1.
The subfield of psychology that provides psychology's contribution to the
prevention and treatment of illness is:
A) medical psychology.
B) behavioral medicine.
C) health psychology.
D) biopsychosocial medicine.
2. Health is defined as:
A) the absence of disease.
B) a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being.
C) the ability to meet the demands of everyday living.
D) the perception that one is free of symptoms, whether accurate or not.
3. Which of the following is the field of health psychology NOT directly concerned
with?
A) The health care system
B) Enhancing health
C) Preventing and treating illness
D) Lowering health care costs
4. A health psychologist would agree with all of the following EXCEPT:
A) health psychologists seek to promote healthy lifestyles.
B) biological, psychological, and social forces act together to determine our health.
C) health disparities are found only in the poorest nations.
D) health psychologists approach the study of health and illness from several
overlapping perspectives.
5. Health disparities are:
A) differences in the leading types health problems experienced by various groups.
B) preventable differences in the health of socially disadvantaged groups.
C) differences in the health of people living in various parts of the world.
D) unavoidable differences in the health of various groups.
6. Regarding health and disease, which of the following is NOT true?
A) Beginning in middle age, women have higher disease and disability rates than men
do.
B) At every age, death rates vary by ethnic group.
C) People in developing countries can expect to live about the same number of healthy
years as people in developed countries.
D) Men are twice as likely as women to die of any cause.
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7. Which of the following is true regarding health care in the United States?
A) The United States has the highest rated health care system in the world.
B) Today, the United States spends a smaller portion of its gross domestic product on
health care than it did several decades ago.
C) A few countries spend more on health care than the United States and rank higher
in terms of overall performance.
D) The United States spends more on health care than most other developed nations,
while many countries spend less on health care than the United States but rank
higher in terms of overall performance.
8. According to Healthy People 2010, nearly one million deaths in the United States
each year are:
A) preventable.
B) caused by genetic disorders.
C) lifestyle diseases that were rare fifty years ago.
D) caused by accidents.
9. The new federal law aimed at reducing the number of people in the United States
who do not have health insurance is the:
A) Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.
B) No Child Left Behind Act.
C) Healthy People 2020 Act.
D) Preventable Injury and Death Act.
10. During the prehistoric period, our ancestors believed that disease was caused by:
A) trephination.
B) demons or evil spirits.
C) poor hygiene.
D) an imbalance of body fluids.
11. Trephination refers to:
A) the use of leeches to draw blood from a sick person.
B) a primitive form of surgery in which a hole was bored into a sick person's skull.
C) the earliest public health regulations established by Greek and Roman medicine.
D) a non-Western form of healing based on the use of herbs and tonics.
12. According to Hippocrates, disease resulted when:
A) there was an imbalance among the different humors circulating in the body.
B) the person violated divine laws.
C) the person experienced too much of one type of emotion.
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D) illness-causing worms infested the body.
13. The notion of personality traits being linked with body fluids:
A) was discarded long ago.
B) still persists in the folk and alternative medicines of many cultures.
C) originated with the work of Claudius Galen.
D) was the basis of the germ theory of disease.
14. Who developed an elaborate system of pharmacology that physicians followed
for almost 1,500 years?
A) Hippocrates
B) Galen
C) Descartes
D) Vesalius
15. Traditional Oriental medicine is founded on the principle that:
A) mind and body do not interact in determining health or illness.
B) the human body represents the entire universe in a microcosm.
C) internal harmony is essential for good health.
D) three bodily humors, or doshas, are the key to health.
16. The oldest known medical system in the world is:
A) traditional Oriental medicine.
B) ayurveda.
C) acupuncture.
D) qi.
17. Maintaining a balance of the vata, pitta, and kapha bodily humors is the key to
health according to which medical system?
A) Traditional Oriental medicine
B) Acupuncture
C) Homeopathic medicine
D) Ayurveda
18. In traditional Oriental medicine, qi (sometimes spelled chi) refers to:
A) a vital energy or life force that ebbs and flows with changes in a person's well-
being.
