Chapter 6: Somatoform and Dissociative Disorders
MULTIPLE CHOICE
1. Which of the following predicts the development of illness anxiety disorder?
a. never experiencing true illness as a child
b. having suicidal thoughts or past family history of suicide
c. a major depressive episode
d. realizing the benefits of being the ill person
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: 180 BLM: Remember│WWW
2. What is the meaning of the word “soma”?
a. fantasy
b. demonic
c. illness
d. body
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: 181 BLM: Remember
3. What is the common aspect of all somatoform disorders?
a. a pathological belief that one’s appearance is ugly
b. a pathological concern with appearance or functioning of the body
c. a pathological concern with the meaning of a physical pain
d. a pathological belief that a serious medical condition will cause death
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: 181 BLM: Higher Order
4. Which two disorders have been historically linked by the term “hysteria”?
a. conversion disorders with the schizophrenias
b. somatoform disorders with their subtypes
c. dissociative disorders and somatization disorder
d. somatoform disorders and dissociative disorders
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: 181 BLM: Remember│WWW
5. Which is characteristic of pain experienced by people where no medical cause can be
found?
a. The pain can be real even if it goes away with psychological treatment.
b. If psychological treatment eliminates the pain, the pain cannot have been real in the first
place.
c. The pain usually goes away when the person is sleeping, which is a key indication that the
pain is not real.
d. Unlike true pain, the pain originates from the brain and not the part of the body that feels
injured.
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: 182 BLM: Remember│WWW
6. What is another name for somatic symptom disorder?
a. Briquet’s syndrome
b. Munchausen syndrome by proxy
c. imagined ugliness
d. koro
,ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: 181 BLM: Remember│WWW
7. Mark injured his back at work several years ago. Although he was treated and
considered healed by his physicians, he still complains of severe and debilitating back pain. Other than
some minor scar tissue, his doctors can’t find anything that could be causing more than some minor
stiffness. What is Mark’s most likely diagnosis?
a. somatic symptom disorder with predominant pain due to a general medical condition
b. somatic symptom disorder due to primarily psychological factors
c. somatic symptom disorder with predominant pain due to psychological factors
d. somatic symptom disorder with predominant pain due to psychological factors and a
general medical condition
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: 182 BLM: Higher Order
8. Henry has illness anxiety disorder. What are his symptoms?
a. when he is truly ill he represses the knowledge
b. when he feels normal bodily sensations he interprets them as a sign of a serious illness
c. when he has a real physical illness it is exaggerated to the point where Henry can only
focus on the pain
d. Henry has an unrealistic fear of infection and disease
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: 183 BLM: Higher Order
9. What is the essential element of illness anxiety disorder?
a. dissociation
b. anxiety
c. depression
d. physical pain or discomfort
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: 183 BLM: Remember
10. Which of the following was formerly known as “hypochondriasis”?
a. blood-injection-injury disorder
b. somatic health disorder
c. illness anxiety disorder
d. persistent health delusional disorder
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: 183 BLM: Remember│WWW
11. Which of the following is NOT a learning experience of those with illness
anxiety disorder?
a. being rewarded by parents when expressing bodily concerns
b. observing parents express concern about bodily symptoms
c. having a relative who is a health care worker
d. being instructed that bodily concerns are dangerous
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: 183 BLM: Remember│WWW
, 12. Joe just ate six chili-dogs and drank a litre of soda. If Joe had illness anxiety
disorder, how would he probably interpret any resulting stomach discomfort?
a. as yet another sign of numerous vague, chronic “infections” that have plagued him for
years, which no one seems to be able to properly diagnose
b. as a sign that something is probably seriously wrong with his stomach, and he would
calmly phone in “sick” to work
c. as a sign that something is seriously wrong with his stomach and, feeling very anxious, he
would immediately call his doctor
d. as a sign that someone is trying to poison him
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: 183 BLM: Higher Order
13. If Jane has illness anxiety disorder, how frequently can we expect her to see
her physician and how will she feel as a result of these visits?
a. She will rarely see her physician, but she will continue to believe that she is quite ill.
b. She will often see her physician, but she will continue to be anxious about her health
anyway.
c. She will almost never see her physician because she does not trust physicians.
d. She will often see her physician, and she will feel completely reassured that there is nothing
wrong with her health.
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: 183 BLM: Higher Order
14. Jill is constantly worried that she will get sick. Although she feels fine now and
believes that she is healthy, she still worries endlessly about developing a serious illness. What
would Jill most likely be diagnosed with?
a. somatic symptom disorder
b. body dysmorphic disorder
c. illness phobia
d. illness anxiety disorder
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: 183 BLM: Higher Order
15. While patients with panic disorder and patients with illness anxiety disorder both tend
to misinterpret bodily sensations, how do the two kinds of patients differ?
a. Those with panic disorder have imagined physical sensations, while those with illness
anxiety disorder experience real physical sensations.
b. Those with panic disorder tend to fear immediate catastrophe, while those with illness
anxiety disorder tend to fear long-term illness.
c. Those with panic disorder tend to ignore the symptoms of their first attacks, while those
with illness anxiety disorder tend to seek immediate medical treatment following the first
indication of pain.
d. Those with panic disorder have real physical sensations, while those with illness anxiety
disorder experience sensations that are “all in their minds.”
