Rosenhan - Evaluation

Question 1

What are 3 strengths of Rosenhan’s study?

Answer 1

• Can be considered ecologically valid due to the covert methods employed by the pseudopatients and the fact that it was a real experience of being a patient.
• Large amount of control on pseudopatients behaviour, from the same admission illness and symptoms to the same normal behaviour inside the ward.
• Study can be generalised to most hospitals due to the large number and variety used, from poor to rich to state to private etc.
• Confidentiality of the hospitals and staff were kept in order to counteract possible consent problems - possibly ethically valid.

Question 2

What are 3 weaknesses of Rosenhan’s study?

Answer 2

• Unethical notion of hospital being deceived and wasting time & money on pseudopatients.
• Ethical issue of follow up study resulting in possible patients not receiving the help they may have needed as they self-referred themselves for care and therefore were in some kind of distress or pain.
• Informed consent not gained from the subjects of the hospital including both the staff and patients.
• Safety of the pseudopatients was possibly compromised, as they witnessed violence from the staff onto the patients.

Question 3

Name one way Rosenhan’s study may be seen as useful?

Answer 3

• Offers us greater knowledge of the flaws in psychiatric diagnosis. Allowed for improvements into the DSM model resulting in the current DSM-IV.
• Also provided useful information of the treatment and experience of psychiatric patients, meaning that institutions such as this can be improved.