B) a health condition in which all organs and tissues are functioning properly.
C) a state of illness.
D) the three bodily humors.
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19. A disease that spreads rapidly among many individuals in a community at the
same time over a limited geographical area is called:
A) the plague.
B) a pandemic.
C) an epidemic.
D) mass hysteria.
20. During the Middle Ages, disease was viewed as:
A) a form of divine punishment for sins.
B) caused by evil spirits.
C) a physical condition of the body.
D) influenced by mind and emotions.
21. The plague that killed thousands of people during the Middle Ages was an
example of a(n):
A) food-borne illness.
B) genetic disease.
C) bacterial disease.
D) virus.
22. Rene Descartes influenced modern medicine with his view that:
A) the mind and body operate according to separate principles.
B) hygiene was an important component of good health.
C) the origins of all diseases are outside the individual.
D) all diseases originate within the body.
23. Under the doctrine of mind-body dualism, health and disease came to be viewed:
A) in scientific, or biomedical, terms.
B) in spiritual terms.
C) in terms of social and psychological factors.
D) as culturally specific states.
24. The first complete anatomical study of the internal organs, musculature, and
skeletal systems of the human body was published by:
A) Christian Huygens.
B) Claudius Galen.
C) Andreas Vesalius.
D) Giovanni Morgagni.
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25. According to which theory are the origins of specific diseases found in the
internal organs, musculature, and skeletal system of the body?
A) Germ theory
B) Anatomical theory
C) Cellular theory
D) Humoral theory
26. In the history of Western medicine, humoral theory was eventually replaced by
the ____________theory.
A) anatomical
B) cellular
C) germ
D) hormonal
27. Some nineteenth-century scholars believed that living organisms could be formed
from nonliving matter. This idea is called:
A) asceticism.
B) spontaneous generation.
C) tridosha.
D) trephination.
28. Because he doesn't feel sick, Enrique believes that he is healthy. Enrique
evidently has an implicit belief in the _____________ model of health.
A) biopsychosocial
B) Cartesian
C) biomedical
D) biophysical
29. A pathogen is:
A) a healing force.
B) the pattern of illness in a population.
C) a disease.
D) any agent such as a bacterium or virus that can cause a disease.
30. The field of psychosomatic medicine emerged because the biomedical model was
unable to explain:
A) gender differences in the prevalence of certain diseases.
B) disorders that had no observable physical cause.
C) cultural differences in the incidence of specific diseases.
D) age-related issues in health and disease.
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31. The biomedical model embraces reductionism, which is the view that:
A) psychological, social, and behavioral variables play little role in illness.
B) complex phenomena (such as health) derive from a single factor.
C) mind and body are separate and autonomous entities.
D) health is nothing more than the absence of disease.
32. According to Sigmund Freud, loss of speech, deafness, and other conversion
disorders were caused by:
A) unconscious emotional conflicts.
B) psychological viruses.
C) erotic urges.
D) repressed feelings of hatred toward one's parents.
33. The nuclear conflict model of psychosomatic medicine was developed by
psychoanalyst:
A) Sigmund Freud.
B) B. F. Skinner.
C) Neal Miller.
D) Franz Alexander.
34. Which of the following is NOT a reason that psychosomatic medicine fell out of
favor?
A) As Freudian concepts, such as the unconscious, fell out of favor, so too did
psychosomatic medicine.
B) Alexander's nuclear conflict model relied too heavily on individual psychological
problems.
C) Psychosomatic medicine was based on reductionism - the outmoded idea that a
single flaw was sufficient to trigger disease.
D) Being heavily influenced by the behaviorist movement, psychosomatic medicine
became unpopular during the late 1960s.
35. Although Sigmund Freud's theories and psychosomatic medicine were flawed,
they started the trend toward viewing illness and health as caused by:
A) host factors.
B) environmental factors.
C) psychological and behavioral factors.
D) the interaction of several factors.