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: 183 BLM: Higher Order
, 16. Mark has intense anxiety about his health. He focuses on slight changes in his
heartbeat and greatly exaggerates minor aches and pains. He frequently visits multiple doctors
because he resents doctors telling him that nothing is physically wrong with him. What condition does
Mark appear to have?
a. somatic symptom disorder
b. conversion disorder
c. illness anxiety disorder
d. Munchausen syndrome
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: 183 BLM: Higher Order
17. Illness anxiety disorder is essentially an emotional disturbance. What triggers it?
a. dysfunctional family interactions
b. misinterpretation of mostly normal physical sensations
c. physical pathology
d. misinterpretations of severe or unusual physical sensations
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: 183 BLM: Remember
18. Which of the following is a central feature of illness anxiety disorder?
a. the interpretation of harmful stimuli as nonthreatening
b. the interpretation of almost any physical sensation or symptom as threatening
c. a distrust of medical personnel
d. more acute physical sensations than someone without hypochondriasis
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: 183 BLM: Remember
19. You hear two colleagues talking, and one of them states that a friend has just been
diagnosed with illness anxiety disorder. What is your colleague’s friend’s age and gender most likely
to be?
a. The friend is likely to be a woman in her early 60s.
b. The friend is likely to be a man in his mid-40s to late 50s.
c. The friend is likely to be a young adolescent girl.
d. The friend is just as likely to be a man or women, at any age in the adult life cycle.
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: 184 BLM: Remember
20. A person with somatic symptom disorder is more likely than average to have a family
member with which of the following disorders?
a. schizophrenia
b. illness anxiety disorder
c. post-traumatic stress disorder
d. antisocial personality disorder
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: 187 BLM: Remember│WWW
21. Somatization disorder and antisocial personality disorder are often associated with
gender. Which of the following best describes this relationship?
a. Somatization disorder is more common among males, and it reflects high dependency.
b. Somatization disorder is more common among females, and it reflects high dependency.
c. Somatization disorder is more common among males, and it reflects high aggression.
d. Somatization disorder is more common among females, and it reflects high aggression.
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: 187 BLM: Remember│WWW
MULTIPLE CHOICE
1. Which of the following predicts the development of illness anxiety disorder?
a. never experiencing true illness as a child
b. having suicidal thoughts or past family history of suicide
c. a major depressive episode
d. realizing the benefits of being the ill person
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: 180 BLM: Remember│WWW
2. What is the meaning of the word “soma”?
a. fantasy
b. demonic
c. illness
d. body
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: 181 BLM: Remember
3. What is the common aspect of all somatoform disorders?
a. a pathological belief that one’s appearance is ugly
b. a pathological concern with appearance or functioning of the body
c. a pathological concern with the meaning of a physical pain
d. a pathological belief that a serious medical condition will cause death
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: 181 BLM: Higher Order
4. Which two disorders have been historically linked by the term “hysteria”?
a. conversion disorders with the schizophrenias
b. somatoform disorders with their subtypes
c. dissociative disorders and somatization disorder
d. somatoform disorders and dissociative disorders
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: 181 BLM: Remember│WWW
5. Which is characteristic of pain experienced by people where no medical cause can be
found?
a. The pain can be real even if it goes away with psychological treatment.
b. If psychological treatment eliminates the pain, the pain cannot have been real in the first
place.
c. The pain usually goes away when the person is sleeping, which is a key indication that the
pain is not real.
d. Unlike true pain, the pain originates from the brain and not the part of the body that feels
injured.
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: 182 BLM: Remember│WWW
6. What is another name for somatic symptom disorder?
a. Briquet’s syndrome
b. Munchausen syndrome by proxy
c. imagined ugliness
d. koro
,ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: 181 BLM: Remember│WWW
7. Mark injured his back at work several years ago. Although he was treated and
considered healed by his physicians, he still complains of severe and debilitating back pain. Other than
some minor scar tissue, his doctors can’t find anything that could be causing more than some minor
stiffness. What is Mark’s most likely diagnosis?
