Chapter 2 Diagnosis & Assessment QUIZ 1

Question 1

alternate-form reliability

Answer 1

the relationship between scores achieved by people when they complete two versions of a test that are judged to be equivalent

Question 2

Australian Psychological Society (APS)

Answer 2

the largest professional association for psychologists in Australia

Question 3

Australian Psychological Society’s Code of Ethics

Answer 3

a code of conduct for psychologists in Australia that is published by the Australian Psychological Society

Question 4

behavioural assessment

Answer 4

a sampling of ongoing cognitions, feelings and overt behaviour in their situational context

Question 5

BOLD (blood oxygenation level dependent)

Answer 5

the signal detected by functional MRI studies of the brain; measures blood flow and thus neural activity in particular regions

Question 6

case conceptualisation

Answer 6

a process of integrating a patient’s assessment information with theory and research

Question 7

categorical classification

Answer 7

an approach to assessment in which a person is or is not a member of a discrete grouping

Question 8

clinical interview

Answer 8

general term for conversation between a clinician and a patient that is aimed at determining diagnosis, history, causes of problems and possible treatment options

Question 9

comorbidity

Answer 9

the co-occurrence of two disorders, as when a person has depression and social phobia

Question 10

concurrent validity

Answer 10

the extent to which previously undiscovered features are found among patients with the same diagnosis

Question 11

construct validity

Answer 11

the extent to which scores or ratings on an assessment instrument relate to other variables or behaviours according to some theory or hypothesis.

E.g. Is the test measuring what it claims to test? Relates to the test as a whole.

Question 12

content validity

Answer 12

the extent to which a measure adequately samples the domain of interest

E.g. Relates to the questions - do the questions help to create the construct.

Question 13

criterion validity

Answer 13

the extent to which a measure is associated in an expected way with some other measure

E.g. How predictive is the test? Does this test reflect a certain set of abilities?

Question 14

CT or CAT scan

Answer 14

refers to computerised axial tomography, a method of diagnosis in which x-rays are taken from different angles and then analysed by a computer to produce a representation of the part of the body in cross-section

Question 15

diagnosis

Answer 15

the determination that the set of symptoms or problems of a patient indicates a particular disorder

Question 16

Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM)

Answer 16

the manual of clinical syndromes published by the American Psychiatric Association and used for descriptive diagnosis. DSM-5 was published in 2013, with major changes to the classification system and diagnostic categories

Question 17

dimensional diagnostic system

Answer 17

an approach to classifying mental disorders that involves considering symptoms, behaviours and characteristics on a continuum, rather than assigning them to a category

Question 18

ecological momentary assessment (EMA)

Answer 18

form of self-observation involving collection of data in real time (e.g., diaries) regarding thoughts, moods and stressors

Question 19

electrocardiogram (EKG)

Answer 19

a recording of the electrical activity of the heart, made with an electrocardiograph

Question 20

electrodermal responding

Answer 20

a recording of the minute electrical activity of the sweat glands on the skin, allowing inference of an emotional state

Question 21

electroencephalography

Answer 21

a graphic recording of electrical activity of the brain, usually of the cerebral cortex, but sometimes of lower areas

Question 22

functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)

Answer 22

modification of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) that allows researchers to take pictures of the brain so quickly that metabolic changes can be measured, resulting in a picture of the brain at work rather than of its structure alone

Question 23

Health Research Council (HRC)

Answer 23

a government organisation in New Zealand that is responsible for managing the government’s investment in health research and overseeing the work of research committees

Question 24

Human Research Ethics Committees (HRECs)

Answer 24

committees that oversee research involving human participants in Australia

Question 25

intelligence test

Answer 25

a standardised means of assessing a person’s current mental ability, for example, the Stanford–Binet test or the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale

Question 26

internal consistency reliability

Answer 26

the degree to which different items of an assessment are related to one another

Question 27

interrater reliability

Answer 27

the relationship between the judgements that at least two raters make independently about a phenomenon

Question 28

magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)

Answer 28

a technique for measuring the structure (or, in the case of functional magnetic resonance imaging, the activity) of the living brain. The person is placed inside a large circular magnet that causes hydrogen atoms to move; the return of the atoms to their original positions when the current to the magnet is turned off is translated by a computer into pictures of brain tissue

