Chapter Four: Clinical Assessment, Diagnosis, and Treatment

how and why does the client behave abnormally

the process of collecting and interpreting relevant information about a client or research participant

the process in which common steps are set up to be followed whenever a tool is administered

consistency of assessment measures

participants are tested on two occasions and the two scores are correlated

different judges independently agree on how to score and interpret an assessment tool

the tool accurately measures what its supposed to measure

a tool appears valid because it makes sense and seems reasonable

tools ability to predict future characteristics / behavior

degree to which the measures gathered from one tool agree with the measures gathered from other assessment techniques

face-to-face encounter

clinician asks mostly open-ended questions

clinicians ask prepared, specific questions

standard set of questions designed for all interviews

set of questions and observations that systematically evaluate the clients awareness, attention span, memory, etc

devices for gathering info about a few aspects of a persons psychological functioning

clients interpret vague stimuli and project aspects of their personality into the task

inkblots

people are shown black and white pictures and asked to make up a dramatic story about each card

test-taker completes a series of unfinished sentences

individuals are asked to assess themselves

tests designed to measure a persons responses in one specific area of functioning, such as affect, social skills, or cognitive processes

measures the severity of emotions like anxiety, depression, and anger

respondents indicate how theyd react in a variety of social situations

reveal a persons typical thoughts and assumptions

measures breathing, perspiration, and heart rate

neurological tests that provide images of brain structure or activity, such as CT scans, PET scans, and MRIs

detects brain impairment by measuring a persons cognitive, perceptual, and motor performances

tests designed to measure a persons intellectual ability

clinicians observe clients in their everyday environments

clinicians observe clients in an artificial setting

clients are instructed to observe themselves

a determination that a persons problems reflect a particular disorder

a list of disorders, along with descriptions of symptoms and guidelines for making appropriate diagnoses

name of the distinct category indicated by the clients symptoms

rating of how severe a clients symptoms are and how dysfunctional the client is across various dimensions of personality and behavior

therapy that has received clear research support for a particular disorder and has corresponding treatment guidelines

a movement to identify a set of common factors, or common strategies, that run through all successful therapies

a psychiatrist who primarily prescribes medications

used to determine whether, how, and why a person is behaving abnormally and how that person may be helped

measures physiological responses as possible indicators of psychological problems