Chapter 6 Flashcards
Why do clinical psychologists do research?
- Psychological Disorders
- Treatment Outcome
- Efficacy Versus Effectiveness
- Internal Versus External Validity
- Assessment Methods
- Diagnostic Issues
- Professional Issues
- Teaching and Training Issues
Perhaps the most fundamental reason clinical psychologists do research is to gain knowledge about _____________
psychological disorders
Another important reason clinical psychologists conduct research is to determine how well their therapies work
treatment outcome
It refers to the success of a particular therapy in a controlled study conducted with clients who were chosen according to particular study criteria.
Efficacy
It refers to the success of a therapy in actual clinical settings in which client problems span a wider range, and clients are not chosen as a result of meeting certain diagnostic criteria.
Effectiveness
How well the therapy works “in the lab”.
Efficacy
How well the therapy works “in the real world”.
Effectiveness
When measuring the outcome of therapy in either an efficacy or an effectiveness study, researchers must be careful to distinguish _____________________ (assessed quantitatively) from ___________________ (assessed qualitatively) when interpreting their results.
statistical significance, clinical significance,
It refers to the extent to which the change in the dependent variable is due solely to the change in the independent variable.
Internal Validity
It refers to the generalizability of the result—to what extent is the same finding valid for different settings and populations?
External Validity
Such studies may involve the development, validation, or expanded use of new instruments; the establishment of normative data for specific populations on an assessment tool; a comparison of multiple assessment tools to one another; or other research questions.
Assessment Methods
Efforts to promote therapies that have demonstrated effectiveness in treatment studies to large numbers of therapists.
Dissemination Strategies
Clinical psychologists conduct research to explore issues of diagnosis and categorization regarding psychological problems. Such studies may examine the validity or reliability of existing or proposed diagnostic constructs, the relationships between disorders, the prevalence or course of disorders, or numerous related topics.
Diagnostic Issues
Clinical psychologists also examine elements of their own profession through empirical research. They study clinical psychologists’ activities, beliefs, and practices, among other aspects of their professional lives.
Professional Issues
Clinical psychologists also pursue research questions related to how to educate those entering the profession. Areas of study include training philosophies, specific coursework, opportunities for specialized training, and the outcome of particular training efforts.
Teaching and Training Issues
Like other psychologists (and, more generally, scientists), clinical psychologists adhere to the ____________ whenever possible in their research efforts.
experimental method
In general, this method involves a number of discrete, sequential steps. It begins with an observation of events. Second, the clinical psychologist develops a hypothesis to explain the observed events. After the hypothesis is developed, the third step, empirical testing of the hypothesis, ensues. The fourth step takes place after this testing has been completed and involves altering the hypothesis to match the results and interpretations obtained during empirical testing.
Experimental Method
Those variables in the study that are manipulated by the experimenter
Independent variables
Those variables that are expected to change as a result of changes or manipulation.
Dependent Variables
In clinical psychology, experimental studies often take the form of ___________________________. With this, researchers test the outcome of a particular, manualized therapy on a particular diagnosis.
randomized clinical trials (RCTs)
Research in clinical psychology often involves variables that the researcher is not entirely able to control. Ethical, practical, or other constraints often limit the researcher’s ability to assign people randomly to certain conditions, make particular manipulations, or otherwise experimentally test certain hypotheses. In such cases, clinical psychologists may use a/an ________________________________.
quasi-experimental design
When clinical psychologists conduct a study with a/an _________________, participants in different conditions receive entirely different treatments.
between-group design
The group that receives experimental treatment.
Experimental condition
The group that does not receive the experimental treatment.
Control group
