Question 1

In conversion disorder, "la belle indifference" refers to

Accepted Answer

"La belle indifference" is a term used to describe the reaction of conversion disorder patients who show little or no concern about their physical symptoms, despite them being potentially debilitating or life-threatening.

Question 2

For three months, Laura has not been able to speak although physicians have found no physical cause for her problem. Laura has been repeatedly abused by her husband and she has been unable to testify against him in court because of her voice. Laura is probably suffering from

Accepted Answer

Laura's symptoms are consistent with conversion disorder, which involves the manifestation of physical symptoms that cannot be explained by a medical condition. The fact that her inability to speak began after being repeatedly abused suggests a psychological cause for her symptoms, rather than a physical one.

Question 3

Marina was abused as a child, but does not remember the abuse nor much of her childhood. The diagnosis would be

Accepted Answer

Dissociative amnesia is characterized by the inability to remember important personal information, usually due to a traumatic or stressful event. Marina's lack of memory about her childhood and abuse suggests dissociative amnesia.

Question 4

Which of the following is not true of conversion disorder?

Accepted Answer

Conversion disorder is a legitimate condition recognized by the DSM-5. People with conversion disorder experience physical symptoms that are not explained by an underlying medical condition. The person is not faking the symptom, but instead experiences a genuine loss of functioning that is related to underlying psychological factors.

Question 5

We are consciously aware of who we are. Our memories, our identity, our consciousness, and our perception of the environment are integrated. But some people, in response to unbearable stress, develop a ________ and lose this integration.

Accepted Answer

Dissociative disorders are conditions that involve disruptions or breakdowns of memory, awareness, identity, or perception. In response to traumatic experiences, some individuals develop dissociative symptoms such as amnesia, depersonalization, and derealization, which may interfere with their ability to integrate their sense of self and their experiences. This can result in a sense of detachment from reality, a fragmented sense of identity, and other dissociative symptoms. Schizophrenia, hypochondriasis, and somatoform disorders do not necessarily involve dissociative symptoms.

Question 6

The primary symptom of dissociative amnesia is

Accepted Answer

Dissociative amnesia is characterized by the sudden inability to recall personal information, such as past events, important life events or specific information about oneself. It may occur suddenly or gradually and can be related to a traumatic event or stress. The other options are not typical symptoms of dissociative amnesia.

Question 7

Lillian is unable to remember anything about the fire in her home in which her child was killed and her husband was seriously injured, despite the fact that she was home at the time. Lillian's failure to remember is best interpreted as

Accepted Answer

Lillian's inability to remember such a traumatic event suggests dissociative amnesia. This is a type of dissociative disorder in which a person experiences memory loss that cannot be explained by medical or neurological conditions. It is often triggered by extreme stress, such as trauma or abuse, which Lillian experienced during the fire in her home. Somatoform disorder and multiple personality are unrelated to memory loss, and dissociative fugue involves sudden travel or wandering.

Question 8

Malcolm has excessive fear of disease and believes he suffers from numerous physical ailments. Malcolm has spent much of his life seeking treatment and medication from various physicians, although such measures have seldom been necessary. Malcolm suffers from

Accepted Answer

Malcolm's excessive fear of disease and belief that he suffers from numerous physical ailments are symptoms of hypochondriasis, also known as illness anxiety disorder. People with this disorder constantly worry about having a serious medical condition despite lack of evidence to support their fears. They often seek treatment and medication from different physicians, as Malcolm does. Conversion disorder involves physical symptoms, such as paralysis or blindness, that have no underlying medical cause. Dissociative fugue and dissociative disorder both involve a disruption in a person's sense of identity or consciousness.

Question 9

Which of the following is not characteristic of people who experience dissociative amnesia?

Accepted Answer

Dissociative amnesia does not typically involve a change in basic personality. Options A, C, and D are characteristics that may be present with dissociative amnesia.

Question 10

Which is not one of the types of dissociative disorders identified in the text?

Accepted Answer

The answer of Which is not one of the types...

