AIIMS Patna NO - 2020
Applied Psychology
Easy
The act of purging or purification of emotions is called?
Appeared in: AIIMS Patna NO - 2020
Explanation
- Catharsis is defined as the expression of ideas, thoughts, and suppressed material that is accompanied by an emotional response, producing a state of relief.
- The term refers to 'venting an emotion' or 'getting it out of one's system' to lessen aggression, fear, or anxiety.
- It is considered a key therapeutic factor in psychotherapy, particularly group therapy, as it helps patients achieve emotional relief by releasing repressed feelings.
Why Other Options Were Wrong
- Option A: Compulsion is an uncontrollable urge to perform a specific action repeatedly. It is a behavior aimed at reducing anxiety, not a process of emotional purification.
- Option C: Cataplexy is a physical phenomenon involving a sudden loss of muscle tone triggered by strong emotions. It is a symptom, not a process of emotional release.
- Option D: Confabulation is a memory disturbance where a person creates fabricated stories to fill in memory gaps. It is a cognitive symptom, unrelated to emotional purging.
Related Visual
Clinical Relevance
- Nursing practice connection: This is primarily an exam-oriented knowledge point with limited direct bedside application, so retain Definition of Catharsis in Psychology as background academic context rather than a clinical decision trigger.
- In nursing practice, facilitating therapeutic communication allows patients to experience catharsis by 'venting' their fears and frustrations, which can significantly reduce anxiety and improve their ability to cope with illness.
- For psychiatric nurses, creating a safe and non-judgmental environment is crucial for enabling catharsis, which is a key intervention for patients processing trauma or severe emotional distress.
- What if a patient describes not an emotional release, but an irresistible urge to wash their hands 50 times a day? The nurse should identify this as a compulsion, a hallmark of OCD, which requires a different therapeutic approach like Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), not catharsis-focused interventions.
How to Approach the Question
- First, analyze the question to identify the core concept. The keywords are 'purging' and 'purification of emotions'.
- This is a definition-based recall question. The task is to match the definition in the stem to the correct psychological term from the options.
- Systematically evaluate each option against the definition.
- Consider 'Compulsion' (a repetitive act), 'Cataplexy' (a physical collapse), and 'Confabulation' (a memory error). None of these match the concept of emotional release.
- Evaluate 'Catharsis'. Its definition directly relates to the release and purification of emotions.
- Conclude that Catharsis is the only term that fits the description provided in the question.
Concept Tested & Keywords
- Concept Tested: Definition of Catharsis in Psychology
- Stem keywords: purging, purification, emotions
- Lead-in keywords: is called
- Negative lead-in flag: false
Question ID
Q7egByUHJ5C5QnonGQIkkF
Reference Book
E6 Kaplan Sadock's Synopsis of Psychiatry-2022 (pp 1-3768 of 3768) p. 2381-2383
E6 Robert Boland, Marcia L. Verduin - Kaplan and Sadock's Comprehensive Text of Psychiatry-Wolters Kluwer Health (2024) (pp 1-16525 of 16525) p. 9653-9656
E6 Psychology Morgan King 9e Part 2 p. 373-375
Practise the full AIIMS Patna NO - 2020
Attempt every question from this paper in a timed mock, then review the full solution for each one.
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