PSYC 335, JMU, Brewster, Chapter 1, 3, 4, 16, 17

abnormal psychology

concerned with understanding the nature, causes, and treatment of mental disorders

family aggregation

whether a disorder runs in families

subjective distress

if people suffer or experience psychological pain we are inclined to consider this as indicative of abnormality

maladaptiveness

often an indicator of abnormality; interferes with our ability to enjoy our work and our relationships

indicators of abnormality

1. Subjective distress
2. maladaptiveness
3. statistical deviancy
4. violations of standards of society
5. social discomfort
6. irrationality and unpredictability
7. dangerousness

nomenclature

a naming system

stigma

disgrace

labeling

a way of perpetuating stigma

epidemiology

the study of distribution of diseases, disorders, or health-related behaviors in a given population

prevalence

number of active cases in a population during any given period of time

point prevalence

refers to the estimated proportion of actual, active cases of a disorder in a population at a given point in time

1 year prevalence

count everyone who experienced depression (example) at any point in time throughout an entire year

lifetime prevalence

an estimate of the number of people who have had a particular disorder at any time in their lives (even if they are now recovered)

NCS-R

national comorbidity survey survey replication

comorbidity

the presence of two or more disorders in the same person

acute

short in duration

chronic

long in duration

etiology

causes

case study

studying many research that have already been collected

generalizability

the ability to be a reflection of a whole (ex. a sample should be able to reflect a population in a study)

self-report data

when the subjects give information that the researcher needs in the form of a questionnaire, survey, etc.

direct observation

observing someone or something in order to obtain information

hypothesis

a statement that attempts to explain, predict, or explore something

external validity

the extent to which we can generalize our findings beyond the study itself

internal validity

reflects how confident we can be in the results of a particular given study

comparison group

control group (ex. group of people who do not exhibit the disorder of interest)

criterion group

the group that is being studied (example- people with the disorder of interest)

correlational research design

studying the world as it is; no variable manipulation

positive correlation

one variable has a positive effect on the other variable (more sleep increases test scores)

negative correlation

one variable has a negative effect on another (increased caffeine intake lowers the amount of hours slept)

correlation coefficient

the symbol "r"; a number between −1 and +1 calculated so as to represent the linear dependence of two variables or sets of data.

statistical significance

the probability that the correlation would occur purely by chance is less than 5 out of 100

meta-analysis

calculates and then combines the effect sizes from all of the studies (of interest)

effect size

reflects the size of the association between two variables independent of the sample size

third variable problem

unknown third variable might be causing both events to occur

retrospective research

collecting information from the past

prospective research

looking ahead in time

single-case research design

case studies that can be used to develop and test therapy techniques within a scientific framework

ABAB design

baseline treatment baseline treatment

psychological assessment

procedure by which clinicians, using psychological tests, observation

clinical diagnosis

a process through which a clinician arrives at a general "summary classification" of the patient's symptoms by following a clearly defined system such as the DSM or ICD

presenting problem

major symptoms and behavior the client is experiencing

cultural competence

being informed of the issues involved in multicultural assessment

reliability

the degree to which an assessment measure produces the same result each time it is used to evaluate the same thing

standardization

the process by which a psychological test is administered, scored, and interpreted in a consistent manner

t-score distribution

example: comparing a particular individual's test score on a distribution of test scores from a large normative population can enable the user to evaluate whether the individual's score is low, average, or high along the distribution of scores.

electroencephalogram

assesses brain wave patterns in wake and sleeping states

dysrhythmia

irregular pattern

computerized axial tomography

through the use of x-rays, this scan reveals images of parts of the brain that might be diseased

Magnetic resonance imaging

scan that shows images of the interior of the brain and are sharper than the CAT scan. Can detect subtle variations in soft tissue

functional MRI

measures changes in local oxygenation of specific areas of the brain tissue that in turn depend on neuronal activity in those specific regions

aphasia

a disorder in which there is a loss of ability to communicate verbally

neuropsychological assessment

involves the use of various testing devices to measure a person's cognitive, perceptual, and motor performance as clues to the extent and location of brain damage

Halstead-Reitan Battery Test

Index of impairment can be computer- it is composed of 5 tasks:


1. Halstead category test
2. Tactual performance
3. Rhythm test
4. Speech sounds perception test
5. Finger oscillation task

structured assessment interview

assessment that yields more results than the flexible format

unstructured assessment interview

subjective assessment that does not follow redetermined sets of questions

analogue situations

designed to yield information about a person's adaptive strategies, involving something like role-playing, event reenactment, family interaction assignments, or think-aloud procedures

Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS)

a structured and quantifiable format for rating clinical symptoms such as overconcern with physical symptoms, anxiety, emotional withdrawal, guilt feelings, hostility, suspiciousness, and unusual thought patterns

Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Revised (WAIS-IV)

An intelligence test for adults that measures verbal and memory performance

personality tests

measures personal characteristics over intellectual ability

projective personality tests

unstructured tests that rely on various ambiguous stimuli such as inkblots or vague pictures rather than on explicit verbal questions, and in that the person's responses are not limited to the "T/F/Cannot say" variety.

Rorschach Inkblot Test

initiated the experimental use of inkblots in personality assessment (1911)

Thematic Apperception Test (TAT)

C.D. Morgan and Henry Murray (harvard)- Uses a series of simple pictures that are either abstract or highly representational. Subjects must give contexts to each picture in order to be assessed by a clinician.

sentence completion test

test for all ages that gives a partial sentence that the subject must complete for personality assessment

objective personality tests

structured personality test that typically uses questionnaires, self-report inventories, or rating scales in which questions or items are carefully phrased and alternative responses are specified as choices

Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI-2)

Hathaway and Mckinley- reliable personality test used internationally; uses 10 clinical scales for assessment

actuarial procedures

computer/statistics and all that shizbiz

Issues in ethical assessment

1. Potential cultural bias of the instrument or the clinician
2. theoretical orientation of clinician
3. underemphasis on the external situation
4. insufficient validation
5. inaccurate data or premature evaluation

categorical approach

assumes:


1. that all human behavior can be divided into the categories of “healthy” or “disordered”
2. that within the latter there exist discrete, nonoverlapping classes or types of disorder that have a high degree of within-class homogeneity in both symptoms displayed and the underlying organization of the disorder identified.

dimensional approach

assumed that a person's typical behavior is the product of differing strengths or intensities of behavior along several definable dimensions such as mood, emotional stability, aggressiveness, interpersonal trust, etc.

prototypical approach

having a list of cases of each disorder instead of a list of diagnostic criteria

correlate

when a variable is associated with an outcome of interest

risk factor

a factor or characteristic that is associated with an increased risk of developing a condition

variable risk

a factor that can change within a person (level of depression can vary within a person)

variable marker

a variable risk factor that, when changes, doesn't influence the outcome of interest

causal risk factor

a variable risk factor that, when changed, changes the likelihood of the outcome of interest

etiology

causal pattern

necessary cause

a characteristic that must exist for a disorder to occur

sufficient cause

a condition that guarantees the occurrence of disorder

contributory causes

increases the probability of a disorder developing but is neither necessary or sufficient

distal risk factors

causal factors occurring relatively early in life that might not show effects for many years

proximal risk factors

other factors that operate shortly before the occurrence of symptoms of a disorder

reinforcing contributory cause

a conditioned that tends to maintain maladaptive behavior that is already occurring

diathesis-stress models

describes how stressors trigger maladaptive behavior because of a person's preexisting vulnerability

diathesis

vulnerability

protective factors

decrease the likelihood of negative outcomes among those at risk

interactive model

some amount of diathesis must be present before stress will have any effect

resilience

the ability to adapt successfully to even very difficult circumstances

developmental psychopathology

concentrates on determining what is abnormal at any point in development comparing and contrasting it with the normal and expected changes that occur in the course of development

biopsychosocial viewpoint

acknowledges that biological, psychological, and social factors all interact and play a role in psychopathology and treatment

genes

long molecules of DNA

chromosomes

chain-like structures within a cell nucleus that contain the genes

polygenic

influences by multiple genes or by multiple polymorphisms of genes, with any one gene having only very small effects

genotype

genetic endowment

phenotype

the observed structural and functional characteristics that result from an interaction of the genotype and the environment

genotype-environment interaction

genetic factors are not necessary and sufficient to cause mental disorders but instead can contribute to a vulnerability to develop psychopathology that only happens if there is a significant stressor in a person's life

genotype-environment correlation

when the genotype shapes the environmental experiences a child

behavior genetics

the field that focuses on studying the heritability of mental disorders

family history method

requires an investigator to observe samples of relatives of each proband or index case to see whether the incidence increases in proportion to the degree of heredity relationship

twin method

used to study genetic influences on abnormal behavior