Chapter 3 Flashcards
what is a Clinical Assessment?
systematic evaluation and measurement of psychological, biological and social factors in a person presenting with a possible psychological disorder
what is a Diagnosis?
the process of determining whether a presenting problem meets established criteria for a specific psychological disorder
what makes a panic disorder?
when someone has recurrent and unexpected panic attacks and persistent anxiety about having another panic attacks and avoiding triggers.
- may occur with or without agoraphobia
what is agoraphobia?
“fear of the market place”
now known as: fear or avoidance of certain situations in fear of having a panic attack
t or f. you can only have agoraphobia with panic disorder
f.
you can have agoraphobia without having a panic disorder
what is the DSM?
the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders
- used to make a diagnosis
true or false?
complete avoidance of feared situations is not helpful
true
- avoidance becomes negatively reinforced (reduces fear, more likely to keep happening each time), however, the avoidance prevents the person from overcoming the phobia
what is exposure therapy?
you are exposed to the conditioned stimuli to realize that it won’t harm you and overcome the phobia
- result/goal is extinction
types of exposure therapy
- imaginal (think of the stimuli)
- in vivo (exposed to real thing)
- interoceptive (physical movements)
- systematic desensitization (hierarchy of fears)
What is the main goal of exposure therapy?
main goal: change emotions and response towards the stimuli
how do therapists begin their sessions with patients?
they begin by asking patients to describe in a relatively open-ended way, the major difficulties that have brought him or her to the workplace
- this helps break the ice and it reveals the central problems as seen through the patients eyes
define reliability.
the degree to which a measurement is consistent - for example, over time or among different raters
what is Validity?
the degree to which a technique actually measures what purports to measure
what is standardization?
the 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 data for large numbers of people
what is a mental status exam?
a relatively coarse preliminary test of a client’s judgement, orientation to time and place, and emotional and mental state; typically conducted during an initial interview
what is a behavioural assessment?
an assessment that involves measuring, observing, and systematically evaluating (rather than inferring) the client’s thoughts, feelings, and behaviour in the actual problem situation or context
what does self-monitoring refer to?
the action by which clients observe and record their own behaviours 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
what are projective tests?
psychoanalytically based measures that present ambiguous stimuli to clients on the assumption that responses will reveal their unconscious conflicts.
- such tests are inferential and lack high reliability and validity
what are personal inventories?
self-report questionnaires that assess personal traits by asking respondents to identify descriptions that apply to them
what is intelligence quotient? (IQ)
the score on an intelligence test, abbreviated IQ, estimating a person’s deviation from average test performance
what is neuropsychological testing?
assessment of brain and nervous system functioning by testing an individual’s performance on behavioural tasks
what are false positives?
assessment errors in which pathology is reported (ex: test results are positive) when none is actually present
what are false negatives?
assessment errors in which no pathology is noted (ex: test results are negative) when it is actually present
what is neuroimaging?
sophisticate computer-aided procedures that allow nonintrusive examination of nervous system structure and function.
what is a psychophysiological assessment?
a measurement of changes in the nervous system reflecting psychological or emotional events, such as anxiety, stress, and sexual arousal.
what is an electroencephalogram (EEG)?
a measure of electrical activity patterns in the brain take through electrodes placed on the scalp
define classification
the assignment of objects or people to categories based on shared characteristics
define taxonomy
system of naming and classification (ex: specimens) in science
define nosology
the classification and naming system for medical and psychological phenomena
define nomenclature
in a naming system or nosology, the actual labels or names that are applied
- in psychopathology these include, for example, mood disorders and eating disorders
what is the classical categorical approach?
a classification method founded on the assumption of clear-cut differences among disorders, each with a different known cause.
define the dimensional approach
a method of categorizing characteristics on a continuum rather than on a binary, either-or, or all-or-none basis
what is the prototypical approach?
a system for categorizing disorders using both essential defining characteristics and a range of variation on other characteristics
define comorbidity
the presence of two or more disorders in an individual at the same time
define labelling
applying a name to a phenomenon or a pattern of behaviour
- the label may acquire negative connotations or be applied erroneously to the person rather than his or her behaviours
what is a stigma?
a combination of stereotypic negative beliefs, prejudices, and attitudes resulting in reduced life opportunities for the devalued group in question