Question 11

Conversion disorder belongs to the category of

Accepted Answer

Conversion disorder is a somatoform disorder that involves the presence of physical symptoms without an underlying medical cause. People with conversion disorder experience symptoms such as blindness, paralysis, or seizures, but medical examinations cannot identify any physiological basis for these symptoms.

Question 12

Modern-day psychologists believe that the disabling symptoms in conversion disorder

Accepted Answer

Modern-day psychologists believe that conversion disorder symptoms serve as a psychological defense mechanism, allowing the patient to avoid or escape intolerable anxiety or stress.

Question 13

Jay, a young helicopter pilot, was preparing for his first combat experience in Iraq. He was seized with a terrible fear that he might mistakenly cause the death of his own troops through "friendly fire." The day before he was scheduled to leave, Jay suddenly went blind. Because no physical reason for his blindness could be found, Jay's condition was diagnosed as

Accepted Answer

Conversion disorder is a condition where a person experiences physical symptoms without any underlying physical cause. In this case, Jay's sudden blindness could not be explained by any physical condition, making it a classic example of conversion disorder. The fear of causing harm to his own troops may have manifested itself as physical symptoms, such as blindness, due to the high stress environment of combat.

Question 14

Floyd, a hospital intern, forgot his whole identity, wandered to a different city, and is now a hospital orderly with the name of Gordon. Gordon is most likely suffering from

Accepted Answer

Gordon's forgetting his whole identity and wandering to a different city suggest that he is experiencing dissociative fugue, which is a subtype of dissociative amnesia characterized by sudden travel or relocation, along with an inability to recall one's past and confusion about their personal identity.

Question 15

Which of the following is not a dissociative disorder?

Accepted Answer

Dissociative panic is not a recognized dissociative disorder. The other options, dissociative amnesia, dissociative fugue, and dissociative identity disorder are all recognized dissociative disorders.

Question 16

Denis has a long history of medical treatment, although careful examination would have revealed no underlying physical problems. But Denis continually goes from physician to physician, often receiving unnecessary drugs, examinations, and on a few occasions, unnecessary surgery. Denis is most likely suffering from

Accepted Answer

Denis's behavior is characteristic of hypochondriasis, which involves preoccupation with fears of having a serious illness despite having no or only mild physical symptoms. This often leads to excessive medical treatments and doctor shopping. Psychalgia refers to chronic physical pain with psychological or emotional causes. Anxiety disorder and conversion disorder can both involve somatic symptoms, but they do not typically involve seeking unnecessary medical treatments.

Question 17

A person suffering from dissociative fugue usually does all of the following except

Accepted Answer

The correct answer is C because individuals with dissociative fugue typically have a temporary loss of their personal identity and may take on a new one while traveling away from home with no memory of their past. However, they usually cannot recall what happened during the fugue state once they recover.

Question 18

What is the general term for disorders in which, under stress, a person can lose the integration of consciousness, identity, and memory of important personal events?

Accepted Answer

Dissociative disorders are characterized by disruptions or discontinuities in consciousness, self-identity, memory, awareness, or perception of the environment. Examples include dissociative amnesia, dissociative fugue, and dissociative identity disorder (previously known as multiple personality disorder). Somatoform disorders involve physical symptoms or concerns that have no apparent physical cause, while conversion disorder involves the presence of physical symptoms or deficits that cannot be explained by a medical condition. Affective disorders, also known as mood disorders, involve disturbances in mood such as depression or bipolar disorder.

Question 19

Dissociative amnesia is classified as

Accepted Answer

Dissociative amnesia is classified as a dissociative disorder, which involves disruptions in consciousness, memory, identity, or perception of the environment.

Question 20

In conversion disorder, a person

Accepted Answer

Conversion disorder involves the loss of physical functioning in a specific part of the body, such as paralysis or blindness, without an underlying medical cause. This loss of functioning is not consciously faked by the individual, but rather is believed to have a psychological basis. The person with conversion disorder may experience distress and concern about their symptoms, but this is not the primary feature of the disorder.

Quiz 13: Psychology Disorders