Quiz 1

Question 1

benefits of diagnosis?

Answer 1

communicate a lot of info like symptoms, associated features, course, prognosis, and comorbidities

offers a structure for descriptive stats and research

level of care and amount of treatment are expected to be concordant with severity of impairment

the law often requires documentation of assessment findings and a diagnostic impression

Question 2

DSM definition of a mental disorder?

Answer 2

a syndrome characterized by clinically significant disturbance in a person’s cognition, emotion regulation, or behavior that reflects a dysfunction in the psychological, biological, or developmental processes underlying mental functioning

usually associated with significant distress or disability in social, occupational, or other important activities

an expectable or culturally approved response to a common stressor or loss isn’t a mental disorder

socially deviant behavior and conflicts that are primarily between the individual and society aren’t mental disorders unless the deviance or conflict results from a dysfunction in the individual

Question 3

what is a disorder vs. non-disorder?

Answer 3

disorder: problematic to the person, functionally impaired, persistence

nondisorder: no impairing component to it

Question 4

equifinality?

Answer 4

multiple pathways to a single outcome

Question 5

multifinality?

Answer 5

individuals begin at a common starting point, but pathways may diverge to other outcomes

Question 6

the role of adverse life events in the development of mental disorders?

Answer 6

doesn’t predict mental illness of any kind

severe or repeated trauma during youth can have enduring effects on neurobiological, psychological, and social development

Question 7

natural variance?

Answer 7

biological differences

nature that every human being is unique

Question 8

information variance?

Answer 8

different information sources or variation in self-report

differences in information that the client’s giving

Question 9

observation and interpretation variance?

Answer 9

clinicians’ focus of the observation and way of interpreting information is going to skew the observation that the client has

Question 10

criterion variance?

Answer 10

using different diagnostic systems/criteria or, more commonly, differences in adherence to criteria set

how the criteria sets apply can cause a vary

Question 11

primary psychiatric disorders?

Answer 11

one not due to the direct (physiological) effects of a substance or medical condition

exists on its own

Question 12

common exclusionary criterion?

Answer 12

disturbance is not due to the physiological effect of a substance or another medical condition

Question 13

substance induced disorder?

Answer 13

diagnosed when the psychiatric symptoms are predominant in the clinical picture and sufficiently severe to warrant independent clinical attention

syndrome is usually temporary

Question 14

reality testing?

Answer 14

evaluation of the accuracy of the experience

Question 15

hallucinations?

Answer 15

false sensory perception in the absence of an external stimulus

Question 16

illusion?

Answer 16

misperception of sensory stimuli

Question 17

medically induced disorder?

Answer 17

the symptoms are caused by medical issues and can decrease once the medical issue goes away

Question 18

difference between substance use disorders and substance induced disorders?

Answer 18

substance use: patterns of problematic use, harmful consequences and/or compulsive use

substance induced: psychological/behavioral syndromes induced by substance use; includes intoxication and withdrawal syndromes and substance induced mental disorders

Question 19

when is a substance induced mental disorder diagnosed?

Answer 19

when the psychiatric symptoms are predominant in the clinical picture and sufficiently severe to warrant independent clinical attention

Question 20

intoxication?

Answer 20

develops during or shortly after substance use and may persist after the substance is no longer detectable

Question 21

withdrawal?

Answer 21

associated with the stopping of/reduction in heavy and/or prolonged substance use

Question 22

comorbidity?

Answer 22

simultaneous presence of 2+ disorders

Question 23

diagnostic precedence?

Answer 23

a rule-based method employed to clarify boundaries between disorders and limit overlap of syndromes in the diagnostic impression

Question 24

use of residual categories?

Answer 24

these categories are available to accommodate the reality that not all disordered problems neatly fit into the established diagnoses included in the classification

Question 25

what are the 2 types of residual categories?

Answer 25

adjustment disorders

unspecified or other specified disorders

Question 26

which residual category takes precedence and why?

Answer 26

adjustment disorders because a causal stressor is identified

Question 27

inclusionary criteria?

