Research Methods in Psychopathology Flashcards

Flashcards reviewing research methods in psychopathology

Nature of problems reported

What problems cause distress and impair functioning

Etiology of psychopathology

Why do people behave in unusual ways?

Treatment evaluation

How do we help people behave in more adaptive ways?

Hypothesis

An educated guess/statement

Research design

The plan for testing the hypothesis

Dependent variable (DV)

The aspect that is measured and expected to be changed or influenced by the IV

Independent variable (IV)

The aspect that is manipulated or thought to influence the change in the DV

Internal validity

The extent the results of the study can be attributed to the IV

Confounding variable

Factors that also affect the DV besides the IV

Control group

Group not exposed to the IV, to be compared with the experimental group.

Randomization

Assigning grouping whereby everyone has the equal chance to be in any group

Analogue models

Stimulates the conditions in controlled lab settings

External validity

The extent the results of the study can be generalized or applied outside the immediate study

Statistical significance

Are the results due to chance?

Effect size

Ability to tell how big the differences between the experimental and controlled groups are

Clinical significance

Are results clinically meaningful and make a difference for those affected?

Social validity

Asking the person being treated and others about the importance of the changes

Patient uniformity myth

The tendency to consider all members of a category as more similar than they are, ignoring their individual differences

Case studies

Extensive observation and detailed description of a single client who displayed the behavioral and physical patterns of interest

Correlational Research

Whether two variables statistically relate to each other

Positive correlation

Increase in X results in increase in Y

Negative correlation

Increase in X results in decrease in Y

No correlation

There is no relationship between X and Y

Epidemiological research

Study of a particular problem in the population

Prevalence

Number of cases in the population at a time

Incidence

The number of new cases during a period

Distribution

Spread

Consequences

Effect/impact

Experimental Research

The manipulation of an IV and the measurement of its effects, to answer the question of causality

Placebo effect

Behavior changes due to person's expectation of change rather than any manipulation/treatment

Placebo control groups

Receives inactive medications such as sugar pills/ small part of therapy

Double blind control

Both researchers and participants do not know which is the placebo group

Comparative research group

Two or more comparable groups each receives different treatments

Clinical trials

Experiments designed to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of a treatment

Randomized clinical trials

Randomize participants into each experimental group

Controlled clinical trials

Control conditions for comparison purposes

Randomized controlled trial

Uses both randomization and one or more control conditions

Single- case Experimental studies

Systematic study of an individual/ smaller number of individuals under a variety of experimental conditions

Repeated measurement

Behavior is measured several times instead of only pre and post test, to record variability and changes in trends

Withdrawal design

Tries to determine whether the IV is responsible for changes in behavior by stopping treatment (baseline to treatment to withdrawal)

Multiple baseline

Starts treatment at different times across settings, behaviors or people. It improves internal validity

Behavioral genetics

Used to determine the interactions of genes, experience and behavior

Phenotypes

Observable characteristics or behavior of the individual

Genotypes

Unique genetic makeup of individual people

Endophenotypes

Genetic mechanism that contributes to the underlying problem causing the symptoms and difficulties experienced by people with psychological disorders

Family studies

Examines the behavioral pattern or emotional trait in the context of the family

Proband

Person who has the trait of interest

Familial aggregation

The tendency for a trait or behavior to occur more frequently in family members rather than in a population

Adoption studies

To separate environmental from genetic influence

Twin studies

Compare identical/monozygotic twins against fraternal/dizygotic twins

Genetic linkage analysis

Examines known genetic markers (certain gene whose location is known) in a large group of people with a particular disorder

Association studies

Compares genetic markers of people with the disorder to people without the disorder

Prospective studies

Recording changes over time as they occur

Retrospective studies

Asking people to remember what happened in the past

Prevention research

Obtaining information to design interventions and services that prevent the problem

Health promotion/positive development

Increase protective behaviors in entire population

Universal prevention

Target specific risk factors in entire population

Selective prevention

Targets groups of people at risk and designs specific interventions

Indicated prevention

Targets specific individuals who are showing early signs of a disorder but not at clinical levels yet

Cross sectional design

Take a cross section of a population across the different age groups and compare them on some characteristic

Cohorts

Participants in each age group are called

Cohort effect

Confounding of age and experience

Longitudinal design

Following one group over time and assess changes in members

Cross-sequential design

Repeated study of different cohorts over time

Competence

Ability to provide consent

Voluntarism

Lack of coercion

Full information

Necessary information to make an informed decision

Comprehension

Understanding about benefits and risks of participation