is the double-bind theory?

A historical family-communication theory proposing that contradictory family communication could contribute to schizophrenia.

What is expressed emotion (EE)?

Family interactions characterized by high criticism, hostility, or emotional over-involvement, associated with higher risk of relapse.

What is tardive dyskinesia?

A potentially persistent movement disorder associated with antipsychotic exposure, involving repetitive involuntary movements of the tongue, mouth, or face.

What is the main diagnostic distinction between schizophrenia and Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) regarding voices?

Voice-hearing can occur in both, but schizophrenia is a psychotic disorder with delusions, negative symptoms, and functional impairment, while DID is a dissociative disorder involving disruption in identity and memory.

What is a mood episode versus a mood disorder?

An episode is a period during which a group of symptoms occurs, while a disorder is a diagnosis based on the pattern, duration, and combination of episodes.

What is Major Depressive Disorder (MDD)?

Major depressive episode(s) with no history of a manic or hypomanic episode.

What is Bipolar I Disorder?

Requires at least one manic episode.

What is Bipolar II Disorder?

Requires at least one hypomanic episode and at least one major depressive episode, with no history of a manic episode.

What criteria define a major depressive episode?

At least 5 symptoms present during the same 2-week period representing a change from previous functioning, with at least one symptom being depressed mood or loss of interest/pleasure.

How long must a manic episode generally last?

At least 1 week, most of the day nearly every day, or any duration if hospitalization is necessary.

How long must a hypomanic episode last?

At least 4 consecutive days, representing a clear change without marked impairment, hospitalization, or psychosis.

What is Persistent Depressive Disorder (PDD)?

Chronic depressed mood for most of the day, more days than not, for at least 2 years in adults (1 year in children/adolescents).

What is Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)?

A seasonal pattern of depressive episodes, typically beginning in late fall or winter, treated commonly with bright-light therapy.

What is endogenous versus exogenous depression?

Endogenous depression arises more from within the person, while exogenous depression is understood as a response to an external trigger.

What are the three dimensions of the Tripartite Model of emotion?

Physiological hyperarousal, negative affect, and positive affect.

How does the Tripartite Model distinguish anxiety from depression?

Anxiety involves high negative affect and high physiological arousal, whereas depression involves high negative affect and low positive affect.

What is melancholic depression characterized by?

Severe anhedonia, prominent physical symptoms, insomnia, weight loss, and psychomotor agitation.

What is atypical depression characterized by?

Mood reactivity (mood temporarily improves in response to positive events), along with symptoms like weight gain, hypersomnia, leaden paralysis, or rejection sensitivity.

What is postpartum depression?

Depressive symptoms beginning during pregnancy or in the weeks following childbirth, exceeding ordinary adjustment and involving anxiety, mood swings, or difficulty bonding.

What does the monoamine hypothesis propose?

That changes in monoamine neurotransmitter systems (serotonin, norepinephrine, dopamine) contribute to depression.

What is discontinuation syndrome in antidepressants?

Symptoms like dizziness, flu-like feelings, and sleep problems that can occur after abruptly stopping or rapidly reducing some antidepressants.

What is behavioral activation?

A psychotherapy targeting depression by helping a person gradually increase meaningful or rewarding activities rather than waiting for motivation.

What is Interpersonal and Social Rhythm Therapy (IPSRT)?

A treatment for bipolar disorder focusing on stabilizing daily routines (sleep, meals) and social rhythms while addressing interpersonal difficulties.

What is Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT)?

A medically supervised treatment involving an electrical stimulus that produces a controlled seizure under anesthesia, used for severe depression.

What is Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS)?

Using magnetic pulses to stimulate specific brain regions without inducing a generalized seizure.

What is fear versus anxiety versus panic?

Fear is a response to an immediate identifiable threat; anxiety is anticipation of a possible future threat; panic is an abrupt surge of intense fear with strong physical symptoms.

What is a true alarm, false alarm, and learned alarm?

True alarm occurs with actual threat; false alarm activates without immediate threat; learned alarm associates a previously neutral cue with danger.

What criteria define a panic attack?

An abrupt period of intense fear or discomfort reaching a peak within minutes, requiring 4 or more listed physical/emotional symptoms.