Question 29

metabolite

Answer 29

a chemical breakdown product of an endogenous molecule, such as a neurotransmitter, or of an exogenous drug; used to gauge current or recent level of its precursor

Question 30

Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI)

Answer 30

a lengthy personality inventory that identifies individuals with states such as anxiety, depression, masculinity–femininity and paranoia, through their true–false replies to groups of statements

Question 31

neurologist

Answer 31

physician who specialises in medical diseases that affect the nervous system, such as muscular dystrophy, cerebral palsy or Alzheimer’s disease

Question 32

neuropsychological tests

Answer 32

psychological tests, such as the Luria–Nebraska, which can detect impairment in different parts of the brain

Question 33

neuropsychologist

Answer 33

a psychologist who studies how brain dysfunction affects cognition, emotion and behaviour

Question 34

New Zealand Psychological Society (NZPsS)

Answer 34

the largest professional association for psychologists in New Zealand

Question 35

personality inventory

Answer 35

a self-report questionnaire comprising statements assessing habitual behavioural and affective tendencies

Question 36

PET scan

Answer 36

computer-generated picture of the living brain, created by analysis of emissions from radioactive isotopes injected into the bloodstream

Question 37

predictive validity

Answer 37

the extent to which predictions can be made about the future behaviour of patients with the same diagnosis

Question 38

projective hypothesis

Answer 38

the notion that standard but highly unstructured stimuli, as found in the Rorschach assessment’s series of inkblots, are necessary to bypass defences in order to reveal unconscious motives and conflicts

Question 39

projective test

Answer 39

a psychological assessment device, such as the Rorschach series of inkblots, employing a set of standard but vague stimuli, on the assumption that unstructured material will allow unconscious motivations and fears to be uncovered

Question 40

psychological tests

Answer 40

standardised procedures designed to measure performance on a particular task or to assess personality

Question 41

psychophysiology

Answer 41

the discipline concerned with the bodily changes that accompany psychological events

Question 42

reactivity

Answer 42

the phenomenon wherein behaviour changes because it is being observed

Question 43

reliability

Answer 43

the extent to which a test, measurement or classification system produces the same scientific observation each time it is applied

Question 44

Research Domain Criteria (RDoC)

Answer 44

a long-term project by the National Institute of Mental Health to develop new ways of classifying psychological disorders based on dimensions of observable behaviour and neurobiological measures

Question 45

Rorschach Inkblot Test

Answer 45

a projective test in which the examinee is instructed to interpret a series of 10 inkblots reproduced on cards

Question 46

self-monitoring

Answer 46

in behavioural assessment, a procedure whereby the individual observes and reports certain aspects of his or her own behaviour, thoughts or emotions

Question 47

standardisation

Answer 47

the process of constructing a normed assessment procedure that meets the various psychometric criteria for reliability and validity

Question 48

stress

Answer 48

state of an organism subjected to a stressor; can take the form of increased autonomic activity and in the long term can cause breakdown of an organ or development of a psychological disorder

Question 49

structured interview

Answer 49

an interview in which the questions are set out in a prescribed fashion for the interviewer; assists professionals in making diagnostic decisions based on standardised criteria

Question 50

test–retest reliability

Answer 50

the relationship between the scores that a person achieves when he or she takes the same test twice

Question 51

Thematic Apperception Test (TAT)

Answer 51

a projective test consisting of black-and-white pictures, each depicting a potentially emotion-laden situation, about each of which the examinee is instructed to make up a story

Question 52

validity

Answer 52

in research, includes internal, the extent to which results can be confidently attributed to the manipulation of the independent variable, and external, the extent to which results can be generalised to other populations and settings. Validity as applied to psychiatric diagnoses includes concurrent, the extent to which previously undiscovered features are found among patients with the same diagnosis, and predictive, the extent to which predictions can be made about the future behaviour of patients with the same diagnosis. Validity as applied to psychological and psychiatric measures includes content validity, the extent to which a measure adequately samples the domain of interest, and criterion, the extent to which a measure is associated in an expected way with some other measure (the criterion)