36. Historically, behavioral medicine grew out of:
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A) the branch of medicine called psychosomatic medicine.
B) psychophysiology and biology.
C) the branch of psychology called behaviorism.
D) psychoanalysis.
37. Who was an early proponent of behavioral medicine who used operant
conditioning techniques to teach animals to gain control over bodily functions?
A) Franz Alexander
B) Sigmund Freud
C) Joseph Matarazzo
D) Neal Miller
38. The scientific study of the causes or origins of specific diseases is called:
A) etiology.
B) entomology.
C) epidemiology.
D) behavioral medicine.
39. Which of the following is NOT one of the original four goals of the new field of
health psychology?
A) To promote health
B) To prevent and treat illness
C) To lower health care costs
D) To promote public health policy
40. During the twentieth century, life expectancy in the United States:
A) decreased.
B) remained about the same.
C) decreased, then increased during the twenty-first century.
D) increased.
41. Which of the following has NOT been a major health trend in the United States
since 1900?
A) Health care costs have increased.
B) Life expectancy has increased.
C) Lifestyle disorders such as cancer, stroke, and heart disease have decreased.
D) The medical model has been broadened from a biomedical focus to a biological,
psychological, and social focus.
42. A person who attributes catching a cold to not getting enough sleep or
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experiencing too much stress after being exposed to a virus is implicitly
accepting which model of health?
A) biomedical
B) biopsychosocial
C) behavioral
D) cognitive-behavioral
43. Health psychologists view health:
A) as the absence of disease.
B) from a biopsychosocial viewpoint.
C) from a biomedical perspective.
D) in various ways, depending on the individual's background.
44. Dr. Rogers believes that our characteristic human behaviors exist as they do
because they helped our distant ancestors survive. Evidently, Dr. Rogers is a
proponent of the:
A) evolutionary perspective.
B) biomedical model.
C) life-course perspective.
D) biopsychosocial model.
45. Genomics is the study of the:
A) evolutionary history of a species' health.
B) structure, function, and mapping of the genetic material of organisms.
C) role of psychological factors in vulnerability to disease.
D) effects of environmental forces on how genes are expressed.
46. An “epigenetic effect” is one in which:
A) genes influence a person's vulnerability to disease.
B) a person's age influences his or her health.
C) environmental forces affect how genes are expressed.
D) exposure to an environmental toxin makes a person sick.
47. One research study found that boys who inherit one variation of the MAOA gene,
and girls who inherit a different variation of the same gene, are more likely to
engage in ____________ behavior as adolescents, but only if they were exposed
to ____________ as children.
A) prosocial; chemical toxins
B) delinquent: maltreatment
C) criminal; malnutrition
D) bullying; bullying
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48. DNA methylation is best described as the:
A) biochemical process that occurs in body cells and helps regulate the expression of
genes.
B) cause of most chronic illnesses in children and young adults.
C) cause of most chronic illnesses in older adults.
D) mechanism by which psychological traits such as introversion are inherited.
49. Dr. Ortiz is investigating how a mother's habits will affect her child's lifelong
development. Dr. Ortiz is evidently working from the __________ perspective.
A) sociocultural
B) life-course
C) biomedical
D) behavioral
50. What is the leading cause of death in young people (age 1-44)?
A) chronic lower respiratory disease
B) heart disease
C) cancer
D) unintentional injuries
51. What is the leading cause of death among people age 45 and over?
A) cancer
B) heart disease
C) chronic conditions such as heart disease and cancer
D) external events such as homicide
52. Subjective well-being refers to:
A) empathy.
B) self-perceived happiness.
C) the level of stress in a person's day-to-day life.
D) the sense that one is better off than others.
53. Women and men who feel connected to a network of caring friends are less likely
to die of cancer than those who feel alienated from others. This finding
underscores the importance of the context in __________ health.
A) biological
B) psychological
C) social
D) emotional
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54. A birth cohort is a group of people who:
A) were born with a few years of each other.
B) have a certain cultural identity.
