Instructions: Pretend you are the Chief Psychiatrist at the local psychiatric hospital. It is your job to diagnose the symptoms of prospective patients so that you can classify their psychological disorder and then
recommend the appropriate treatment.
1. Read each of the following case descriptions carefully.
2. Using the names of psychological disorders given in class and in your
textbook, write the diagnosis that you have decided upon in the space
provided.CASE #1:
Dave R. would often hear a small voice coming from a "dwarf" or from the center of the room. He lived in constant fear of being attacked, and he was certain that policemen were pointing their guns at him. For years he worried
about televisions which he believed emitted poison and electricity into his body. He was certain that he was a scientific genius, who knew all about atoms.
DIAGNOSIS: _____________________________________________________
CASE #2:
Sue was 21 when she became increasingly bothered by intrusive and recurring thoughts, which appeared to her to both irrational and uncontrollable. For example, Sue could not seem to put out of her mind the
thought that she forgot to lock the door of her apartment and would be so bothered by this uncertainty that she would check three or four times making her inevitably late for work every day. Other thoughts were also accompanied by
repeated actions. Sue could not step on any crack in the sidewalk for fear of harm coming to a loved one. If she did step on a crack, she would have to complete the "healing" ritual of going back and walking that block over again.
DIAGNOSIS: _____________________________________________________
CASE #3:
Nancy first went to the doctor complaining of headaches and blackouts. It turned out that Nancy actually had another personality, which
instead of being inhibited and conventional like Nancy, was instead a flirtatious, carefree and uninhibited personality called Gail. A third childlike personality also sometimes emerged. Any unavoidable stress situation would cause
an alternate personality to emerge.
DIAGNOSIS: _____________________________________________________
CASE #4:
Stephen's mood swings were unpredictable and excessive in nature. One time he was hyperactive and
extremely elated with accelerated speech and flight of ideas which, at times, seemed incoherent. During this period, he worked feverishly day and night on an important novel that "had to be started and finished that week." Months
later, Stephen experienced a sad period, during which he could not get out of bed for more than minutes at a time. He would not see any friends for a period of months until he slowly recovered and seemed to be normal again (for
awhile). Stephen felt so dejected and so agitated that he contemplated suicide.
DIAGNOSIS: _____________________________________________________
CASE #5:
Sally, age 18, came to the attention of medical
authorities when her parents complained that she was not eating and also losing a lot of weight. Sally, in reality, was on a strict self-imposed weight-loss program and did such things as: ate little or no food, used laxatives
daily, induced vomiting and did frequent exercise to burn up calories. She had become preoccupied with thinness as proof that she was able to maintain control of her life.
DIAGNOSIS: _____________________________________________________
