An adult, who was sexually abused as a child, has been displaying some stress. She seems to complain of increasing medical problems when she is under more stress. The nurse would classify this as an example of

Question

A)
vitamin deficiency.
B)
the stress-diathesis theory.
C)
mendelian research.
D)
parental disassociation.

Answer 1

Ans:
B

Feedback:

The stress-diathesis model of psychiatric disorders evolved from a recognition that genetics (diathesis) and environment (stress) both contribute to the development of psychiatric disorders. Adults who report significant traumatic experiences such as an emotional, physical, or sexual abuse as children show a graded positive response; that is, the more trauma experienced, the more both medical and mental illness occur later in life. Vitamin deficiency has not been implicated as a cause of increasing medical complaints when experiencing stress. Mendelian research studies genetics and describes the way in which genes modulate behavior and psychological traits. Parental nurturing mediates this epigenetic response, but in the absence of nurturing (dissociation), children have difficulties with attention and following directions. As teenagers, they are more likely to engage in high-risk behaviors and, as adults, show increased aggression, impulsive behavior, weakened cognition, and an inability to discriminate between real and imagined threats.