psyc 345 ch 11

Question 1

attention only control group

Answer 1

A control group whose members meet regularly with a clinician but receive no active treatment.

Question 2

catharsis

Answer 2

The release of emotions.

Question 3

common factors

Answer 3

A set of features that characterize many therapy orientations and that may be the source of the positive changes effected by psychological treatment.

Question 4

control group

Answer 4

In psychotherapy research the group that does not receive the treatment under investigation.

Question 5

depth of a problem

Answer 5

The changeability of a condition or behavior. The deeper the condition the less changeable it is perceived to be.

Question 6

effect size

Answer 6

The size of the treatment effect determined statistically.

Question 7

effectiveness studies

Answer 7

Studies that emphasize external validity and the representativeness of the treatment that is administered. A treatment is considered effective to the extent that clients report clinically significant benefit from the treatment.

Question 8

efficacy studies

Answer 8

Studies that place a premium on internal validity by controlling the types of clients in the study by standardizing the treatments and by randomly assigning patients to treatment or notreatment groups. A treatment is considered efficacious to the extent that the average person receiving the treatment in clinical trials is demonstrated to be significantly less dysfunctional than the average person not receiving any treatment e.g. those on a waiting list for treatment.

Question 9

empirically supported treatments ESTs

Answer 9

Treatments for various psychological conditions that have been shown through careful empirical study to be either well established or probably efficacious. A list of ESTs is updated and published periodically by the APAs Division of Clinical Psychology.

Question 10

evidencebased practice EBP

Answer 10

Treatments informed by a number of sources including scientific evidence about the intervention clinical expertise and patient needs and preferences.

Question 11

evidencebased treatments EBTs

Answer 11

Those interventions or techniques that have produced significant change in clients and patients in controlled trials.

Question 12

expert role

Answer 12

The therapists demonstration of competence i.e. knowledge and experience.

Question 13

insight

Answer 13

In the context of psychotherapy the achievement of understanding the nature and origins of ones problems.

Question 14

interpretation

Answer 14

In the context of psychotherapy the therapists conceptualization of the meaning behind the patients experiences or behaviors.

Question 15

manualized treatment

Answer 15

Psychotherapeutic treatment that is presented and described in a standardized manual format i.e. outlining the rationales goals and techniques that correspond to each phase of the treatment.

Question 16

mastery

Answer 16

The acquisition of a high level of knowledge or skill. One goal of psychotherapy may be for the patient to develop competence/mastery in a particular area.

Question 17

metaanalysis

Answer 17

A method of research in which one compiles all studies relevant to a topic or question and combines the results statistically.

Question 18

nonspecific factors

Answer 18

Factors that are not specific to any particular therapy orientation yet contribute to a positive treatment outcome e.g. the expectation that one will improve.

Question 19

outcome measures

Answer 19

In psychotherapy research indicators of patient functioning following treatment used to gauge the treatment effectiveness.

Question 20

paraprofessionals

Answer 20

Individuals without advanced education in psychology who have been trained to assist professional mental health workers.

Question 21

patient functioning

Answer 21

How well a patient is getting along across a number of domains e.g. psychological social/interpersonal occupational.

Question 22

process research

Answer 22

Research that investigates the specific events that occur in the course of the interaction between therapist and patient. Some therapy processes have been shown to relate to treatment outcome.

Question 23

psychological intervention

Answer 23

A method of inducing changes in a persons behavior thoughts or feelings.

Question 24

stages of change

Answer 24

A series of stages that represent a given clients readiness for change in psychotherapy. These include precontemplation contemplation preparation action maintenance and termination.

Question 25

therapeutic alliance

Answer 25

The relationship between therapist and patient. The forging of a strong therapeutic alliance is believed to be of primary importance for therapeutic change.

Question 26

treatment group

Answer 26

In psychotherapy research the group that receives the treatment under investigation.

Question 27

waiting list control group

Answer 27

A control group whose members receive treatment only after the study is completed.