DSM-5 EXAM QUESTIONS WITH
CORRECT SOLUTIONS
A therapist on an inpatient unit conducts an intake with a 40-year-old man who was
transported to the hospital by the police after an altercation in a park. He is unable to
provide a medical or social history and reports having no memory before he arrived at
the hospital. A police check reveals that he is an executive of a large company in a
nearby city who was laid off a few days ago. At the end of his weeklong stay in the
hospital, he has recovered his memory. The MOST likely diagnosis is: - ANSWER
Dissociative Amnesia with Dissociative Fugue
A school therapist receives a referral for a 13-year-old boy for inattention and poor
grades. During observations and interactions with the student, the therapist
experiences the boy as intelligent and highly verbal but notes that he has difficulty
following instructions and reports that he avoids reading and writing activities. The
initial diagnosis is MOST likely: - ANSWER Learning Disorder
A therapist evaluates a 6-year-old girl with moderately severe cerebral palsy. Among
other symptoms, the parents report that their daughter is often observed attempting to
chew and eat non-food items, including sand and houseplants. Sometimes they are able
to intervene while she is chewing on the item, but she has been hospitalized on one
occasion for ingesting leaves from a potentially harmful plant. What is the MOST likely
diagnosis in this case? - ANSWER Pica
A therapist begins treatment with a child diagnosed with ADHD and intends to use
cognitive behavioral treatment to help improve the child's concentration. The therapist
will MOST likely need to help the child in which additional area? - ANSWER Social skills
A couple enters treatment with a therapist due to increasing conflicts and distance after
2 years of marriage. The man reports feeling as if his wife needs his approval for
everything and he's exhausted with her constant worries and questions about what she
should do. The woman endorses frequent worries about her husband leaving her or
dying young and states that she only asks his opinion because she "trusts him more
than I trust myself." The man says that he feels more like a parent than a husband and
that this can't continue. The woman's diagnosis is MOST likely: - ANSWER Dependent
Personality Disorder
A therapist is asked to evaluate a 5-year-old boy whose parents are concerned about his
inability to sit still periodically at school. During the interview, the boy makes multiple
barking noises, blinks almost constantly, and jerks his right arm back and forth. His
parents report that these symptoms started in preschool and are getting in the way of
their son learning and making friends. What is the MOST likely diagnosis at this time? -
, ANSWER Tourette's Disorder
A diagnosis of Enuresis is appropriate when: - ANSWER Urine is unintentionally voided
at least twice weekly and the patient is at least five years old.
A school therapist is asked to evaluate an 8-year-old girl who has been crying frequently
in class and complaining of stomach aches. When the therapist interviews the student,
the student begs the therapist to let her go home and be with her mother and also
expresses fears that something bad might happen to her mom. What is the MOST likely
diagnosis in this case? - ANSWER Separation Anxiety Disorder
A mother brings her 5-year-old daughter for therapy. She is referred by the school. The
mother tearfully reports that the teacher said that her daughter seems autistic because
she doesn't talk or interact with peers. The mother reports that the daughter plays with
her older siblings and cousins and talks a lot at home and with their extended family.
What differential diagnosis should be considered? - ANSWER Selective Mutism
An 11-year-old boy is referred to the school therapist for excessive truancy. An
assessment with the boy's parents reveals several incarcerations at the juvenile
detention center for selling drugs and the parents' report a longstanding inability to
enforce limits or consequences with him. His teacher describes him as quiet and
disinterested in school, although the therapist knows the boy has a reputation as a bully.
What diagnosis is MOST likely: - ANSWER Conduct Disorder
A client is referred to a therapist after being discharged from the psychiatric hospital.
