Chapter 5

Question 1

Which of the following is the BEST example of a psychological assessment as a stand-alone service?

a. An intervention-focused evaluation.
b. A child custody evaluation.
c. A pre-treatment evaluation.
d. A treatment monitoring evaluation.

Answer 1

b. A child custody evaluation.

Question 2

Evidence-based assessment uses research and theory to guide the manner in which the

a. assessment process unfolds.
b. treatment unfolds.
c. treatments are provided.
d. none of the above.

Answer 2

a. assessment process unfolds.

Question 3

Assessments conducted primarily to provide information addressing a person’s current or anticipated psychosocial deficits are referred to as _________ services.

a. intervention-focused
b. assessment-focused
c. evaluative
d. prognostic

Answer 3

b. assessment-focused

Question 4

An assessment conducted as a first step in identifying an appropriate and effective service to meet an individual’s unique needs is referred to as a(n)_________ service.

a. intervention-focused
b. assessment-focused
c. evaluative
d. prognostic

Answer 4

a. intervention-focused

Question 5

A procedure to identify individuals who may have clinically significant problems or who may be at risk for developing such problems is referred to as a _______ procedure.

a. diagnostic
b. screening
c. treatment-planning
d. treatment-evaluation

Answer 5

b. screening

Question 6

Screening may occur at which of the following sites?

a. Clinic and/or hospital.
b. School.
c. Employment setting.
d. All of the above.

Answer 6

d. All of the above.

Question 7

A _______ tool is useful in identifying individuals at risk for a mental disorder. Those who score high on that measure would _______meet diagnostic criteria for a disorder.

a. screening; not necessarily
b. diagnostic; definitely
c. screening; rarely
d. diagnostic; almost always

Answer 7

a. screening; not necessarily

Question 8

Researchers developed a brief survey of depressive symptoms to be used in schools to evaluate adolescents’ current level of symptoms. This tool is an example of a ______ tool.

a. prognosis
b. diagnosis
c. screening
d. treatment monitoring

Answer 8

c. screening

Question 9

A diagnosis is useful to psychologists because:

a. it provides an initial framework for a treatment plan.
b. it helps in searching the scientific literature for information on associated features such as etiology and prognosis.
c. It enables communication with other health professionals.
d. all of the above.

Answer 9

d. all of the above.

Question 10

What term is more commonly used today, replacing the term psychodiagnosis?

a. Screening.
b. Case formulation.
c. Patient conceptualization.
d. Clinical presentation.

Answer 10

b. Case formulation.

Question 11

Case formulation refers to the process of collecting assessment data

a. for use in court proceedings.
b. to evaluate intervention services.
c. as a means of communication among clinicians and with other health professionals through patient files.
d. to develop a comprehensive view of an individual’s functioning.

Answer 11

d. to develop a comprehensive view of an individual’s functioning.

Question 12

Psychological assessment _________ prediction regarding the individual’s future functioning.

a. should not include any form of
b. does not necessarily have to include
c. always implies some form of
d. is not the same as making a

Answer 12

c. always implies some form of

Question 13

The use of assessment data, in combination with relevant empirical literature, to make predictions about the future course of an individual’s psychological functioning is referred to as:

a. diagnosis.
b. prognosis.
c. treatment monitoring.
d. treatment evaluation.

Answer 13

b. prognosis.

Question 14

The collection of large amounts and multiple sources of data can run the risk of

a. unnecessary costs.
b. unnecessary error. c.
less time for intervention.
d. all of the above.

Answer 14

d. all of the above.

Question 15

Prediction error during an assessment is more likely when the

a. base rate of a behaviour is low.
b. base rate of a behaviour is moderate.
c. base rate of a behaviour is high.
d. behaviour has been empirically investigated.

Answer 15

a. base rate of a behaviour is low.

Question 16

When an event occurs that was not predicted, it is referred to as a

a. false positive.
b. false negative.
c. true positive.
d. true negative.

Answer 16

b. false negative.

Question 17

A forensic psychologist predicts that an offender is unlikely to harm himself during a three- year conditional release, and at the end of the three years the offender has not engaged in any self-harm. This type of prediction would be referred to as a

a. true positive.
b. true negative.
c. false positive.
d. false negative.

Answer 17

b. true negative.

