test 1

The number of cases of a specific condition or disorder that can be found in a population at one given point in time.

point prevalence

The total number of cases of a health-related state or condition in a population for a given year.

one-year prevalence

The proportion of living persons in a population who have ever had a disorder up to the time of the epidemiologic assessment.

lifetime prevalence

The onset rate of a given disorder in a given population.

incidence

a disorder with sudden onset, usually. intense symptoms

acute

a long-standing or frequently recurring disorder, often with progressing seriousness.

chronic

occurrence of two or more identified disorders in the same psychologically disordered individual.

comorbidity

factors that are related to the development/cause of a particular disorder.

etiology

the extent to which the findings from a single study are relevant to other populations, contexts, or times.

external validity

The extent to which a study is free of confounds, is methodologically sound, and allows the researcher to have confidence in the findings.

internal validity

A statistical method used to combine the results of a number of similar research studies. Data from each study are transformed into a common metric called "effect size." This allows the data from the various studies to be combined and then analyzed.

meta-analysis

A statistical term referring to the strength of the relationship between two variables in a statistical population.

effect size

This refers to the problem of making casual inferences in correlational research, where the correlation between two variables could be due to the shared correlation with an unmeasured third variable.

third variable problem

A research design in which people are followed over time.

longitudinal design

Research strategy that examines whether and how variables go together (co-vary) without manipulating any variables.

correlational approach

Research method that often focuses on individuals who have a higher-than-average likelihood of becoming psychologically disordered before abnormal behavior is observed.

prospective approach

Research method that attempts to retrace earlier events in the life of a subject to attempt to uncover probable causes of abnormal behavior.

retrospective approach

an experimental design, often involving a single subject, wherein a baseline period A is followed by a treatment B, then confirmed by reintroducing baseline A and then reintroducing treatment B.

ABAB design

studies in which a researcher attempts to emulate the conditions hypothesized as leading to abnormality.

analogue study

often used in studies examining drug treatment effects, a condition where neither the subject or experimenter knows about the specifics of the treatment the subject is receiving.

double-blind study

an in-depth examination of an individual or family that draws from a number of data sources, including interviews and psychological testing.

single-case study

a neutral intervention that produces desirable effects because of the subject's expectations that it will be beneficial.

placebo treatment

A procedure used to create equivalent groups in which every research participant has an equal chance of being assigned o any group in the study.

random assignment

The number of cases of a specific condition or disorder that can be found in a population at one given point in time.

point prevalence

The total number of cases of a health-related state or condition in a population for a given year.

one-year prevalence

The proportion of living persons in a population who have ever had a disorder up to the time of the epidemiologic assessment.

lifetime prevalence

The onset rate of a given disorder in a given population.

incidence

a disorder with sudden onset, usually. intense symptoms

acute

a long-standing or frequently recurring disorder, often with progressing seriousness.

chronic

occurrence of two or more identified disorders in the same psychologically disordered individual.

comorbidity

factors that are related to the development/cause of a particular disorder.

etiology

the extent to which the findings from a single study are relevant to other populations, contexts, or times.

external validity

The extent to which a study is free of confounds, is methodologically sound, and allows the researcher to have confidence in the findings.

internal validity

A statistical method used to combine the results of a number of similar research studies. Data from each study are transformed into a common metric called "effect size." This allows the data from the various studies to be combined and then analyzed.

meta-analysis

A statistical term referring to the strength of the relationship between two variables in a statistical population.

effect size

This refers to the problem of making casual inferences in correlational research, where the correlation between two variables could be due to the shared correlation with an unmeasured third variable.

third variable problem

A research design in which people are followed over time.

longitudinal design

Research strategy that examines whether and how variables go together (co-vary) without manipulating any variables.

correlational approach

Research method that often focuses on individuals who have a higher-than-average likelihood of becoming psychologically disordered before abnormal behavior is observed.

prospective approach

Research method that attempts to retrace earlier events in the life of a subject to attempt to uncover probable causes of abnormal behavior.

retrospective approach

an experimental design, often involving a single subject, wherein a baseline period A is followed by a treatment B, then confirmed by reintroducing baseline A and then reintroducing treatment B.

ABAB design

studies in which a researcher attempts to emulate the conditions hypothesized as leading to abnormality.

analogue study

often used in studies examining drug treatment effects, a condition where neither the subject or experimenter knows about the specifics of the treatment the subject is receiving.

double-blind study

an in-depth examination of an individual or family that draws from a number of data sources, including interviews and psychological testing.

single-case study

a neutral intervention that produces desirable effects because of the subject's expectations that it will be beneficial.

placebo treatment

A procedure used to create equivalent groups in which every research participant has an equal chance of being assigned o any group in the study.

random assignment
phenotype

genotype

A person's total genetic endowment. There is environment correlation and environment interaction.

allele

also known as APOE-4, variant of a gene on chromosome 19 that increases the risk for late-onset Alzheimer's disease by a lot.

polygenic

Caused by the action of many genes together in an additive or interactive fashion.

genotype-environment interaction

Differential sensitivity or susceptibility to their environments by people who have different genotypes.

family history method

Behavior genetic research strategy that examines the incidence of disorder in relatives of an index case to determine whether incidence increases in proportion to the degree of the hereditary relationship.

twin method

the use of identical and nonidentical twins to study genetic influences on abnormal behavior.

concordance rate

Percentage of twins sharing a disorder or trait.

monozygotic twin

Also known as an identical twin; developed from a single fertilized egg.

dizygotic twin

Also known as fraternal twins; develop from two separate eggs.

adoption method

Comparison of biological and adoptive relatives with and without a given disorder to assess genetic versus environmental influences.

linkage analysis

genetic research strategy where occurrence of a disorder in an extended family is compared with that of a genetic marker for a physical characteristic or biological process that is known to be located on a particular chromosome.

association studies

Genetic research strategy comparing frequency of certain genetic markers known to be located on particular chromosomes in people with and without a particular disorder.

tardive dyskinesia

neurological disorder resulting from excessive use of antipsychotic drugs. Side effects can occur months or years after treatment has been initiated or has stopped. Symptoms involve involuntary movement of the tongue, lips, jaw, and extremities.

tricyclic antidepressants

Medications used to treat depression, and sometimes anxiety disorders, that are thought to block the reuptake of norepinephrine and serotonin at the synapse.

monoamine-oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs)

Class of antidepressant drugs sometimes used for treating depression.

selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI)

A medication that inhibits serotonin and is used in the treatment of depression.

Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT)

Use of electricity to produce convulsions and unconsciousness; a treatment used mainly to alleviate depressive and manic episodes. Also known as electroshock therapy.

polymorphism

The inheritance of a trait controlled by a single genetic locus with two alleles. Difference in DNA sequence among individuals or groups.

agonist

A chemical that amplifies/increases the effect of a neurotransmitter by binding to the receptor sites of that neurotransmitter and activating them.

antagonist

A drug that decreases the effect of a neurotransmitter.

Agranulocytosis

A decline in the number of a certain kind of white blood cells (neutrophils) that usually comes from an immune system reaction to a drug, chemical, or toxic substance affecting bone marrow.

SNRI (serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors)

Antidepressants that are used to treat depression, anxiety, and some kinds of chronic pain. Delays serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake/reabsorption.

biopsychosocial approach

Viewpoint that acknowledges the interacting roles of biological, psychosocial, and sociocultural factors in the origins of psychopathology.

diathesis

A predisposition or vulnerability to developing a given disorder.

stress

effects created within an organism by the application of a stressor.

resilience

The ability to adapt successfully to even very difficult circumstances.

risk factor

A correlate that occurs before some outcome of interest.

protective factor

influences that modify a person's response to an environmental stressor, making it less likely that the person will experience the adverse effects of the stressor

ego psychology

Psychodynamic theory emphasizing the importance of the ego- the executive branch of the personality- in organizing normal personality development.

interpersonal perspective

Approach to understanding abnormal behavior that views much of psychopathology as rooted in the unfortunate tendencies we develop while dealing with our interpersonal environments; focuses on our relationships, past and present, with other people.

attachment theory

Contemporary developmental and psychodynamic theory emphasizing the importance of early experience with attachment relationships in laying the foundation for later functioning throughout life.

manifest content

In psychoanalytic theory, the apparent meaning of a dream; masks the latent content.

latent content

In psychoanalytic theory, repressed actual motives of a dream that are seeking expression but are so painful or unacceptable that they are disguised by the manifest content of the dream.

transference

In psychodynamic theory, a process whereby clients project onto the therapist attitudes and feelings that they have had for a parent or others close to them.

countertransference

When a therapist brings their own issues into a therapy session based off their own vulnerabilities.

free association

Method of probing the unconscious by having the patient talk freely about themselves, their feelings, and their motives.

resistance

The second stage of responding to continuing trauma, involving finding some means to deal with the trauma and adjust to it. In psychodynamic treatment, the person's unwillingness or inability to talk about certain thoughts, motives, or experiences.

Oedipus complex

Complex set of emotions aroused in a young child (4) by an unconscious desire to have sex with the parent of the opposite sex and wish to exclude the parent of the same sex. This is for boys, for girls it is the Electra complex.

multimodal therapy

Optimization of treatment by delivering multiple kinds of therapy together.

Transference-focused psychotherapy

a treatment for borderline and other severe personality disorders that is based on psychoanalytic concepts and techniques that work with clients' early relationship templates to help clients construct a more stable adult identity

Classical conditioning

A basic form of learning where a neutral stimulus is pared repeatedly with an unconditioned stimulus that naturally elicits an unconditioned response. After repeated pairings, the neutral stimulus becomes a conditioned stimulus that elicits a conditioned response.

Extinction

Gradual disappearance of a conditioned response when it is no longer reinforced

spontaneous recovery

The return of a learned response at some time after extinction has occurred.

generalization

Tendency of a response that has been conditioned to one stimulus to be elicited by another, similar stimuli

discrimination

Ability to interpret and respond differently to two or more similar stimuli

observational learning

learning through observation alone without directly experiencing an unconditioned stimulus (classical) or a reinforcement (observational)

dialectal behavior therapy

A unique kind of cognitive and behavioral therapy specifically adapted for treating borderline personality disorder.

modeling

Learning of skills by imitating another person who performs the behavior to be acquired.

response shaping

Positive reinforcement technique used in therapy to establish, by gradual approximation, a response not initially in a person's behavioral repertoire.

token economies

Reinforcement techniques often used in hospital or institutional setting in which patients are rewarded for socially constructive behavior with tokens that can then be exchanged for desired objects or activities.

rational-emotive behavior therapy (REBT)

Form of psychotherapy focusing on changing a client's maladaptive thought processes, on which maladaptive emotional responses and thus behavior are presumed to depend.

client-centered therapy

Nondirective approach to psychotherapy, developed chiefly by Carl Rogers, that focuses on the natural power of the organism to heal itself; key goal is to help clients accept and be themselves.

motivational interviewing

A brief form of therapy, often used in areas of substance abuse and addiction, that allows clients to explore their desires, reasons, ability, and need for change.

gestalt therapy

Therapy designed to increase the integration of thoughts, feelings, and actions and to promote self-awareness and self-acceptance.