Textbook important terms

evidence-based practice

a practice model that involves the synthesis of information drawn from research and systematically collected data on the patient in question, the clinician’s professional experience, and the patient’s preferences when considering healthcare options

biopsychosocial approach

a theoretical framework that takes into account biological, psychological, and social influences on health and illness

syndrome

group of symptoms that frequently co-occur

clinical utility

usefulness of assessment data to provide information that leads to a clinical outcome that is better than would be the case if the psychologist did not have the assessment data

service evaluation

activities designed to examine whether or not services work

meta-analysis

a review technique by which groups of studies are statistically combined and compared

efficacy

evidence that a treatment has been shown to work under research conditions that emphasize internal validity

effectiveness

evidence that a treatment has been shown to work in real world conditions

clinical consultation

the provision of information, advice, and recommendations about how best to assess, understand, or treat a client

organizational consultation

services to an organization focused on developing a prevention or intervention program, evaluating how well an organization is doing in providing health care or related service, or providing an opinion on policies on heath care services set by an organization

practicum

the initial supervised training in the provision of psychological services that is a requirement of the doctoral degree; usually part time

internship/residency

the period of supervised training in the provision of psychological services that is a requirement of the doctoral degree; usually a one-year, full time period

informed consent

an ethical principle to ensure that the person who is offered services or who participates in research understands what is being done and agrees to participate

scientist practitioner model

a training model that emphasizes competencies in both research and provision of psychological services

clinical scientist model

a training model that strongly promotes the development of research skills

practitioner scholar model

a training model that emphasizes clinical skills and competencies as a research consumer

accreditation

a process designed to ensure that training programs maintain standards that meet the profession’s expectations for the education of clinical psychologists

licensure

regulation to ensure minimal requirements for academic and clinical training are met and that practitioners provide ethical and competent services, regulation of the professional helps to ensure the public is protected when receiving services

classification validity

the extent to which the principles used in classifying an entity are effective in capturing the nature of the entity

classification utility

the usefulness of a classification scheme

categorical approach to classification

an entity is determined to be either a member of a category or not

dimensional approach to classification

classified entities differ in the extent to which they possess certain characteristics or properties

diagnostic system

a classification based on rules used to organize and understand diseases and disorders

diagnosis

the result of applying the decision-making rules of a diagnostic system to the symptoms of a specific individual

prototype model

members of a diagnostic category may differ in the degree to which they represent the concepts underlying the category

developmental psychopathology

a framework for understanding problem behaviour in relation to the milestones that are specific to each stage of a person’s development

harmful dysfunction

the behaviours associated with a mental disorder are dysfunctional, and this causes harm to the individual or those around him or her

dyscontrol

the impairment resulting from a disorder must be involuntary or not readily controlled

comorbidity

when a person receives diagnoses for two or more disorders at one time

internal validity

the extent to which the interpretations drawn from the results of a study can be justified and alternative interpretations can be reasonably ruled out

external validity

the extent to which the interpretations drawn from the results of a study can be generalized beyond the narrow boundaries of the specific study

statistical conclusions validity

the extent to which the results of a study are accurate and valid based on the type of statistical procedures used in research

factor analysis

a statistical procedure used too determine the conceptual dimensions or factors that underlie a set of variables, test items, or tests

moderator

a variable that influences the strength of the relation between a predictor variable and a criterion variable

mediator

a variable that explains the mechanism by which a predictor variable influences a criterion variable

structural equation modelling

a comprehensive statistical procedure that involves testing all components of a theoretical model

randomized control trial

an experiment in which research participants are randomly assigned to one of two or more treatment conditions

clinical significance

in addition to the results of a study attaining statistical significance, the results are of a magnitude that there are changes in some aspects of participant’s daily functioning

systematic review

the use of a systematic and explicit set of methods to identify, select, and critically appraise research studies

effect size

a standardized metric, typically expressed in standard deviation units or correlations, that allows the results of. research studies to be combines and analyzed

evidence based assessment

the use of research and theory to guide the variables assessed, the methods and measures, and the manner in which the assessment process unfolds

assessment focused assessment

services conducted primarily to provide information on a person’s psychosocial functioning

intervention focused assessment

assessments conducted in the context of intervention services

screening

a procedure to identify individuals who may have problems of a clinical magnitude or who m

case formulation

a description of the patient that provides information on his or her life situation, current problems, and a set of hypotheses linking psychosocial factors with a patient’s clinical condition

prognosis

predictions made about the future course of a patient’s psychological functioning based on the use of assessment data in combination with relevant empirical literature

base rate

the frequency with which a problem or diagnosis occurs in the population

sensitivity

proportion of true positives identified by the assessment

specificity

proportion of true negatives identified by the assessment

standardization

consistency across clinicians and testing occasions in the procedure used to administer and score a test

internal consistency

the extent to which all aspects of a test contribute in a similar way to the overall score

