Mental Health and Psychology Trauma and Stress-Related Disorders 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: According to DSM-5, PTSD requires exposure to a traumatic event involving:
- Any stressful life event
- Actual or threatened death, serious injury, or sexual violence (Correct answer)
- Loss of a loved one only
- Chronic workplace stress
Correct answer: Actual or threatened death, serious injury, or sexual violence
DSM-5 PTSD requires exposure to actual or threatened death, serious injury, or sexual violence, directly or indirectly (witnessing, learning about it).
Question 2: What are the four symptom clusters of PTSD in DSM-5?
- Intrusion, avoidance, mood/cognition alterations, hyperarousal (Correct answer)
- Depression, anxiety, dissociation, psychosis
- Flashbacks, nightmares, guilt, insomnia
- Avoidance, paranoia, emotional numbing, irritability
Correct answer: Intrusion, avoidance, mood/cognition alterations, hyperarousal
DSM-5 PTSD has four symptom clusters: intrusion symptoms, persistent avoidance, negative alterations in cognition and mood, and marked alterations in arousal and reactivity.
Question 3: Acute Stress Disorder (ASD) differs from PTSD primarily in its:
- Symptom severity
- Duration — ASD lasts 3 days to 1 month after trauma, PTSD lasts beyond 1 month (Correct answer)
- Requiring hospitalization
- Absence of avoidance symptoms
Correct answer: Duration — ASD lasts 3 days to 1 month after trauma, PTSD lasts beyond 1 month
ASD describes traumatic stress reactions occurring 3 days to 1 month after a trauma; if symptoms persist beyond 1 month, a PTSD diagnosis is considered.
Question 4: Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) for PTSD specifically targets:
- Trauma-related physiological arousal through relaxation
- Unhelpful beliefs ('stuck points') about the trauma and its aftermath (Correct answer)
- The trauma narrative through prolonged imaginal exposure
- Social isolation by building interpersonal skills
Correct answer: Unhelpful beliefs ('stuck points') about the trauma and its aftermath
CPT focuses on identifying and modifying 'stuck points' — maladaptive beliefs about the trauma related to safety, trust, power, esteem, and intimacy.
Question 5: What is 'dissociation' as it relates to trauma?
- Inability to form new memories after trauma
- Disruption in normally integrated functions of consciousness, memory, or identity (Correct answer)
- Deliberate avoidance of trauma reminders
- Physical symptoms caused by psychological stress
Correct answer: Disruption in normally integrated functions of consciousness, memory, or identity
Dissociation involves a disruption in the integration of consciousness, memory, identity, or perception, commonly occurring as a response to overwhelming traumatic experiences.
Question 6: Complex PTSD (not a separate DSM-5 diagnosis but recognized in ICD-11) is associated with:
- Single-incident traumas like car accidents
- Prolonged, repeated interpersonal trauma such as childhood abuse or captivity (Correct answer)
- Combat exposure only
- Medical trauma
Correct answer: Prolonged, repeated interpersonal trauma such as childhood abuse or captivity
Complex PTSD is associated with chronic, repeated, often interpersonal trauma, including profound impacts on self-concept, emotional regulation, and relationships beyond standard PTSD symptoms.
Mental Health and Psychology Trauma and Stress-Related Disorders 1
According to DSM-5, PTSD requires exposure to a traumatic event involving: