Anxiety Disorders Practice Questions
16 free Anxiety Disorders practice questions for the NCLEX Exam. Tap an option to answer — you get instant feedback, the correct answer, and a detailed explanation for every question.
Which disorder is characterized by excessive, uncontrollable worry about multiple domains such as job, health, and children for at least six months?
- A Social phobia limited to performance situations
- B Specific phobia of a single feared object
- C Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD)
- D Panic disorder with recurrent panic attacks
Correct answer: Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD)
GAD is characterized by excessive, uncontrollable worry about multiple domains (job, health, children) for at least six months.
What is the most common physical symptom associated with a panic attack in a group discussion?
- A Gradual onset of fatigue developing over several weeks
- B Sudden palpitations, shortness of breath, and trembling
- C Mild, transient irritability without other symptoms
- D Persistent headaches lasting continuously for days
Correct answer: Sudden palpitations, shortness of breath, and trembling
Panic attacks typically begin abruptly with symptoms like palpitations, shortness of breath, shaking, and a sense of doom.
Which characteristic behavior in a group session for clients with a phobia reflects avoidance of a specific situation due to anxiety?
- A Agoraphobia
- B A specific phobia (situational type)
- C Social anxiety disorder
- D Obsessive-compulsive disorder
Correct answer: A specific phobia (situational type)
Avoidance of a specific situation (elevator) due to anxiety is characteristic of a situational type specific phobia.
What is the most appropriate intervention to start with in a group for clients with anxiety disorders?
- A Guess each client’s specific worry
- B Establish group rules including confidentiality and respect
- C Immediately ask all members to share their deepest fear
- D Focus only on pharmacology and ignore coping strategies
Correct answer: Establish group rules including confidentiality and respect
Establishing rules of confidentiality, safety, and mutual respect is essential to build trust in a group mental-health setting.
What nursing teaching would be most helpful for a client with GAD who reports constant muscle tension?
- A Tell them muscle tension is unrelated to anxiety
- B Introduce progressive muscle relaxation as a coping strategy
- C Encourage ignoring the tension and continuing worry
- D Reserve discussion until the individual session only
Correct answer: Introduce progressive muscle relaxation as a coping strategy
Muscle tension is a common physical manifestation of GAD, and relaxation interventions such as progressive muscle relaxation help reduce that symptom.
What is the best immediate response if a group member in a panic disorder session is hyperventilating after discussing triggers?
- A Leave the member to recover entirely on their own
- B Encourage slow, deep breathing and guide them to grounding
- C Criticize the member for overreacting to the triggers
- D Continue the group discussion without taking any notice
Correct answer: Encourage slow, deep breathing and guide them to grounding
Hyperventilation is a physiological response in panic; guiding the client to slow breathing and grounding techniques is an appropriate immediate intervention.
Which medication class is commonly first-line for generalized anxiety disorder and should be discussed in psychoeducation in a group?
- A Typical antipsychotics such as haloperidol
- B Benzodiazepines for short-term symptom relief
- C Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs)
- D Beta-blockers for situational performance anxiety
Correct answer: Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs)
SSRIs are considered first-line pharmacotherapy for GAD because they reduce core anxiety symptoms over time with fewer dependency risks.
What is key to an exposure-based exercise planned for a group therapy addressing phobias?
- A Immediate full exposure without any preparation or consent
- B Gradual, planned exposure to the feared situation
- C Avoiding any mention of the feared situation in group
- D Relying on medication instead of any exposure work
Correct answer: Gradual, planned exposure to the feared situation
Exposure therapy involves systematic, gradual exposure to the feared stimulus under safe conditions to reduce avoidance and anxiety.
What is the minimum duration of excessive worry needed to meet diagnostic criteria for GAD?
- A 2 weeks
- B 1 month
- C 6 months
- D 1 year
Correct answer: 6 months
For GAD diagnosis, the excessive worry usually lasts at least six months.
Which aspect of panic disorder does avoidance of places where escape may be difficult best represent?
- A Isolated panic attacks with no behavioural change
- B Anticipatory anxiety with avoidance
- C A specific phobia unrelated to panic attacks
- D Social anxiety in performance settings
Correct answer: Anticipatory anxiety with avoidance
Panic disorder often includes anticipatory anxiety about future attacks and avoidance of places where escape may be difficult, a hallmark of panic disorder.
Which of the following is least likely to be effective in a group session for clients with anxiety disorders?
- A Teaching cognitive restructuring of irrational thoughts
- B Reinforcing avoidance of feared situations as a coping plan
- C Relaxation and breathing exercises practised in the group
- D Peer-sharing of coping strategies and mutual support
Correct answer: Reinforcing avoidance of feared situations as a coping plan
Encouraging avoidance maintains anxiety and undermines recovery; group interventions are better focused on exposure, coping, and cognitive change.
Which nervous system activation is responsible for extreme sweating and tremor in a person with a specific phobia?
- A Parasympathetic 'rest and digest' activation
- B Sympathetic 'fight or flight' activation
- C Somatic motor pathway activation
- D Central nervous system depression
Correct answer: Sympathetic 'fight or flight' activation
Sweating and tremor in phobic anxiety arise from sympathetic nervous system activation (fight or flight) in response to the feared stimulus.
In group mental-health therapy, how does social support among participants benefit clients with anxiety disorders?
- A It removes the need for any medication
- B It tends to increase a client's sense of isolation
- C It reduces shame and normalizes symptoms
- D It substitutes fully for cognitive therapy
Correct answer: It reduces shame and normalizes symptoms
Peer support in group therapy fosters normalization of anxiety, reduces shame, and enhances coping and social connection—which are important in group mental-health care.
What does the term 'interoceptive exposure' refer to in the context of a group session for panic disorder?
- A Exposure to external triggers in the group setting
- B Exposure to feared bodily sensations
- C Discussing panic episodes without any exposure
- D Sedating clients before each group session
Correct answer: Exposure to feared bodily sensations
Interoceptive exposure targets internal bodily sensations (e.g., hyperventilation, heart racing) that trigger panic attacks, helping desensitize the fear response.
What distinguishes a specific phobia from generalized anxiety disorder?
- A Phobia is fear of a specific object or situation; GAD is worry across many topics
- B Phobia must last six months while GAD lasts one month
- C Phobia produces only mild distress while GAD is typically severe
- D Phobia is a physical illness while GAD is purely psychological
Correct answer: Phobia is fear of a specific object or situation; GAD is worry across many topics
Specific phobia is fear/anxiety tied to a particular object or situation, whereas GAD involves generalized, excessive worry across multiple domains of life.
What screening question is most appropriate to assess for panic disorder and agoraphobia during intakes for an anxiety-disorder group?
- A Do you spend a lot of time worrying about your children's grades?
- B Have you had sudden waves of intense fear and then avoided where it happened?
- C Do you generally feel comfortable in large crowds?
- D Do you usually stay calm when you are out in public?
Correct answer: Have you had sudden waves of intense fear and then avoided where it happened?
Sudden intense fear (panic attack) and avoidance of places where the attack occurred are hallmark features of panic disorder with agoraphobia, making this question useful for screening.