Chapter 1. Scientific American Psychology: Ross, In His Own Words

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Scientific American: Psychology

Video Profile Activity: Ross, In His Own Words

1.1 Check Your Understanding

1.As Ross describes the emergence of the symptoms of his bipolar disorder, what should we remember about the way mental disorders appear in different individuals?

In most cases there are indications that a person will have a mental disorder by the end of childhood.

Many people do not experience the symptoms of a mental disorder until they reach adolescence or even adulthood.

Most mental disorders are present at birth, and so the symptoms will be present in the earliest years.

For a majority of mental disorder diagnoses, the symptoms do not appear until young or middle adulthood.

Correct.

Incorrect.

2. Ross suffers from bipolar disorder. Which of the following symptoms is often associated with the manic episodes seen in those who suffer from this condition?

A significant reduction in the need for sleep.

An increase in the amount of food one needs to consume.

Psychomotor retardation, or a slowing down of physical activity.

A loss of ability to experience pleasure.

Correct.

Incorrect.

3. Research has consistently found that alcohol and drug abuse often occurs alongside other mental disorder diagnoses. In the case of Ross, why did he begin to abuse alcohol?

He missed the manic episodes when they went away, so he thought alcohol would make them come back again faster.

He was terribly suicidal and the alcohol helped reduce thoughts of hurting himself.

He thought that alcohol would help make his medications more effective.

He felt that alcohol helped to shut his mind down.

Correct.

Incorrect.

4. Many people who suffer from or have suffered from a mental illness find a career in the mental health industry. Ross is one such person, and he founded a company that

lobbies congress for increased insurance funding for psychotropic medications.

develops mental health curricula for children.

provides housing for mentally ill homeless people.

provides psychoeducation for the parents of children with mental health problems.

Correct.

Incorrect.

5. According to Ross, which of the following phenomena that he experienced before the diagnosis of bipolar disorder was made was the most damaging to his psychological well-being?

Lashing out with anger episodes against his parents.

Distancing himself from his friends because he knew that they did not really like him.

Hiding the symptoms that he was experiencing.

Self-medicating with marijuana and alcohol.

Correct.

Incorrect.