a. somatic symptom disorder with predominant pain due to a general medical condition
b. somatic symptom disorder due to primarily psychological factors
c. somatic symptom disorder with predominant pain due to psychological factors
d. somatic symptom disorder with predominant pain due to psychological factors and a
general medical condition
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: 182 BLM: Higher Order
8. Henry has illness anxiety disorder. What are his symptoms?
a. when he is truly ill he represses the knowledge
b. when he feels normal bodily sensations he interprets them as a sign of a serious illness
c. when he has a real physical illness it is exaggerated to the point where Henry can only
focus on the pain
d. Henry has an unrealistic fear of infection and disease
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: 183 BLM: Higher Order
9. What is the essential element of illness anxiety disorder?
a. dissociation
b. anxiety
c. depression
d. physical pain or discomfort
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: 183 BLM: Remember
10. Which of the following was formerly known as “hypochondriasis”?
a. blood-injection-injury disorder
b. somatic health disorder
c. illness anxiety disorder
d. persistent health delusional disorder
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: 183 BLM: Remember│WWW
11. Which of the following is NOT a learning experience of those with illness
anxiety disorder?
a. being rewarded by parents when expressing bodily concerns
b. observing parents express concern about bodily symptoms
c. having a relative who is a health care worker
d. being instructed that bodily concerns are dangerous
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: 183 BLM: Remember│WWW
, 12. Joe just ate six chili-dogs and drank a litre of soda. If Joe had illness anxiety
disorder, how would he probably interpret any resulting stomach discomfort?
a. as yet another sign of numerous vague, chronic “infections” that have plagued him for
years, which no one seems to be able to properly diagnose
b. as a sign that something is probably seriously wrong with his stomach, and he would
calmly phone in “sick” to work
c. as a sign that something is seriously wrong with his stomach and, feeling very anxious, he
would immediately call his doctor
d. as a sign that someone is trying to poison him
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: 183 BLM: Higher Order
13. If Jane has illness anxiety disorder, how frequently can we expect her to see
her physician and how will she feel as a result of these visits?
a. She will rarely see her physician, but she will continue to believe that she is quite ill.
b. She will often see her physician, but she will continue to be anxious about her health
anyway.
c. She will almost never see her physician because she does not trust physicians.
d. She will often see her physician, and she will feel completely reassured that there is nothing
wrong with her health.
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: 183 BLM: Higher Order
14. Jill is constantly worried that she will get sick. Although she feels fine now and
believes that she is healthy, she still worries endlessly about developing a serious illness. What
would Jill most likely be diagnosed with?
a. somatic symptom disorder
b. body dysmorphic disorder
c. illness phobia
d. illness anxiety disorder
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: 183 BLM: Higher Order
15. While patients with panic disorder and patients with illness anxiety disorder both tend
to misinterpret bodily sensations, how do the two kinds of patients differ?
a. Those with panic disorder have imagined physical sensations, while those with illness
anxiety disorder experience real physical sensations.
b. Those with panic disorder tend to fear immediate catastrophe, while those with illness
anxiety disorder tend to fear long-term illness.
c. Those with panic disorder tend to ignore the symptoms of their first attacks, while those
with illness anxiety disorder tend to seek immediate medical treatment following the first
indication of pain.
d. Those with panic disorder have real physical sensations, while those with illness anxiety
disorder experience sensations that are “all in their minds.”
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: 183 BLM: Higher Order
, 16. Mark has intense anxiety about his health. He focuses on slight changes in his
heartbeat and greatly exaggerates minor aches and pains. He frequently visits multiple doctors
because he resents doctors telling him that nothing is physically wrong with him. What condition does
Mark appear to have?
a. somatic symptom disorder
b. conversion disorder
c. illness anxiety disorder
d. Munchausen syndrome
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: 183 BLM: Higher Order
17. Illness anxiety disorder is essentially an emotional disturbance. What triggers it?
a. dysfunctional family interactions
b. misinterpretation of mostly normal physical sensations
c. physical pathology
d. misinterpretations of severe or unusual physical sensations
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: 183 BLM: Remember
18. Which of the following is a central feature of illness anxiety disorder?
a. the interpretation of harmful stimuli as nonthreatening
b. the interpretation of almost any physical sensation or symptom as threatening
c. a distrust of medical personnel
d. more acute physical sensations than someone without hypochondriasis
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: 183 BLM: Remember
19. You hear two colleagues talking, and one of them states that a friend has just been
diagnosed with illness anxiety disorder. What is your colleague’s friend’s age and gender most likely
to be?
a. The friend is likely to be a woman in her early 60s.
b. The friend is likely to be a man in his mid-40s to late 50s.
c. The friend is likely to be a young adolescent girl.
d. The friend is just as likely to be a man or women, at any age in the adult life cycle.
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: 184 BLM: Remember
20. A person with somatic symptom disorder is more likely than average to have a family
member with which of the following disorders?
a. schizophrenia
b. illness anxiety disorder
c. post-traumatic stress disorder
d. antisocial personality disorder
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: 187 BLM: Remember│WWW
21. Somatization disorder and antisocial personality disorder are often associated with
gender. Which of the following best describes this relationship?
a. Somatization disorder is more common among males, and it reflects high dependency.
b. Somatization disorder is more common among females, and it reflects high dependency.
c. Somatization disorder is more common among males, and it reflects high aggression.
d. Somatization disorder is more common among females, and it reflects high aggression.
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: 187 BLM: Remember│WWW
