Deck 3: Clinical Assessment, Diagnosis, and Research in Psychopathology

Question 1

As part of a psychological assessment,a mental status exam is used to find out how a person thinks,feels,and behaves; its primary purpose,however,is to determine

A)if a psychological disorder might be present.
B)what type of treatment should be used.
C)which medication would be most effective.
D)whether the individual also has a medical condition.

Answer 1

if a psychological disorder might be present.

Question 2

When a diagnosis tells the clinician what is likely to happen over the course of the disorder and the likely effect of treatments,the diagnosis has

A)construct validity.
B)predictive validity.
C)content validity.
D)none of the above

Answer 2

predictive validity.

Question 3

The process of determining whether an individual's symptoms meet the criteria for a specific psychological disorder is called

A)prognosis.
B)diagnosis.
C)classification.
D)analysis.

Answer 3

diagnosis.

Question 4

A patient who had recurrent headaches,fatigue,and loss of appetite received different diagnoses about this condition from several psychologists.In terms of assessment,this indicates a problem with

A)reliability.
B)classification.
C)validity.
D)standardization.

Question 5

In a clinical interview,the law regarding "privileged communication" does NOT apply if the patient

A)threatens self-harm or harm to another person.
B)relates a history of recreational drug use.
C)confesses to past crimes.
D)is hospitalized in a psychiatric facility.

Question 6

The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders is a publication of the

A)American Psychological Association.
B)International Association of Psychologists.
C)American Psychiatric Association.
D)National Institutes of Mental Health.

Question 7

The systematic evaluation of psychological,biological,and social factors in a person with a possible mental disorder is known as clinical

A)assessment.
B)interpretation
C)validation.
D)standardization.

Question 8

A diagnostic category has _______________ when the signs and symptoms chosen as its criteria are consistently associated with each other,and are different from those for other categories.

A)Concurrent reliability
B)Inter-rater reliability
C)Familial aggregation
D)Construct validity

Question 9

Mr.J,a 40-year-old recent immigrant to the United States,comes from a working-class background and is just learning to speak English.He applies for a job and is given a test.His score is compared to others who have taken the test,mostly young college graduates whose native language is English.Mr.J thinks this is unfair.In fact,this is an issue of

A)reliability.
B)classification.
C)validity.
D)standardization.

Question 10

When observational data are being collected,the observer's presence may cause a person to behave differently,a phenomenon known as

A)reactivity.
B)structuring.
C)recording.
D)monitoring.

Question 11

The fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5)was published in

A)1990.
B)1994.
C)2000.
D)2013.

Question 12

When Abernathy went to a psychologist for the first time,the clinician asked him what the date was,what year it was,and where they were.Which category of a mental status exam do these questions cover?

A)Thought processes
B)Appearance and behavior
C)Sensorium
D)Intellectual functioning

Question 13

In trying to understand and help an individual with a psychological problem,a psychologist will obtain detailed information about the person's life as part of a

A)physical exam.
B)clinical interview.
C)mental status exam.
D)brain scan.

Question 14

In a mental status exam,it is important to determine if the individual is "oriented times three." This refers to

A)person, place, and time.
B)day, month, and year of birth.
C)thoughts, feelings, and behavior.
D)spatial orientation in a three-dimensional map.

Question 15

The process of clinical assessment

A)is like a puzzle, during which a clinician must use clues to arrive at a diagnosis.
B)is like a funnel, during which a clinician narrows the focus of information to rule out problems and find what is most relevant.
C)follows a very rigid set of procedures.
D)aims to collect as much information as possible about an individual.

Question 16

Which of the following factors is typically NOT part of a clinical assessment?

A)Psychological
B)Social
C)Biological
D)Astrological

Question 17

Which of the following describes the concept of validity as it applies to psychological assessment?

A)Two or more "raters" get the same answers.
B)An assessment technique is consistent across different measures.
C)Scores are used as a norm for comparison purposes.
D)An assessment technique measures what it is designed to measure.

