Chapter 3

Question 1

Behavioral Assessment

Answer 1

Measuring, observing, and systematically evaluating (rather than inferring) the client’s thoughts, feelings, and behavior in the actual problem situation or context.

Question 2

Classical Categorical Approach

Answer 2

Classification method founded on the assumption of clear-cut differences among disorders, each with a different known cause.

Question 3

Classification

Answer 3

Assignment of objects or people to categories on the basis of shared characteristics

Question 4

Clinical Assessment

Answer 4

Systematic evaluation and measurement of psychological, biological, and social factors in a person presenting with a possible psychological disorder.

Question 5

Comorbidity

Answer 5

Presence of two or more disorders in an individual at the same time.

Question 6

Diagnosis

Answer 6

Process of determining whether a presenting problem meets the established criteria for a specific psychological disorder.

Question 7

Dimensional Approach

Answer 7

Method of categorizing characteristics on a continuum rather than on a binary, either-or, or all-or-none basis.

Question 8

electroencephalogram

Answer 8

Measure of electrical activity patterns in the brain, taken through electrodes placed on the scalp.

Question 9

False Negative

Answer 9

Assessment error in which no pathology is noted (that is, test results are negative) when one is actually present.

Question 10

False Positive

Answer 10

Assessment error in which pathology is reported (that is, test results are positive) when none is actually present.

Question 11

Familial Aggregation

Answer 11

The extent to which a disorder is found among a patient’s relatives.

Question 12

Ideographic Strategy

Answer 12

Close and detailed investigation of an individual emphasizing what makes that person unique (compare with nomothetic strategy).

Question 13

Intelligence Quotient

Answer 13

Score on an intelligence test estimating a person’s deviation from average test performance.

Question 14

Labeling

Answer 14

Applying a name to a phenomenon or a pattern of behavior. The label may acquire negative connotations or be applied erroneously to the person rather than that person’s behaviors.

Question 15

Mental Status Exam

Answer 15

Relatively coarse preliminary test of a client’s judgment, orientation to time and place, and emotional and mental state; typically conducted during an initial interview.

Question 16

Neuroimaging

Answer 16

Sophisticated computer-aided procedures that allow nonintrusive examination of nervous system structure and function.

Question 17

neuropsychological testing

Answer 17

Assessment of brain and nervous system functioning by testing an individual’s performance on behavioral tasks.

Question 18

Nomenclature

Answer 18

In a naming system or nosology, the actual labels or names that are applied. In psychopathology, these include mood disorders and eating disorders

Question 19

Nomothetic Strategy

Answer 19

Identification and examination of large groups of people with the same disorder to note similarities and develop general laws (compare with idiographic strategy).

Question 20

Nosology

Answer 20

Classification and naming system for medical and psychological phenomena

Question 21

Personality Disorders

Answer 21

Enduring maladaptive patterns for relating to the environment and self, exhibited in a range of contexts that cause significant functional impairment or subjective distress.

Question 22

Projective Tests

Answer 22

Psychoanalytically based measures that present ambiguous stimuli to clients on the assumption that their responses will reveal their unconscious conflicts. Such tests are inferential and lack high reliability and validity.

Question 23

Prototypical Approach

Answer 23

System for categorizing disorders using both essential, defining characteristics and a range of variation on other characteristics.

Question 24

Psychophysiological Assessment

Answer 24

Measurement of changes in the nervous system reflecting psychological or emotional events such as anxiety, stress, and sexual arousal.

Question 25

Reliability

Answer 25

Degree to which a measurement is consistent—for example, over time or among different raters.

Question 26

Self-monitoring

Answer 26

Action by which clients observe and record their own behaviors as either an assessment of a problem and its change or a treatment procedure that makes them more aware of their responses. Also called self-observation

Question 27

Standardization

Answer 27

Process of establishing specific norms and requirements for a measurement technique to ensure it is used consistently across measurement occasions. This includes instructions for administering the measure, evaluating its findings, and comparing these to data for large numbers of people.

Question 28

Taxonomy

Answer 28

System of naming and classification (for example, of specimens) in science.

Question 29

Validity

Answer 29

Degree to which a technique measures what it purports to measure.