diagnosis and classification - a03

Question 1

issue of reliability

Answer 1

• inter rater reliability = the extent to which independent assessors come to the same conclusion
• cheniaux et al 2009 = 2 psychologists independently diagnose 100 patients using both the criterias
• both psychologists had different numbers of patients diagnosed under each criteria
• inconsistency = lacks validity

Question 2

issue of comorbidity

Answer 2

comorbidity = refers to the fact that 2 or more conditions occurs together
- questions the validity
- sciz is diagnosed with other conditions
- Buckley = 1/2 patients with schiz also had depression, 47% substance abuse
- schiz may not exist as a single condition
- may be an unusual case of depression

Question 3

symptom overlap

Answer 3

• overlap between symptoms of schiz and bipolar disorder = involve positive symptoms such as delusions and negative symptoms such as avolition
• may not be a single condition
• schiz is hard to distinguish from bi-polar disorder
• hard to diagnose

Question 4

gender bias

Answer 4

• cotton et al = women have closer social and family relationships than men hence get more support
• women with schiz function better than men
• symptoms are masked together or because of the interpersonal functioning makes the case seem too mild to warrant a diagnosis

Question 5

culture bias

Answer 5

• afro-caribbean people living in the UK are 10x more likely to receive a diagnosis
• some symptoms of schiz e.g. hearing voices have different meanings in different cultures
• to uk practitioners from a different culture, these experiences may seem bizarre and irrational
• blacks are discriminated against