Question 18

In a mental status exam,a psychologist may assess all of the following

A)Appearance and behavior
B)Thought process
C)Speech content
D)IQ

Question 19

The reactivity phenomenon of self-monitoring procedures has been shown to

A)increase desired behaviors.
B)decrease undesired behaviors.
C)both increase desired behaviors and decrease undesired behaviors.
D)neither increase desired behaviors nor decrease undesired behaviors.

Question 20

Clifton had been experiencing a number of psychological issues,so he decided to go to a psychiatrist to see what was wrong.Dr.A told him he had major depressive disorder.He decided to seek a second opinion.Dr.B diagnosed him with generalized anxiety disorder.Wanting yet another opinion,he went to Dr.C,who told him he was obsessive-compulsive.This demonstrates poor

A)test-retest reliability.
B)concurrent validity.
C)descriptive validity.
D)inter-rater reliability.

Question 21

Which of the following describes an intelligence test?

A)Determines the possible contribution of brain damage to the person's condition
B)Uses imaging to assess brain structure and/or function
C)Assesses long-standing patterns of behavior
D)Ascertains the structure and patterns of cognition

Question 22

Believing that it would not be helpful,a therapist refuses to use the DSM-5 or any other diagnostic system.One problem that we may expect for this therapist is that it may be difficult to

A)apply what has been learned from treating other patients with similar problems.
B)think of patients as individuals.
C)monitor the progress of patients in therapy.
D)convince patients that their problems are taken seriously.

Question 23

Four-year-old Roberto is very aggressive toward his peers,which results in poor peer relationships.A psychologist has been asked to assess Roberto's aggressiveness and determine if he needs intervention.The psychologist would probably do what type of assessment?

A)Neuropsychological
B)Projective
C)Cognitive
D)Behavioral

Question 24

An observation that involves identifying specific behaviors that are observable and measurable is called a(n)

A)informal observation.
B)formal observation.
C)unstructured observation.
D)self-observation.

Question 25

Emily created an assessment that asks individuals to describe emotions elicited by geometric shapes and draws conclusions from the content of these descriptions.This assessment belongs in the category of

A)Intelligence tests
B)Emotional tests
C)Projective tests
D)Clinical interviewing

Question 26

Heinrich falsifies his answers on the MMPI so that he will look good.He will probably have a high score on the __________ scale.

A)Cannot Say
B)Lie
C)Paranoia
D)Defensiveness

Question 27

The ABCs of observation refer to the ___________ sequence.

A)affect-behavior-cognition
B)antecedent-behavior-cognition
C)antecedent-behavior-consequence
D)affect-behavior-consequence

Question 28

All of the following are criticisms of DSM-5

A)It emphasized reliability, sometimes at the expense of validity.
B)It emphasized a biological perspective, sometimes at the expense of the human aspect of psychological disorders
C)It is too similar to previous, flawed nosological systems.
D)Its diagnostic categories are still too "fuzzy" at the edges, which contributes to frequent comorbid diagnoses.

Question 29

The crucial test ofa diagnostic system's validity is whether it result in

A)an effective treatment plan.
B)all clinicians reaching the same diagnosis for the patient.
C)the accurate diagnostic label for the patient.
D)the same diagnostic label regardless of when the patient is evaluated.

Question 30

IQ tests measure all of the following abilities

A)attention.
B)memory.
C)reasoning.
D)personality.

Question 31

The recently published DSM-5

A)Revolutionized diagnosis and classification of psychological disorders, representing major changes from the DSM-IV.
B)is largely unchanged from DSM-IV with the ion of the addition or classification of some disorders.
C)is most criticized for maintaining the multiaxial system from the DSM-IV.
D)is most criticized for adopting a dimensional system for classifying psychological disorders.

Question 32

Hannibal is presented with a series of cards that are blots of ink.He is asked to state what he sees on these cards.Hannibal is probably taking a(n)

A)personality inventory.
B)response inventory.
C)projective test.
D)intelligence test.

