Assignment 6 (25 points)

For each scenario, classify the appropriate disorder, if any, and state your rationale for your prognosis.

Maurice is very quiet and introverted. He is painfully shy in the presence of other people and has dropped many courses at college simply because they involved oral presentations. He can’t get a job because he is intensely afraid and anxious about being interviewed.

Butch has a chronic disorder involving frequent mood swings, moving between feeling on top of the world and extremely sad. He is perceived as being very moody, unpredictable and inconsistent.

Bruce has an all-consuming fear of being abandoned. He has difficulty controlling his anger and is prone to impulsive acts.

Seventeen year old Brad has a shaved head, and he has rings in his nose, ears and navel. Shortly after purchasing a new pair of jeans, he cut and tore horizontal slits across the thigh and knee areas of each leg.

Karlson recently survived an airplane crash. Although he escaped from the burning plane with very few injuries, three of his friends were killed in the crash. Karlson is unable to recall any details from the time of the accident until a week later. Other than the memory loss, Karlson is not showing any signs of distress from the tragic event.

For each scenario, identify the type of therapy or technique used, and state your rationale for your choice.

To help Trevor overcome his addiction to nicotine, Dr. Clarke asks him to smoke cigarettes and at the same time administers electric shock to his arm.

Diseree told her therapist, “I feel so inadequate and useless, and I can’t seem to cope with even the smallest things in my life. What should I do?” Her therapist answered, “You are feeling very helpless about things in your life, and sometimes you feel unable to cope. Can you think where these feelings come from?”

In an attempt to help her husband overcome his deep fear of traveling by sea, Mrs. Bowman brings home travel brochures showing exotic destinations reached by cruise ships. She asks her husband to imagine both of them sitting in their deck chairs enjoying the warm sunshine and cool beverages, and at the same time she reassures him that these big ships are totally safe and comfortable and that he has nothing to worry about.

Ursula, who lives in a home for the mentally retarded, is able to earn points for getting dressed, maintaining personal hygiene, and engaging in appropriate social interactions. These points can be exchanged for access to desirable items or special privileges.

Judd’s therapist is hoping to treat his depression by getting him to recognize his self-defeating cognitions. The therapist does this by working with Judd to recognize and challenge his problematic automatic thoughts.