Question 18

A psychologist initially considers diagnosing a child with ADHD based on reports from several teachers. However, after consultation with the child’s parents, it is clear that the child’s sleep habits are severely problematic, and sleep hygiene training is recommended. Had the psychologist diagnosed ADHD, this type of prediction would be referred to as a

a. true positive.
b. true negative.
c. false positive.
d. false negative.

Answer 18

c. false positive.

Question 19

Sensitivity refers to the relative proportion of _________ identified by the assessment.

a. true positives
b. true negatives
c. false positives
d. false negatives

Answer 19

a. true positives

Question 20

Specificity refers to the relative proportion of ________ identified by the assessment.

a. true positives
b. true negatives
c. false positives
d. false negatives

Answer 20

b. true negatives

Question 21

Providing a clear focus for treatment, giving the client realistic expectations about the process and likely outcome of treatment, as well as establishing a standard against which treatment progress can be measured are all clear benefits of

a. prognosis.
b. diagnosis.
c. treatment maintenance.
d. treatment planning.

Answer 21

d. treatment planning.

Question 22

Treatment planning:

a. allows the client to pre-pay services.
b. uses assessment data and relevant scientific evidence to make predictions about the future course of a patient’s psychological functioning.
c. requires the psychologist to determine the extent to which there are efficacious treatments to address the client’s problems.
d. is the process by which agencies decide which services to fund.

Answer 22

c. requires the psychologist to determine the extent to which there are efficacious treatments to address the client’s problems.

Question 23

A useful treatment plan must cover the general areas of

a. problem identification and treatment evaluation.
b. problem identification, treatment goals, and treatment strategies/tactics.
c. treatment goals, treatment evaluation, and treatment strategies/tactics.
d. treatment goals, treatment strategies/tactics, and treatment evaluation.

Answer 23

b. problem identification, treatment goals, and treatment strategies/tactics.

Question 24

To be most useful, treatment planning should

a. focus only on short-term goals of treatment.
b. focus on intermediate goals of treatment.
c. focus on ultimate goals of treatment.
d. focus on both the intermediate and the ultimate goals of treatment.

Answer 24

d. focus on both the intermediate and the ultimate goals of treatment.

Question 25

Treatment monitoring

a. helps ensure that the psychologist follows the treatment plan.
b. allows for changes in the treatment plan as required.
c. helps ensure that clients are completing assigned tasks.
d. helps to develop treatment goals at the outset of therapy.

Answer 25

b. allows for changes in the treatment plan as required.

Question 26

Lambert et al. (2003) found that treatment monitoring

a. worsened treatment outcome by increasing distraction and self-consciousness among clinicians.
b. did not have any impact on treatment outcome.
c. affected treatment outcome in very few cases.
d. had the potential to substantially impact treatment outcome.

Answer 26

d. had the potential to substantially impact treatment outcome.

Question 27

To be optimally effective, treatment monitoring should be conducted

a. once, at the beginning of treatment, to establish treatment procedures.
b. twice, at the beginning and at the mid-point of treatment, to determine effectiveness of treatment.
c. by a psychologist who is impartial, and not involved with the treatment.
d. on a routine basis throughout services.

Answer 27

d. on a routine basis throughout services.

Question 28

A study conducted by Lambert et al. (2003) on treatment monitoring compared two groups of therapy clients. In one group, therapists received formal feedback on client symptoms. In the other group, therapists received no formal feedback on client symptoms. The researchers found

a. no differences in treatment outcome between the two groups.
b. that clients in the “no feedback” condition experienced improved treatment outcome.
c. that clients in the “feedback” condition experienced worse treatment outcome.
d. that clients in the “feedback” condition experienced improved treatment outcome.

Answer 28

d. that clients in the “feedback” condition experienced improved treatment outcome.

Question 29

In what way(s) can treatment outcome data can be used?

a. To help estimate the benefits, duration, and cost of treatment.
b. As an indicator of how well an entire system of care is functioning.
c. To document the typical range of outcomes experienced by clients as a means of comparison between clients.
d. All of the above.

Answer 29

d. All of the above.

Question 30

Advances in online technology have

a. made it possible to complete a full psychological assessment online.
b. led to a number of websites offering psychological testing.
c. helped to eliminate a number of previous ethical and practical issues in psychological testing.
d. led to increased regulation of the online administration of psychological testing.