Answer 27

what must be present to make the diagnosis

Question 28

exclusionary criteria?

Answer 28

what must not be present to make the diagnosis

Question 29

principal diagnosis?

Answer 29

disorder/condition considered to be chiefly responsible for services

Question 30

how to determine the principal diagnosis?

Answer 30

indicated by the diagnosis listed first, often followed by others listed in descending order of focus of attention

Question 31

what etiological relationships can you deduce from reading a diagnosis?

Answer 31

if something’s medically induced, the language in the diagnosis typically reads as the medical condition listed after disorder as the cause (“due to [medical condition]”)

independent psychiatric disorders –> nothing substance induced or medically caused in the diagnosis

there’s nothing that’ll show itself in the disorder if their psychological diagnosis is actually a response to something

Question 32

validity?

Answer 32

accuracy

we look at it like a utility usage

Question 33

reliability?

Answer 33

consistency; same diagnosis today as yesterday

Question 34

what are the sources of diagnostic error?

Answer 34

incomplete information
subjectivity
illusory correlation
heuristics
availability heuristic
representativeness heuristic
confirmation ias
premature closure
overconfidence
bias based on diversity factors
falsely “protecting” the client
failing to diagnosis because there’s a narrative that possible explains contributing factors

Question 35

incomplete information?

Answer 35

human beings are inherently complex and multifaceted

Question 36

subjectivity?

Answer 36

when a client reports and what a clinician understands both involve some degree of subjectivity

Question 37

illusory correlation?

Answer 37

tendency to perceive 2 events or factors as causally related

Question 38

heuristics?

Answer 38

problem solving/decision making strategies that prioritize efficiency over accuracy

Question 39

availability heuristic?

Answer 39

gravitating toward conditions that come to mind easily

Question 40

representativeness heuristic?

Answer 40

generalizing about a client or disorder based on how closely it matches the prototype

Question 41

confirmation bias?

Answer 41

tendency to selectively seek out and recall info consistent with one’s hypothesis and to neglect info inconsistent with the hypothesis

Question 42

premature closure?

Answer 42

tendency to reach a decision too quickly, perhaps out of actual or presumed necessity

Question 43

bias based on diversity factors?

Answer 43

arriving at a different diagnosis for 2 vignettes in which the only different piece of info was something such as gender, race, etc.

Question 44

falsely “protecting” the client?

Answer 44

failing to diagnose due to concern about how it may be received by the client or another involved party

Question 45

failing to diagnose because there’s a narrative that possible explains contributing factors?

Answer 45

don’t confuse contributors with suffering and dysfunction

explanation doesn’t preclude the presence of a disorder

Question 46

errors are reduced when the clinician _____?

Answer 46

uses a structured intentional process
asks the client to provide both written and verbal info
is aware of sources of error in each of diagnostic process and uses technique to guard against such error

Question 47

errors are reduced when the client _____?

Answer 47

provides accurate information
is reliable in their report across practitioners and over time
is thorough in their disclosure

Question 48

what are the steps in the diagnostic process?

Answer 48

build client database
identify syndromes
identify possible diagnoses
verify remaining diagnoses

Question 49

what factors should be considered in every differential diagnosis?

Answer 49

health status (current medical conditions, treatment status, unmanaged physical complaints, sleep/eating disturbances, recent physical exams, family history)
substance use (legal and illicit substances, medications, supplements, caffeine)

Question 50

methods of acquiring info needed to make a differential diagnosis?

Answer 50

self-reports
information reports
observations
records
specialized assessment

Question 51

self reports?

Answer 51

primary source of psychological info

Question 52

information reports?

Answer 52

those who know the person well-enough to provide info useful to the assessment process

Question 53

observations?

Answer 53

formal and informal; behavioral sample

Question 54

records?

Answer 54

prior evaluations and treatments
educational, occupational, and legal

Question 55

specialized assessment?

Answer 55

psychological, neuropsychological, and psychoeducational testing
medical evaluation
substance-related evaluations