What defines panic disorder?

Recurrent unexpected panic attacks plus at least one month of persistent concern about further attacks or maladaptive behavior changes.

How do classical and operant conditioning maintain anxiety?

Classical conditioning pairs neutral cues with fear to create triggers; operant conditioning maintains avoidance through negative reinforcement (short-term relief).

What is exposure therapy and inhibitory learning?

Gradually approaching feared situations to build competing new learning that distress can be tolerated and the situation is safe.

What is Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)?

Involves obsessions (unwanted thoughts/urges) and/or compulsions (repetitive behaviors or mental acts performed to reduce distress).

What is Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP)?

The primary psychological treatment for OCD involving exposure to obsession-related cues while resisting compulsions.

What is agoraphobia?

Marked fear or anxiety about situations where escape might be difficult if panic-like symptoms occur, such as crowds, public transit, or being outside alone.

What is Panic Control Treatment (PCT)?

A CBT treatment for panic disorder involving psychoeducation, identifying catastrophic thoughts, and interoceptive exposure to bodily sensations.

What defines Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD)?

Excessive, difficult-to-control worry spreading across multiple everyday topics occurring more days than not for at least 6 months, with physical tension and fatigue.

What is the Unified Protocol?

A transdiagnostic treatment targeting shared underlying emotional processes across multiple emotional disorders, such as emotion avoidance and rigidity.

What are the core functions of the amygdala, prefrontal cortex, hippocampus, and insula in anxiety?

Amygdala detects threats; prefrontal cortex evaluates and regulates emotions; hippocampus handles context and memory; insula processes internal bodily sensations.

What is a traumatic event under DSM-5 PTSD criteria?

Exposure to actual or threatened death, serious injury, or sexual violence through experiencing, witnessing, learning of it in close others, or extreme work exposure.

What is Type I versus Type II trauma?

Type I is a single, acute, discrete event; Type II is repeated or prolonged trauma over time.

What is Acute Stress Disorder (ASD)?

Post-trauma symptoms lasting from 3 days to 1 month after a qualifying traumatic event.

What are the four major symptom clusters of PTSD?

1. Intrusion 2. Avoidance 3. Negative changes in cognition and mood 4. Changes in arousal and reactivity.

What is adjustment disorder?

Emotional or behavioral symptoms developing within 3 months of an identifiable stressor that does not necessarily meet the PTSD trauma criterion.

What is the dissociative subtype of PTSD?

PTSD symptoms accompanied by persistent or recurrent depersonalization (feeling detached from self) or derealization (surroundings feeling unreal).

What is Complex PTSD (CPTSD) under ICD-11?

PTSD symptoms plus three additional domains: affect dysregulation, negative self-concept, and disturbed relationships.

What is the HPA axis?

The hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis that regulates hormonal stress responses and cortisol regulation.

What is Prolonged Exposure (PE) therapy?

A PTSD treatment that gradually exposes the person to trauma memories and safe avoided situations to reduce avoidance and fear.

What is Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT)?

A PTSD treatment focusing on examining and modifying unhelpful beliefs related to trauma, such as excessive guilt or complete unsafety.

What is Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR)?

A trauma treatment involving trauma-focused memory processing combined with bilateral stimulation like guided eye movements.

What is the insanity defense?

A legal concept asking whether a defendant's mental condition met the legal standard for lack of criminal responsibility at the time of the alleged offense.

What does the M'Naghten test evaluate?

Whether a mental disease or defect prevented the person from understanding the nature and quality of the act or knowing it was wrong.

What does the Irresistible Impulse test evaluate?

Whether the person was unable to control their behavior because of a mental condition.

What does the Model Penal Code (ALI) test evaluate?

Whether the person lacked substantial capacity to appreciate the wrongfulness of the act or conform behavior to the law.

What is civil commitment?

Involuntary psychiatric treatment based on civil legal criteria, such as serious danger to oneself or others, rather than a criminal conviction.

What is the difference between legal insanity and competency to stand trial?

Insanity assesses the person's mental state at the time of the offense (then), while competency assesses their current ability to understand court proceedings and assist counsel (now).

What is anosognosia?

Impaired awareness or lack of insight into one's own illness.