Anxiety Disorders

Question 1

Anxiety
Fear
Panic

Answer 1

Individual feels threatened by potential occurrence of future negative event

Fight-or-flight response to real/perceived threat currently happening

False alarm triggered in absence of a threat

Question 2

Most common fears/phobias

Answer 2

Animals

Mutilation (blood, accidents)

Environmental threats (height, weather)

Question 3

What is the main symptom of separation anxiety disorder (SAD)

Answer 3

Distress when separated from attachment figure
- Tends to cause full-blown panic

Question 4

Difference between SAD and GAD

Answer 4

SAD: Specific worry about attachment

GAD: General worry to world around them

Question 5

Is homotypic or heterotypic comorbidity more common in anxiety?

Answer 5

Heterotypic (w/ depressive disorders)

Question 6

True or false?
Anxiety disorders are equally common in boys and girls

Answer 6

True

Question 7

Behavioural inhibition

Answer 7

Anxious temperament typical in anxiety / SAD
Children display withdrawal or fear behavs in novel situations

Question 8

Which part of the brain is affected in anxiety disorders?

Answer 8

Temporal lobe (amygdala)

Question 9

Psychosocial risk factors of SAD

Answer 9

Children learn to fear by observing parents
Classical conditioning of fear experiences

Question 10

Treatments for SAD

Answer 10

Cognitive-behaviour therapy
- Exposure to anxiety-provoking situations to help reframe anxious thoughts and change behav

Pharmacological treatments
- Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) medications

Question 11

What were anxiety disorders classified as in the past?
Who theorized there was a difference between objective fears and neurotic anxiety?

Answer 11

Neurosis
- Mixed w/ dissociative and somatoform disorders

Freud

Question 12

What are the behavioural factors that could cause anxiety?

Answer 12

Two-factor theory (conditioning)

Vicarious learning: Developing fear by observing reactions of other people

Question 13

Barlow’s triple vulnerability etiological model of anxiety that increase risk

Answer 13

Generalized biological
(Genetic predisposition to being nervous)

Nonspecific psychological
(Diminished sense of control, low self-esteem)

Specific psychological
(Experiencing danger, false alarm, vicarious exposure)

Question 14

Panic disorder

Answer 14

Recurrent and unexpected panic attacks (sudden rush of fear/discomfort and at least 4 of 13 symptoms)

Must have persistent concerns about consequences/ meaning of attack
Result in significant change in behav to prevent panic-like sensations

Question 15

Agoraphobia

Answer 15

Anxiety about being in places/situations where an individual might find it difficult to escape or wouldn’t have help ready

Question 16

Behavioural avoidance test (BAT)
(Agoraphobia and panic disorder)

Answer 16

Patients asked to enter situations they would typically avoid, then rate degree of anxiety

Question 17

Nocturnal panic

Answer 17

Individuals with panic disorder
Attacks that occur while sleeping

Question 18

Catastrophic misinterpretation

Anxiety sensitivity

Alarm theory
(Panic disorder)

Answer 18

Patient tends to misinterpret symptom as sign as something is wrong

Somatic symptoms related to anxiety will have negative consequences that extend beyond panic episode

System activated by emotional cues, causing false alarm, triggering panic attacks in neutral situations

Question 19

Specific phobia

Answer 19

Persistent fear and avoidance of object or situation

Question 20

5 subtypes of specific phobia

Answer 20

Animal phobia

Natural environment

Blood-injection-injury

Situational

Other type

Question 21

Equipotentiality premise
(Criticism of associative model of fear)

Answer 21

Assumes all neutral stimuli have an equal potential for becoming phobias

Question 22

Nonassociative model

Biological preparedness
(Specific phobia)

Answer 22

Process of evolution made us naturally respond fearfully to group of stimuli
- No learning required

Process of natural selection equipped humans w/ predisposition to fear objects/situations that are a threat to our species

Question 23

Disgust sensitivity
(Specific phobia)

Answer 23

Degree to which people are susceptible to being disgusted by certain stimuli

Question 24

Onset and comorbidity of social anxiety disorder

Answer 24

Late childhood, adolescence

High comorbidity w/ depression and substance use

Question 25

Cognitive factors of social anxiety

Answer 25

Self-focused attention (highly self-critical) Public self-consciousness (tendency to see actions through perspective of outside observer) Dishonest self-disclosure (Less authentic to tell others what they want to hear)

Question 26

Social anxiety is a _____ disorder

Answer 26

Interpersonal disorder - Disruption in ability to relate with other ppl

Question 27

Environmental factor of social anxiety

Answer 27

Being victimized during childhood

Question 28

Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD)

Answer 28

Excessive and uncontrollable worry

Question 29

Role of cognition in generalized anxiety disorder (GAD)

Answer 29

Verbal worry dampens/decreases somatic arousal causing anxiousness Intolerance of uncertainty: Discomfort w/ ambiguity and uncertainty

Question 30

Obsessions vs Compulsions vs Neutralizations (OCD)

Answer 30

Obsessions: Uncontrollable thoughts, impulses or ideas that the individual finds disturbing and anxiety-provoking Compulsions: Repetitive behavs or mental acts that are intended to reduce anxiety Neutralizations: Behavioural/mental acts used to prevent feared consequences and distress caused by an obsession

Question 31

Thought action fusion (TAF) refers to 2 types of irrational thinking (OCD)

Answer 31

Belief that having a specific thought increases probability that it will come true Belief that having a specific thought is equivalent to acting it out

Question 32

Neurobiological model of OCD

Answer 32

Neuropsychological theory: More brain volume in basal ganglia (control motor behavs) Less volume in frontal cortex (reasoning, inhibition, planning, decision making) - Both take part to cause compulsions and obsessions Neurochemical theory: Abnormalities in serotonin system

Question 33

Cognitive-behavioural model of OCD

Answer 33

Catastrophic misinterpretations - Belief that thoughts can influence probability that others will be harmed - High lvl of personal responsibility Rebound effect: Trying to suppress obsessional thoughts might increase their frequency

Question 34

Compulsions in OCD are believed to persist bcuz they tend to:

Answer 34

Lower severity of anxiety Lower frequency of obsessions “Prevent” obsessions from coming true

Question 35

Exposure techniques to treat anxiety

Answer 35

Systematic desensitization - Gradually work way up fear hierarchy, pairing each image with relaxation response (habituation) In vivo exposure - Exposure using real life Worry imagery exposure (GAD) - Systematic exposure to feared images related to individual’s worries Flooding/Intense exposure - Exposure at highest lvl of fear hierarchy Introceptive exposure (Panic disorder) - Exposure to internal cues Ritual prevention (OCD) - Abstinence from rituals that typically reinforce obsessions in long run

Question 36

Problem solving Relaxation Mindfulness-based strategies (Anxiety)

Answer 36

Assumes that by generating and implementing effective solutions to problems, patients will experience less anxiety Aims to reduce anxious arousal directly by mental (guided imagery exercise) or physical relaxation (progressive muscle relaxation) Combines practice of sitting and moving w/ meditation principles