Chapter 4 Flashcards
Clinical assessment
collection of relevant information on a client- done to draw some conclusion on issue. Used to determine how and why a person is behaving abnormally and how that person may be helped. Also used to evaluate progress of treatment.
idiographic
understanding of behaviour of about an individual
nomothetic
broad understanding. (researchers).
characteristics of assessment tools
standardization, reliability, validity.
They fall under 3 categories - clinical interviews, tests, observations
standardization
process by which a test is administered to a large group of people whose performance then serves as a standard or norm against which any individuals score can be measured.
reliability
a measure of the consistency of test or research results
validity
the accuracy of a test’s or study’s results; the extent to which the test or study actually measures or shows what it claims.
structured interviews
the clinician asks prepared questions. may have an interview schedule.
unstructured interviews
the clinician asks open ended questions
types of assessments
clinical interviews, tests, and observations.
mental status exam
set of questions and observations that systematically evaluate the client’s awareness, orientation with regard to time and place, attention span, memory, judgement, insight, thought processes, mood, and appearance.
limitations of clinical interviews
the information is preselected by the client. they tell you what they want you to know. clients can have faulty memories or distorted perception, there can be interviewer bias. clients respond differently to different interviewers.
clinical tests
devices used for gathering information about specific aspects of a person’s psychological functioning, from which broader information can be inferred.
most popular clinical tests
projective tests, personality inventories, response inventories, psychophysiological tests, neurological and neurophysiological tests, and intelligence tests.
personality inventories
questions about behavior, beliefs, and feelings. MMPI 2. easier and cheaper than projective tests & objectively scored and standardized. seems to have greater validity. measured traits cannot often be directly examined.
Response inventories self reported.
focus on specific area of functioning. affective inventories (Beck), cognitive, social. only some of them have been subjected to standardization, reliability, and validity. often are created as need arises without accuracy testing.
psychophysiological tests
measure physical responses as an indicator of psychological problems. polygraph. requires expensive equipment with lots of maintenance. can be inaccurate and unreliable.
neurological tests
directly assess brain function by assessing brain structure and activity. CAT scan, MRI, PET scan, EEG. sometimes unable to detect subtle brain abnormalities
neurophysiological tests
detects brain impairment by measuring cognitive, perceptual, and motor performance. bender visual gestalt motor test.
intelligence tests
measure “intellectual ability”. composed of a series of tests assessing verbal and nonverbal skills. IQ, WAIS, WISC, Stanford-Binet. low motivation and anxiety can influence scores. can contain cultural bias.
clinical observations
systematic observation of behavior.
naturalistic observations
observe in natural surroundings
analog observations
observe in structured setting i.e clinical setting or lab often by using special equipment such as one-way mirror or video camera. observing children interscting with their parents, married couples settling disagreements, speech anxious ppl giving a speech, fearful ppl. faced with fearful object.
self monitoring observations
record own behavior and circumstances surrounding.
diagnosis
a determination that a person’s problems reflect a particular disorder
syndrome
a cluster of symptoms that usually occur together
classification system
list of disorders and descriptions of symptoms with guidelines for making appropriate diagnoses.
purposes for classifying
allows for diagnosis, allows for study of the problem, allows for communication.
DSM V major changes
categorical information, dimensional information (severity), additional information (like medical conditions)
2 validity tests
- Test–retest reliability – yields the same results every time it is given to the same people
- Interrater reliability – different judges independently agree on how to score and interpret a particular tool
3 types of validity
- FACE VALIDITY a tool appears to measure what it is supposed to measure; does not necessarily indicate true validity
- PREDICTIVE VALIDITY accurately predicts future characteristics or behavior
- CONCURRENT VALIDITY a tool’s results agree with independent measures assessing similar characteristics or behavior
Clinical Interview
First Face-to-face encounter. Used to collect detailed information i.e history.
Projective Tests
Require that clients interpret vague stimuli, such as ink blots or ambiguous pictures, or follow open ended instructions such as “draw a person”
Theoretically when clues and instructions are so general ppl. will “project” aspects of their personality into the task.
Used primarily by psychodynamic clinicians to help assess unconscious drives & conflicts they believe to be the root of abnormal functioning.
What are the most commonly used projective tests?
Rorschach Test - inkblots
Thematic Apprehension Test (TAT) - B&W Pics
Sentence completion test
Drawings
Neuroimaging techniques
Neurological tests that provide images of brain structure or activity, such as CT scans, PET scans, and MRIs. AKA brain scans
intelligent quotient ( IQ)
An overall score derived from intelligence tests
Standardize
assessment tool that is used which follows the same procedures by setting up common steps to be followed when ever it is administered. i.e delivery, questions scoring etc.
