COGSCI 115 Final - UC Berkeley
UPDATED ACTUAL Exam Questions and
CORRECT Answers
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) & Related Techniques - CORRECT ANSWER CBT
focuses on changing maladaptive thinking1 . Newer forms of CBT focus on changing one's
relationship to maladaptive thinking1 .
"Taking in the Good" - CORRECT ANSWER involves holding positive experiences in
awareness2 . The longer something is held in awareness and the more emotionally stimulating it
is, the stronger the memory trace3 .
Emotional arousal - CORRECT ANSWER facilitates learning by increasing excitation and
consolidating synaptic change3 .
Amygdala responses - CORRECT ANSWER send activation down "descending"
pathways to brainstem and hypothalamic centers3 .
Positive affect facilitates creativity - CORRECT ANSWER by increasing attentional scope
to include weakly activated solution possibilities4 . Dopamine release may mediate this effect4
.The stress response causes attention to narrow and focus on negative information5 .
General positive affirmations - CORRECT ANSWER can help broaden perspective6 .
"Don't-Know Mind" practice - CORRECT ANSWER Recognize that you don't really
know how things should be6 .
Cognitive reappraisal - CORRECT ANSWER involves changing the meaning given to a
stimulus7 . This can shorten cardiovascular reactivity and increase positive emotions8 .
,Neuroimaging studies - CORRECT ANSWER show that reappraisal dampens activity in
the amygdala9 . It activates the PFC (including dmPFC, dlPFC, vlPFC)7 , lateral temporal
cortex, and posterior parietal cortex7 . The orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) is also important in the
evaluation of emotional salience7 .
Reframing - CORRECT ANSWER View situations as challenges or games10 11 .
Consider how setbacks could lead to a better outcome11 .
Optimism - CORRECT ANSWER Seeing challenges as stepping stones to success11 .
Emotional Intelligence (EI) - CORRECT ANSWER High EI is associated with greater
subjective stress, but also better after-task recovery12 .
Start small - CORRECT ANSWER When trying to motivate yourself or change a habit,
begin with very small steps13 .
Behavioral activation - CORRECT ANSWER was associated with functional changes in
structures that mediate responses to rewards14 .
CBT for OCD includes - CORRECT ANSWER relabeling and reattributing
Relabeling - CORRECT ANSWER Identifying what's real and what isn't15 . For example,
saying "That compulsion is bothering me again" instead of "I feel like I need to wash my hands
again"15 .
Reattributing - CORRECT ANSWER Understanding that obsessive thoughts are false
messages from the brain15 .
CBT for major depressive disorder (MDD) includes - CORRECT ANSWER Recognizing
the habit of catastrophizing16 .Regarding depressive thoughts as electrical events in the brain16
.Experiencing sadness without elaboration (mindfulness component)16 .
, CBT for depression - CORRECT ANSWER Increased prefrontal activity; decreased
activation in hippocampus and subgenual cingulate17 .
CBT for OCD - CORRECT ANSWER Decreased metabolic activity in a caudate-orbital-
thalamic brain circuit18 .
CBT for phobias - CORRECT ANSWER Reduced activation in the dorsolateral prefrontal
cortex and parahippocampal gyrus after treatment19 .
Tailoring treatment - CORRECT ANSWER Neuroimaging data may help tailor
treatments20 .
OCD - CORRECT ANSWER Higher metabolism in left frontal orbital cortex before
treatment predicts response to behavioral therapy; lower activity predicts better response to
fluoxetine20 .
Social anxiety - CORRECT ANSWER Activity in dorsal anterior cingulate cortex can
predict CBT success21 .
Mindfulness - CORRECT ANSWER involves awareness of the present moment with
acceptance22 .
Labeling emotions - CORRECT ANSWER transforms them from objects of fear to objects
of scrutiny23 . Labeling anxiety can lower physiological reactivity24 .
Focused meditation - CORRECT ANSWER helps calm "monkey mind"25 . It enables
connection with the "suchness" of experience and produces a sense of general "Okness"25 .