test-retest reliability

the extent to which similar results would be obtained if the person was retested at some point after the initial test

inter-rater/inter-scorer reliability

the extent to which similar results would be obtained if the test was conducted by another evaluator

content validity

the extent to which the test samples the type of behaviour that is relevant to the underlying psychological construct

concurrent validity

the extent to which scores on the test are correlated with scores on a measure of similar constructs

predictive validity

the extent to which the test predicts a relevant outcome

discriminant validity

the extent to which the test provides a pure measure of the construct that is minimally contaminated by other psychological constructs

incremental validity

the extent to which a measure adds to the prediction of a criterion above what can be predicted by other sources of data

limits of confidentiality

situations in which the psychologist is legally obligated to break confidentiality by disclosing information provided by the patient to another person or agency

open questions

questions that allow elaborate responses and cannot be answered with a simple yes or nocl

closed questions

questions that can be answered with a single word

semi-structured interviews

interviews with a specific format for asking questions and a specific sequence in which questions are asked

microaggressions

slights, misunderstandings, and unwarranted assumptions on the part of the psychologist

self monitoring

strategies to monitor one’s own behaviour, emotions, and/or thoughts

reactivity

a change in the phenomenon being monitored that is due specifically to the process of monitoring the phenomenon

factor g

the general factor shared by all intellectual activities

fluid intelligence

the ability to solve novel problems; innate intellectual potential

crystallized intelligence

what we have learned in life, both from formal education and general life experiences

premorbid IQ

intellectual functioning prior to an accident or the onset of a neurological decline

full scale IQ

the total score for an intelligence scale obtained by summing scores on verbal and non-verbal scales

representativeness

extent to which a sample reflects the characteristics of the population from which it is drawn

Flynn effect

the observed trend that IQ scores in developed countries have increased over the past few decades

semantic memory

memory of general knowledge of words, concepts, and events

episodic memory

memory of a person’s direct experiences

personality traits

the tendency to consistently behave in specific ways

objective personality tests

tests that can be scored objectively, always using the same scoring system

behaviour checklists

lists of behaviours that are rated for frequency, intensity, or duration

projective personality tests

tests requiring drawings or a response to ambiguous stimuli, based on the assumption that responses reveal information about personality structure

validity scales

scales designed to detect whether a person is faking good, faking bad, or responding randomly

malingering

emphasizing negative characteristics and deliberately presenting a more problematic picture

empirical criterion-keying approach

a method of test construction that involves the generation and analysis of a pool of items; those that discriminate between two clearly defined groups are retained in the scale

content approach

a method of test construction that involves developing items specifically designed to tap the constructs being assessed

overpathologize

the tendency to exaggerate and overestimate the extent of pathology

code type

summary code for the highest two clinical scale evaluations on the MMPI scales

retrospective recall

using data that rely on people to remember events that happened to them at some point in the past

self-serving attributional bias

a tendency to take more personal credit for successes than for failures, by attributing success but not failure to internal, stable, and global causes

biases

judgements that are systematically different from what a person should conclude based on logic or probability

heuristics

mental shortcuts that make decision-making easier and faster but often lead to less accurate decisions

computer based interpretations

reports generated by computer programs that match a patient’s general pattern of responses on a psychological test to summaries of research evidence about the typical characteristics of people with the same pattern of test responses

therapeutic model of assessment

an approach to psychological assessment in which clients are actively encouraged to participate in discussions about the reasons for the assessment, the results of the testing, and how the assessment data should be integrated and interpreted

short-term psychodynamic therapy

a treatment approach that emphasizes bringing to awareness unconscious processes, especially as they are expressed in interpersonal relationships and helping the client to understand and alter these processes

transference

the unconscious application of expectations and emotional experiences, based on important early relationships, to subsequent interpersonal relationships

interpersonal psychotherapy (for depression)

a treatment approach that emphasizes interpersonal elements in the development, maintenance, and alteration of psychological problems (especially grief, role disputes, role transitions, and interpersonal deficits)

process-experiential therapy

a treatment approach that emphasizes the importance of becoming aware of emotions, understanding and expressing emotions, and transforming maladaptive to adaptive emotions

cognitive behavioural therapy

a treatment approach that emphasizes the role of thoughts and behaviour in psychological problems and, therefore, focuses on altering beliefs, expectations, and behaviours in order to improve the client’s functioning

self-efficacy

a person’s sense of competence to learn and perform new tasks

self-administered treatment

treatment that the client engages in with no or minimal contact with a mental health professional

stepped-care

an approach to health care service delivery in which lower-cost interventions are offered first, with more intensive and more costly interventions being provided only to those for whom the first line intervention was insufficient

process research

research that examines patterns, using therapist and/or client data, that are evident within and across therapy sessions

process outcome research

research that examines the relation between variables related to the process of providing psychotherapy and the outcome of therapy