Psychotherapy Modalities (CBT, DBT, Psychodynamic, Behavioural Techniques) MCQs

Psychiatry · 15 free questions with answers & explanations.

1. A 30-year-old woman with borderline personality disorder undergoes a structured psychotherapy that includes skills training in four modules: mindfulness, interpersonal effectiveness, emotion regulation, and distress tolerance. She also has individual therapy sessions and access to telephone coaching. This describes:
2. A therapist asks a patient with OCD to hold a contaminated object for 45 minutes without washing his hands, despite his intense anxiety. This technique most specifically exemplifies:
3. In Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, the therapist identifies the following thought in a depressed patient: 'My boss didn't say hello today — he must hate me and I'll be fired.' Which cognitive distortion does this represent?
4. Which psychotherapy technique is associated with 'free association', 'transference analysis', and the interpretation of 'resistance' as core mechanisms of change?
5. A 26-year-old woman with borderline personality disorder has chronic suicidal ideation, self-harm, and difficulty tolerating emotional distress. She repeatedly calls her therapist between sessions in crisis. Which psychotherapy is specifically designed for this presentation and validated by randomised trials?
6. A 38-year-old man with OCD undergoes a psychotherapy in which he is repeatedly exposed to a contamination stimulus (touching door knobs) without being permitted to wash his hands. Over 20 sessions, his compulsion urge diminishes markedly. This technique is best described as:
7. In psychodynamic psychotherapy, a patient begins showing anger toward the therapist which mirrors the hostility she experienced from her father. What psychoanalytic concept does this represent?
8. Motivational Interviewing (MI) was originally developed by Miller and Rollnick primarily for which condition, and which is a core principle of the technique?
9. Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) was originally developed for which condition, and which core module specifically addresses the 'swing' between emotional vulnerability and invalidating environments?
10. A therapist helps a patient with agoraphobia confront feared situations in a systematic, hierarchical manner while maintaining a relaxed physiological state. This technique is best described as:
11. In Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, 'arbitrary inference' is an example of which category of cognitive error?
12. A patient with borderline personality disorder has recurrent self-harm, emotional dysregulation, and chronic feelings of emptiness. The psychotherapy modality specifically designed and evidence-based for this condition, combining cognitive-behavioural techniques with Eastern mindfulness practices, is:
13. In Cognitive Behaviour Therapy for panic disorder, the specific cognitive technique addressing the patient's catastrophic misinterpretation of bodily sensations (e.g., 'rapid heartbeat means I am having a heart attack') is called:
14. A therapist uses the technique of 'graded task assignment' and 'activity scheduling' for a depressed patient who is withdrawn. This is a core component of:
15. Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is an evidence-based treatment recommended as first-line for which condition?