The records indicate that he has been hearing voices for the past four months and he
believes he is being followed. According to the DSM 5 criteria, the MOST likely diagnosis
for the client is: - ANSWER Schizophreniform Disorder
During an assessment, a therapist in a medical clinic finds that a patient has a decrease
in libido, difficulty sleeping, and feelings of hopelessness for the last month. The MOST
likely diagnosis in this case is: - ANSWER Major Depressive Disorder
A 35-year-old woman enters treatment with a therapist; during the assessment, the
therapist learns that she has been on Lithium for several years and was hospitalized
after an episode in which she did not sleep for a week, sold her brother's car, and used
the money to go to Las Vegas. Based on this information, what is the client's MOST likely
diagnosis - ANSWER Bipolar I Disorder
A 62-year-old woman presents for treatment five weeks after the death of her beloved
cat. Prior to this incident, she worked full time and enjoyed many hobbies. Since then,
she has stayed at home and isolated herself, stating that she cries all the time. What
initial diagnosis should the therapist make? - ANSWER Major Depressive Disorder
A 34-year-old man calls a therapist in a community clinic and inquires about the
possibility of internet therapy or phone sessions. He reports that he's unable to leave
CORRECT SOLUTIONS
A therapist on an inpatient unit conducts an intake with a 40-year-old man who was
transported to the hospital by the police after an altercation in a park. He is unable to
provide a medical or social history and reports having no memory before he arrived at
the hospital. A police check reveals that he is an executive of a large company in a
nearby city who was laid off a few days ago. At the end of his weeklong stay in the
hospital, he has recovered his memory. The MOST likely diagnosis is: - ANSWER
Dissociative Amnesia with Dissociative Fugue
A school therapist receives a referral for a 13-year-old boy for inattention and poor
grades. During observations and interactions with the student, the therapist
experiences the boy as intelligent and highly verbal but notes that he has difficulty
following instructions and reports that he avoids reading and writing activities. The
initial diagnosis is MOST likely: - ANSWER Learning Disorder
A therapist evaluates a 6-year-old girl with moderately severe cerebral palsy. Among
other symptoms, the parents report that their daughter is often observed attempting to
chew and eat non-food items, including sand and houseplants. Sometimes they are able
to intervene while she is chewing on the item, but she has been hospitalized on one
occasion for ingesting leaves from a potentially harmful plant. What is the MOST likely
diagnosis in this case? - ANSWER Pica
A therapist begins treatment with a child diagnosed with ADHD and intends to use
cognitive behavioral treatment to help improve the child's concentration. The therapist
will MOST likely need to help the child in which additional area? - ANSWER Social skills
A couple enters treatment with a therapist due to increasing conflicts and distance after
2 years of marriage. The man reports feeling as if his wife needs his approval for
everything and he's exhausted with her constant worries and questions about what she
should do. The woman endorses frequent worries about her husband leaving her or
dying young and states that she only asks his opinion because she "trusts him more
than I trust myself." The man says that he feels more like a parent than a husband and
that this can't continue. The woman's diagnosis is MOST likely: - ANSWER Dependent
Personality Disorder
A therapist is asked to evaluate a 5-year-old boy whose parents are concerned about his
inability to sit still periodically at school. During the interview, the boy makes multiple
barking noises, blinks almost constantly, and jerks his right arm back and forth. His
parents report that these symptoms started in preschool and are getting in the way of
their son learning and making friends. What is the MOST likely diagnosis at this time? -
, ANSWER Tourette's Disorder
A diagnosis of Enuresis is appropriate when: - ANSWER Urine is unintentionally voided
at least twice weekly and the patient is at least five years old.
A school therapist is asked to evaluate an 8-year-old girl who has been crying frequently
in class and complaining of stomach aches. When the therapist interviews the student,
the student begs the therapist to let her go home and be with her mother and also
expresses fears that something bad might happen to her mom. What is the MOST likely
diagnosis in this case? - ANSWER Separation Anxiety Disorder
A mother brings her 5-year-old daughter for therapy. She is referred by the school. The
mother tearfully reports that the teacher said that her daughter seems autistic because
she doesn't talk or interact with peers. The mother reports that the daughter plays with
her older siblings and cousins and talks a lot at home and with their extended family.
What differential diagnosis should be considered? - ANSWER Selective Mutism
An 11-year-old boy is referred to the school therapist for excessive truancy. An
assessment with the boy's parents reveals several incarcerations at the juvenile
detention center for selling drugs and the parents' report a longstanding inability to
enforce limits or consequences with him. His teacher describes him as quiet and
disinterested in school, although the therapist knows the boy has a reputation as a bully.
What diagnosis is MOST likely: - ANSWER Conduct Disorder
A client is referred to a therapist after being discharged from the psychiatric hospital.
The records indicate that he has been hearing voices for the past four months and he
believes he is being followed. According to the DSM 5 criteria, the MOST likely diagnosis
for the client is: - ANSWER Schizophreniform Disorder
During an assessment, a therapist in a medical clinic finds that a patient has a decrease
in libido, difficulty sleeping, and feelings of hopelessness for the last month. The MOST
likely diagnosis in this case is: - ANSWER Major Depressive Disorder
A 35-year-old woman enters treatment with a therapist; during the assessment, the
therapist learns that she has been on Lithium for several years and was hospitalized
after an episode in which she did not sleep for a week, sold her brother's car, and used
the money to go to Las Vegas. Based on this information, what is the client's MOST likely
diagnosis - ANSWER Bipolar I Disorder
A 62-year-old woman presents for treatment five weeks after the death of her beloved
cat. Prior to this incident, she worked full time and enjoyed many hobbies. Since then,
she has stayed at home and isolated herself, stating that she cries all the time. What
initial diagnosis should the therapist make? - ANSWER Major Depressive Disorder
A 34-year-old man calls a therapist in a community clinic and inquires about the
possibility of internet therapy or phone sessions. He reports that he's unable to leave