Question 33

Neuropsychological tests are used to assess whether or not an individual might

A)be mentally retarded.
B)have a brain dysfunction.
C)have had a psychotic episode.
D)be in a depressed state.

Question 34

Unlike very early versions of the DSM,the DSM-5

A)Includes a plan for integrating social and cultural influences on diagnosis.
B)Incorporates some dimensional aspects, such as judgment of severity for disorders.
C)Does not make a distinction between organically based and psychologically based disorders.
D)All of the above.

Question 35

All of the following are examples of psychophysiological assessment responses

A)Electroencephalogram
B)Galvanic skin response
C)Heart rate
D)Biofeedback

Question 36

Abnormalities in the structure and functioning of the brain can be detected by neuroimaging techniques.Current research is also looking at

A)a possible association of these abnormalities with psychological disorders.
B)using brain imaging techniques as a treatment for psychological disorders.
C)preventing psychological disorders with neuroimaging techniques.
D)using neuroimaging to manipulate the expression of genes that influence psychological disorders.

Question 37

If it were important to determine the exact location of brain impairment,which of the following tests would most likely be used?

A)Bender Visual-Motor Gestalt Test
B)Halstead-Reitan Neuropsychological Battery
C)Gall Phrenological Brain Scan
D)Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale

Question 38

Recent research involving PET scans has shown that patients with Alzheimer's disease have

A)increased dopamine reuptake in the occipital lobes.
B)increased serotonin levels in the temporal lobes.
C)reduced glucose metabolism in the parietal lobes.
D)reduced amino acid production in the frontal lobes.

Question 39

The projective type of psychological tests is based on ________ theory.

A)behavioral
B)cognitive
C)humanistic
D)psychoanalytic

Question 40

The calculation of an IQ,previously done by using a child's mental age,is now done by using a deviation IQ.This means that the child's score is compared to the scores of others

A)of the same age.
B)in the same grade.
C)who took the test at the same time.
D)with the same level of intelligence.

Question 41

The classical categorical approach to diagnosis assumes that each person with a particular disorder will

A)be helped by recognizing the cause of the disorder.
B)experience very few of the same symptoms.
C)respond to the same treatments equally.
D)experience the same symptoms with little or no variation.

Question 42

All of the following are potential dangers of assigning a diagnostic label

A)the patient may lose self-esteem.
B)the patient's prognosis (future course of the disorder) becomes difficult to predict.
C)family and friends may see the patient as the disorder rather than an individual.
D)healthcare workers may see the patient as the disorder rather than an individual.

Question 43

Analog models

A)are conducted outside of the laboratory.
B)generally utilize case studies to maximize similarity to the phenomenon under study.
C)are correlational.
D)create laboratory conditions that are comparable to the phenomenon under study.

Question 44

A researcher is testing the effects of sunlight on depression.The independent variable is

A)sunlight.
B)depression.
C)the assumption that light affects mood.
D)the interaction between sunlight and mood.

Question 45

DSM-5 is based on a ________ classification system.

A)dimensional
B)categorical
C)prototypical
D)psychoanalytic

Question 46

The terms taxonomy and nosology refer to

A)scientific classification.
B)the accuracy of a diagnostic system.
C)the reliability of a grouping of clinical symptoms.
D)theoretical ideas that cannot be tested objectively.

Question 47

The dimensional approach to diagnosis is characterized by

A)a quantification of patients' experiences using scales measuring several areas, such as anxiety or depression.
B)lists of symptoms that patients must experience for the diagnosis to be assigned.
C)essential elements that all patients must report for the diagnosis to be assigned, but allowance for specific nonessential variations as well.
D)a theoretical explanation for the underlying cause of the disorder that is assumed to be shared by all patients experiencing similar symptoms.

Question 48

In well-designed research studies,medications that enhance serotonin functioning have been found to help patients recover from episodes of depression.Given the realities of the patient uniformity myth,it would be a mistake to conclude that

A)level of serotonin function is correlated with depression.
B)all depressed patients will be helped by these medications.
C)research can help us determine which treatments should be used for depression.
D)medication can be an appropriate treatment for depression.