C) have a certain ethnic identity.
D) have a certain racial identity.
55. Today, the leading cause of death in the United States is:
A) accidents.
B) infectious disease.
C) cancer.
D) heart disease.
56. When psychologists use the term culture, they are referring to:
A) large groups of people who tend to have similar values.
B) large groups of people who tend to have similar experiences.
C) the enduring behaviors, values, and customs that a group of people have developed
over the years and transmitted from one generation to the next.
D) a group of people born within a few years of one another who experience similar
historical and social conditions.
57. Dr. Smyth is studying the relationship of socioeconomic status to health and
disease. Dr. Smyth is evidently working from the __________ perspective.
A) sociocultural
B) life-course
C) gender
D) behavioral
58. Which of the following is NOT true regarding the immigrant paradox?
A) Low socioeconomic status does not predict poor health for Hispanics and other
ethnic groups in the United States.
B) The children and grandchildren of immigrants to the United States typically
surpass their elders in income and education.
C) The children and grandchildren of immigrants to the United States typically are
healthier than their elders.
D) Latinos in the United States use health care less often.
59. Which is one reason that middle-aged women have higher rates of illness than
men in the same age group?
A) Women have been underrepresented as participants in medical research trials.
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B) There simply are more middle-aged women than men living.
C) Because women have less muscular strength than men, they tend to get sick more
often.
D) Because women have weaker immune systems than men.
60. According to the ecological-systems approach, health is a function of:
A) the body's biological systems.
B) our social relationships.
C) our psychological makeup.
D) the interaction of the body's biological, social, and psychological domains.
61. The alcohol dependency syndrome consists of each of the following traits
EXCEPT:
A) poor self-regulation.
B) negative emotionality.
C) self-defeating beliefs.
D) high self-esteem.
62. Research studies demonstrate that college students who drink heavily prefer:
A) large social contexts involving both men and women.
B) small social contexts involving both men and women.
C) large social contexts involving only men or women.
D) small social contexts involving only men or women.
63. Health psychologists work as:
A) teachers.
B) research scientists.
C) clinicians.
D) teachers, scientists, and clinicians.
64. Dr. Mills conducts research on the health assets that produce longer life and
optimal human functioning. Which specialty area does her research best
represent?
A) Positive health
B) Clinical health psychology
C) Biopsychosocial psychology
D) Health psychology
65. Dr. Santiello is a licensed practitioner who focuses on health-promoting
interventions with his clientele. Dr. Santiello is most likely a(n)
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________________ psychologist.
A) positive health
B) biopsychosocial
C) health
D) clinical health
66. Massification is the idea that:
A) recent immigrants to the United States are typically healthier than immigrant
families who have been in the country for several generations.
B) the mind-body connection is very strong when it comes to health.
C) higher education benefits everyone.
D) environmental factors strongly influence how our genes are expressed.
67. Regarding the benefits of attending college, which of the following is NOT true?
A) Women and men who have attended college are no healthier than those who have
not.
B) Over the course of a typical four-year college experience, thinking tends to become
broader and more complex.
C) Educated people are more likely to develop higher health literacy.
D) Higher education is associated with better health habits.
68. Today, the largest group of health psychologists works in:
A) colleges and universities.
B) hospitals.
C) independent practice.
D) business or government.
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Answer Key
1. C
2. B
3. D
4. C
5. B
6. C
7. D
8. A
9. A
10. B
11. B
12. A
13. B
14. B
15. C
16. B
17. D
18. A
19. C
20. A
21. C
22. A
23. A
24. C
25. B
26. A
27. B
28. C
29. D
30. B
31. B
32. A
33. D
34. D
35. D
36. C
37. D
38. A
39. C
40. D
41. C
42. B
43. B
44. A
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45. B
46. C
47. B
48. A
49. B
50. D
51. C
52. B
53. C
54. A
55. D
56. C
57. A
58. C
59. A
60. D
61. D
62. A
63. D
64. A
65. D
66. C
67. A
68. C
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