Answer 30

b. led to a number of websites offering psychological testing.

Question 31

Recent research has identified that internet samples are ______ and results found through internet responses are _______ to those obtained by traditional methods.

a. diverse ; similar
b. homogeneous ; different
c. homogeneous ; similar
d. diverse ; different

Answer 31

a. diverse ; similar

Question 32

Psychological assessment and psychological testing

a. refer to the same activities.
b. are related activities, but are not synonymous.
c. usually end up examining the same phenomena.
d. are different, in that testing is more complex and integrated than assessment.

Answer 32

b. are related activities, but are not synonymous.

Question 33

Assessment is ______ complex and ______ multifaceted than is testing.

a. less ; less
b. less ; more
c. more ; more
d. more ; less

Answer 33

c. more ; more

Question 34

Consistency across clinicians and testing occasions in the procedure used to administer and score a test is referred to as:

a. normalization.
b. standardization.
c. inter-rater reliability.
d. content validity.

Answer 34

b. standardization.

Question 35

To be sure that a test is yielding valid data it must meet which of the following criteria?

a. It must have norms.
b. It must measure all aspects of the underlying construct it purports to measure.
c. It must be related with scores of other tests of similar constructs.
d. Both B and C.

Answer 35

d. Both B and C.

Question 36

The extent to which a test provides a relatively pure measure of a psychological construct, and is not contaminated by other psychological constructs, is referred to as

a. discriminant validity.
b. concurrent validity.
c. predictive validity.
d. convergent validity.

Answer 36

a. discriminant validity.

Question 37

Developmental norms are used when the psychological construct being assessed

a. remains constant over time.
b. remains constant over time for some individuals, but not for others.
c. develops idiosyncratically over time.
d. changes over time.

Answer 37

d. changes over time.

Question 38

If a test score of 45 is associated with a percentile rank of 74%, this indicates that

a. 74% of those in the normative group scored at or above a test score of 45.
b. 74% of those in the normative group scored at or below a test score of 45.
c. 45% of those in the normative group scored at or above a test score of 74.
d. 45% of those in the normative group scored at or below a test score of 74.

Answer 38

b. 74% of those in the normative group scored at or below a test score of 45.

Question 39

Standard scores are calculated by __________________ a specific test score and dividing the resulting number by the standard deviation of the test scores.

a. adding the standard deviation of the test scores from
b. subtracting the standard deviation of the test scores from
c. adding the mean of the test scores to
d. subtracting the mean of the test scores from

Answer 39

d. subtracting the mean of the test scores from

Question 40

To develop a standard score a ____ score is calculated.

a. t
b. z
c. p
d. comparison

Answer 40

b. z

Question 41

Which of the following tests uses developmental norms?

a. Rorschach Inkblot Test.
b. Graduate Record Examination.
c. Alfred Binet Intelligence Test.
d. Thematic Apperception Test.

Answer 41

c. Alfred Binet Intelligence Test.

Question 42

Compared with ____(i)____, ____(ii)____ are far less likely to be standardized, to have norms, or to possess acceptable levels of reliability and validity.

a. (i) intelligence tests/personality inventories/behaviour rating scales; (ii) projective tests
b. (i) projective tests; (ii) intelligence tests/personality inventories/behaviour rating scales
c. (i) intelligence tests and behaviour rating scales; (ii) personality inventories and projective tests
d. (i) personality inventories and projective tests; (ii) intelligence tests and behaviour rating scales

Answer 42

a. (i) intelligence tests/personality inventories/behaviour rating scales; (ii) projective tests

Question 43

When considering ethical issues in assessment which of the following is/are considered essential?

a. Informed consent.
b. Confidentiality.
c. The assessor’s sound knowledge of the tests’ psychometric properties.
d. All of the above.

Answer 43

d. All of the above.

Question 44

When conducting assessments, psychologists have an ethical responsibility to:

a. be knowledgeable about test properties, such as standardization, reliability, validity, and norms.
b. be able to competently administer and interpret the results of each test used.
c. clearly indicate to the client the limits to the certainty of assessment findings.
d. all of the above.

Answer 44

d. all of the above.