Question 49

A researcher studies the impact of stress on college students' exam scores.Whether the results of this study help us to understand the relationship between stress and work performance in real-life institutions is a question of

A)internal validity.
B)study confounds.
C)external validity.
D)the original research hypothesis.

Question 50

The term that describes the names or labels of disorders is

A)taxonomy.
B)nomenclature.
C)nosology.
D)none of the above

Question 51

Statistical significance determines whether an observed difference between a treatment and control group is likely due to

A)random assignment.
B)external validity.
C)chance.
D)confounds.

Question 52

In research studies,the term "effect size" refers to

A)how much each treated and untreated person in the study changes.
B)the power of the statistical tests that are used to detect the impact of the independent variable.
C)how many subjects are included in a particular study.
D)the degree of external validity that the study has.

Question 53

A researcher studying the effect of a dietary supplement on sleep finds that research participants who take the supplement sleep an average of 7 hours and 25 minutes per night,while participants who were given a placebo pill with no active ingredients in it sleep for an average of 7 hours and 20 minutes.These findings are likely

A)statistically significant.
B)clinically insignificant.
C)Statistically insignificant.
D)clinically significant.

Question 54

While studying the impact of nutrition on intelligence,a researcher has one group of rats on a vitamin-rich diet while the other rat group eats Big Macs.While observing the rats run a complicated maze,the researcher notes that the vitamin-enhanced rats' maze is more brightly lit than the Big Mac rats' maze.The difference in lighting in this study is a(n)

A)confound.
B)independent variable.
C)dependent variable.
D)hypothesis.

Question 55

A researcher separates the participants into two groups.Group A receives an active medication,and Group B receives an empty capsule that looks and feels like the real medication.Group B is the

A)treatment group.
B)analog group.
C)control group.
D)experimental group.

Question 56

Internal validity is defined as

A)the extent to which the results of a study can be explained by the dependent variable.
B)the degree to which the hypothesis is supported by the study.
C)the overall quality of the research.
D)the extent to which the results in a study can be explained by the independent variable.

Question 57

In the Hispanic subculture,ataques de nervios is a type of ________ disorder.

A)depressive
B)psychotic
C)anxiety
D)manic

Question 58

Researchers use control groups to

A)make comparisons to the treatment group.
B)give all research participants an equal chance to participate in the study.
C)control the hypothesis.
D)randomize the experiment.

Question 59

A hypothesis is defined as a(n)

A)theory.
B)empirical conclusion.
C)research study.
D)educated guess.

Question 60

A researcher is testing the effects of sunlight on depression.The dependent variable is

A)sunlight.
B)the interaction between sunlight and mood.
C)the research design.
D)depression.

Question 61

An important advantage of the multiple baseline design over the withdrawal design for evaluating treatments is that multiple baseline

A)has greater internal validity.
B)has greater external validity.
C)does not require the removal of a potentially helpful treatment.
D)does not require the artificial intervention of the researcher.

Question 62

When a control group is used in experimental research,the members of the control group will be treated exactly the same as the

A)treatment group, that they will be exposed to the independent variable.
B)treatment group in every way.
C)control group in any other psychology study.
D)treatment group, that they will not be exposed to the independent variable.

Question 63

A person with Down syndrome typically has some level of intellectual disability and a variety of other physical characteristics,such as slanted eyes and a thick tongue.These characteristics are the

A)genotype.
B)phenotype.
C)deoxyribotype.
D)codontype.

Question 64

As a child's age increases,so does her height.This is an example of a(n)

A)negative correlation.
B)zero correlation.
C)causal correlation.
D)positive correlation.

Question 65

The correlation between the amount of time a college student studies and the student's height in inches is probably

A)positive.
B)negative.
C)zero.
D)causal.