UPDATED ACTUAL Exam Questions and
CORRECT Answers
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) & Related Techniques - CORRECT ANSWER CBT
focuses on changing maladaptive thinking1 . Newer forms of CBT focus on changing one's
relationship to maladaptive thinking1 .
"Taking in the Good" - CORRECT ANSWER involves holding positive experiences in
awareness2 . The longer something is held in awareness and the more emotionally stimulating it
is, the stronger the memory trace3 .
Emotional arousal - CORRECT ANSWER facilitates learning by increasing excitation and
consolidating synaptic change3 .
Amygdala responses - CORRECT ANSWER send activation down "descending"
pathways to brainstem and hypothalamic centers3 .
Positive affect facilitates creativity - CORRECT ANSWER by increasing attentional scope
to include weakly activated solution possibilities4 . Dopamine release may mediate this effect4
.The stress response causes attention to narrow and focus on negative information5 .
General positive affirmations - CORRECT ANSWER can help broaden perspective6 .
"Don't-Know Mind" practice - CORRECT ANSWER Recognize that you don't really
know how things should be6 .
Cognitive reappraisal - CORRECT ANSWER involves changing the meaning given to a
stimulus7 . This can shorten cardiovascular reactivity and increase positive emotions8 .
,Neuroimaging studies - CORRECT ANSWER show that reappraisal dampens activity in
the amygdala9 . It activates the PFC (including dmPFC, dlPFC, vlPFC)7 , lateral temporal
cortex, and posterior parietal cortex7 . The orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) is also important in the
evaluation of emotional salience7 .
Reframing - CORRECT ANSWER View situations as challenges or games10 11 .
Consider how setbacks could lead to a better outcome11 .
Optimism - CORRECT ANSWER Seeing challenges as stepping stones to success11 .
Emotional Intelligence (EI) - CORRECT ANSWER High EI is associated with greater
subjective stress, but also better after-task recovery12 .
Start small - CORRECT ANSWER When trying to motivate yourself or change a habit,
begin with very small steps13 .
Behavioral activation - CORRECT ANSWER was associated with functional changes in
structures that mediate responses to rewards14 .
CBT for OCD includes - CORRECT ANSWER relabeling and reattributing
Relabeling - CORRECT ANSWER Identifying what's real and what isn't15 . For example,
saying "That compulsion is bothering me again" instead of "I feel like I need to wash my hands
again"15 .
Reattributing - CORRECT ANSWER Understanding that obsessive thoughts are false
messages from the brain15 .
CBT for major depressive disorder (MDD) includes - CORRECT ANSWER Recognizing
the habit of catastrophizing16 .Regarding depressive thoughts as electrical events in the brain16
.Experiencing sadness without elaboration (mindfulness component)16 .
, CBT for depression - CORRECT ANSWER Increased prefrontal activity; decreased
activation in hippocampus and subgenual cingulate17 .
CBT for OCD - CORRECT ANSWER Decreased metabolic activity in a caudate-orbital-
thalamic brain circuit18 .
CBT for phobias - CORRECT ANSWER Reduced activation in the dorsolateral prefrontal
cortex and parahippocampal gyrus after treatment19 .
Tailoring treatment - CORRECT ANSWER Neuroimaging data may help tailor
treatments20 .
OCD - CORRECT ANSWER Higher metabolism in left frontal orbital cortex before
treatment predicts response to behavioral therapy; lower activity predicts better response to
fluoxetine20 .
Social anxiety - CORRECT ANSWER Activity in dorsal anterior cingulate cortex can
predict CBT success21 .
Mindfulness - CORRECT ANSWER involves awareness of the present moment with
acceptance22 .
Labeling emotions - CORRECT ANSWER transforms them from objects of fear to objects
of scrutiny23 . Labeling anxiety can lower physiological reactivity24 .
Focused meditation - CORRECT ANSWER helps calm "monkey mind"25 . It enables
connection with the "suchness" of experience and produces a sense of general "Okness"25 .
