Anxiety Disorders & CBT Protocols Flashcards

In Prolonged Exposure (PE) therapy for PTSD, 'in vivo exposure' refers to:

Answer: Confronting safe but avoided real-world trauma reminders

In vivo exposure in PE involves confronting real-world situations, places, or objects avoided due to trauma reminders, despite them being objectively safe.

A CBT conceptualization for a client with OCD would emphasize which maintaining factor above all others?

Answer: Compulsions that provide short-term relief, reinforcing the obsessive-compulsive cycle

Compulsions are negatively reinforced because they temporarily reduce obsessional distress, which maintains and strengthens the OCD cycle.

Which breathing technique is CONTRAINDICATED during exposure therapy for Panic Disorder?

Answer: Controlled breathing used as a safety behavior during panic to prevent feared outcomes

Using controlled breathing as a safety behavior during panic exposure interferes with inhibitory learning and prevents clients from discovering that panic is not dangerous.

The Unified Protocol (UP) developed by Barlow targets anxiety and mood disorders by focusing on:

Answer: Core transdiagnostic processes such as emotional avoidance and maladaptive emotion regulation

The Unified Protocol targets transdiagnostic mechanisms—especially emotional avoidance and neuroticism—that underlie multiple emotional disorders.

A therapist working with a client who has Social Anxiety Disorder notices the client focuses on an internal mental image of themselves as appearing foolish. This is an example of:

Answer: Self-focused attention that increases self-conscious anxiety

In social anxiety, an observer-perspective self-image (seeing oneself as others supposedly see them) is a form of self-focused attention that amplifies anxiety.

According to the CBT model, what maintains the vicious cycle of health anxiety (hypochondriasis)?

Answer: Catastrophic misinterpretation of ambiguous bodily sensations combined with reassurance seeking

Health anxiety is maintained by catastrophic misinterpretation of benign bodily sensations and reassurance-seeking behavior that prevents disconfirmation of illness beliefs.

Which exposure technique is most appropriate for a client with Agoraphobia who fears losing control in public places?

Answer: In vivo graduated exposure to avoided public situations while dropping safety behaviors

In vivo graduated exposure to avoided public situations, combined with elimination of safety behaviors (e.g., carrying medication 'just in case'), is the gold-standard CBT intervention for agoraphobia.