Question 66

The basis of an experiment is

A)manipulation of a dependent variable.
B)manipulation of an independent variable.
C)Manipulation of a confounding variable.
D)in-depth fact gathering of many variables.

Question 67

The type of study that generally does not follow the scientific method and typically contains many confounds is the

A)case study.
B)correlation model.
C)true experiment.
D)longitudinal study.

Question 68

While trying to discover the nature of the relationship between stress and blood pressure,a researcher asks participants to complete a difficult task.The researcher monitors the participants' blood pressure while some are exposed to noisy distractions and others stay in a quiet environment.This type of research is a(n)

A)correlational study.
B)experiment.
C)case study.
D)placebo control study.

Question 69

The advantage of using a withdrawal design as part of a single-case experiment is that the researcher can

A)counterbalance the research design with additional measures to improve internal and external validity.
B)control for the placebo effect.
C)conduct a true double-blind experiment.
D)determine whether improvements gained with treatment are lost when the treatment is withheld.

Question 70

It can be important to use a double-blind procedure in a research study in order to prevent the

A)independent variable from influencing the dependent variable.
B)confusion of correlation with causation.
C)participants' expectations from biasing the independent variable.
D)researcher's expectations from biasing the outcome.

Question 71

Epidemiology is the study of

A)the effectiveness of the correlational model in determining cause.
B)research methods.
C)various forms of therapy.
D)incidence, distribution, and consequences of a problem in a population.

Question 72

The more time one spends exercising,the less one generally weighs.The correlation between time on a treadmill each month and overall body weight would represent a

A)positive correlation.
B)zero correlation.
C)negative correlation.
D)causal correlation.

Question 73

In a double-blind study,

A)the participants are not aware of who is in the treatment and control groups, but the researcher providing the treatment does know.
B)neither the researcher providing the treatment nor the participants are aware of who is in the treatment and who is in the control group.
C)neither the researcher providing the treatment nor the research participants can ever be made aware of the research findings.
D)the research participants are not aware that they are participating in a research study.

Question 74

Placebos are used in experiments to

A)control for the variability of individuals who tend to volunteer for research studies.
B)control for the expectations of some research participants that they will improve just because they are in a research study.
C)help determine whether an independent variable actually causes a statistically significant change in a dependent variable.
D)make certain that the treatment and control group are randomly selected.

Question 75

One important difference between a typical case study and the single-case experiment is that during the single-case experiment,behavior is generally

A)manipulated.
B)controlled by the experimenter.
C)measured more than once.
D)observed in the natural environment.

Question 76

One of the hallmarks of the experimental method that makes it different from a correlational study is that in an experiment,

A)we observe what happens in the natural world.
B)the researcher is unaware of the independent variable.
C)a variable is manipulated in a way that would not have occurred naturally.
D)there are multiple control groups.

Question 77

The single-case experimental design is primarily criticized as having limited

A)reliability.
B)external validity.
C)Internal validity.
D)measures.

Question 78

The purpose of a control group in experimental research is to

A)control for the subjects' desire to act according to the experimenter's expectations.
B)determine whether a treatment or independent variable actually influenced change in the dependent variable.
C)determine statistical significance.
D)control the dependent variable.

Question 79

One of the problems of using a withdrawal design as part of a single-case experiment is the

A)difficulty of measuring changes that are associated with removal of a treatment.
B)confounding factor of the placebo effect when the treatment is removed.
C)ethical issue of removing treatment that appears to be helping the patient.
D)impossibility of removing the treatment equally for the treatment subjects and control subjects.

Question 80

A child is having temper tantrums at home,at school,and at his grandparents' house.After working with the parents for a while,the therapist believes that the child is being rewarded for his tantrums in each setting because his teacher,parents,and grandparents generally give him what he wants just to make him stop yelling.The therapist devises a plan to stop his tantrums but first implements the plan at home,then the following week at school,and finally at the grandparents' home several weeks later.From a research perspective,this is an example of a(n)

A)withdrawal design.
B)multiple baseline design.
C)placebo control.
D)external validity design.