Rosenhan Flashcards
Suggest why pseudopatients’ behaviour was misinterpreted.
Staff thought/presumed all patients had psychiatric problems and so viewed all their behaviour in the light of their identified mental illness.
Why this study is high in ecological validity
Because the study was carried out in 12 real psychiatric hospitals (located in five different states of America)
Why this study is low in ecological validity
Because the pseudopatients we’re not genuine. Although they tried to behave normally this may have been difficult in the strange hospital environments.
The aim
Rosenhan wanted to see if sane individuals who presented themselves to a psychiatric hospital would be diagnosed as insane and therefore admitted.
One way in which pseudopatients’ behaviour was misinterpreted.
When a pseudopatient was found pacing the hospital corridors because he was bored, the nurse presumed he was nervous.
What the pseudopatients did to get themselves admitted
After calling the hospital, they arrived at the admissions office complaining that he had been hearing voices which said ‘empty’, ‘hollow’, and ‘thud’. (Voices were unfamiliar and same sex).
One reason why doctors admitted the pseudopatients
Because the symptoms reported by the pseudopatients led doctors to believe they had schizophrenia.
One possible explanation for the way hospital staff behaved
A patient’s behaviour is distorted by the staff to achieve consistency with a determined medical condition.
Two ethical issues:
1) Stress: Pseudopatients because they were treated so badly by hospital staff.
2) Consent: In Experiment 1, none of the hospitals gave consent for their hospitals and staff to be involved in the study.
How the pseudopatients’ requests were dealt with by staff
When pseudopatients tried to talk to staff, they were ignored as if they didn’t exist.
How the staff reactions affected the pseudopatients
The pseudopatients experienced powerlessness, depersonalisation and helplessness as they felt they were unable to do anything to improve their situation.
