Abnormal Psychology: Diagnosis, Assessment, and Research Methods

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering the definitions of mental health professions, diagnostic processes, psychological assessment tools, theoretical perspectives, and clinical research methodologies.

Patient

A person who receives medical or psychological treatment.

Client

A person seeking psychological services.

Clinician

The professional healthcare provider responsible for administering mental health treatment.

Psychiatrist

A medical physician who completes medical school, four years of psychiatric residency, earns board certification from the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology, and can prescribe medication.

Psychologist

A mental health clinician holding a doctoral degree (Ph.D. or Psy.D.) who completes graduate education, a one-year full-time internship, and passes a national licensing examination.

Social Worker (LCSW)

A professional who completes a relevant undergraduate degree and a Master of Social Work (MSW), finishes $3000$ hours of supervised experience, and passes a state licensing exam.

Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT)

A mental health provider who earns a master's degree in Marriage and Family Therapy (MFT), logs $3000$ clinical hours, and passes a state licensure examination.

D.S.M.-V (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition)

The primary psychiatric classification manual in the United States and Canada, containing 22 categories, utilizing the Medical Model, and updated to reflect cultural norms.

International Classification of Diseases (ICD)

The World Health Organization's diagnostic system, currently in its 10th edition (ICD-10), utilized globally outside the United States and Canada to ensure consistency of diagnoses.

Primary Diagnosis

The condition established after study to be chiefly responsible for occasioning the admission or evaluation of the client.

Differential Diagnosis

The systematic process used to distinguish between two or more conditions that could account for a client's symptoms in order to arrive at the most accurate diagnosis.

Comorbidity

The simultaneous presence of two or more distinct medical or psychological disorders in a person, either concurrently or sequentially.

Case Formulation

An analysis that identifies the developmental, environmental, and functional causes that explain the onset and persistence of an individual's psychological disorder.

Cultural Formulation

An evaluation of the client's ethnic background, cultural context, and cultural identity to determine their impact on disorder presentation and treatment.

Immediate Treatment Goals

Crisis intervention goals focused on addressing severe distress or preventing immediate danger to the client or others.

Short-Term Treatment Goals

Therapeutic objectives aimed at producing initial changes in a client's present thinking, emotions, or observable behaviors.

Long-Term Treatment Goals

Broad therapeutic goals directed toward accomplishing lasting, fundamental alterations in personality structure and relational dynamics.

Evidence-Based Practice in Psychology

Clinical decision-making that combines the best available empirical research with clinical expertise in the context of the client's culture, individual characteristics, and preferences.

Psychological Assessment

A structured, comprehensive evaluation of an individual's emotional, mental, and behavioral functioning conducted by a psychologist to diagnose conditions and guide treatment.

Reliability

The degree to which an assessment tool demonstrates consistency and reproducibility of scores across multiple administrations.

Validity

The degree to which a test or measurement instrument accurately assesses the specific construct it is intended to evaluate.

Standardization

The implementation of uniform test administration procedures, materials, and scoring rules for every individual undergoing assessment.

Unstructured Interview

A clinical interview format using open-ended questions where the clinician directs follow-up inquiries based on conversational cues provided by the client.

Structured Interview

A standardized clinical evaluation format consisting of formal, predetermined questions asked in an unvarying sequence and specific wording.

Semi-Structured Interview

An interview framework consisting of standardized core questions coupled with the flexibility to ask clarifying follow-up questions as needed.

Mental Status Exam (MSE)

A structured clinical evaluation designed to assess a client's current psychological functioning and state, including appearance, mood, thought process, perception, and cognition.

Stanford-Binet IQ Test

A standardized assessment instrument designed to measure strengths and weaknesses in the cognitive development of children.

Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS)

A standardized intelligence test designed to assess cognitive development, cognitive strengths, and weaknesses specifically in adult populations.

Objective Self-Report

A structured personality assessment utilizing standardized questions with clear scoring keys that compares an individual's score to established population norms.

Projective Test

An assessment method using ambiguous stimuli to prompt clients to project their unconscious thoughts, motivations, and hidden personality traits.

Rorschach Ink Blot Test

A projective psychological test where respondents interpret symmetrical inkblot images to reveal unconscious traits and emotional functioning.

Thematic Apperception Test (TAT)

A projective personality assessment where subjects create narratives based on ambiguous pictorial scenes showing people in various interactions.

Behavioral Assessment

A direct evaluation method that observes and records observable target behaviors before and after interventions, either through self-monitoring or clinician report.

Multicultural Assessment

An evaluation practice wherein the clinician accounts for cultural, racial, and ethnic factors to assess their impact on clinical symptoms and treatment planning.

Electroencephalogram (EEG)

A neuroimaging assessment method that measures and records brain waves and electrical patterns across the scalp.

Computed Axial Tomography (CAT or CT Scan)

A radiological imaging technique combining multiple X-rays taken from different angles to create a composite, cross-sectional picture of brain structure.

Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)

A neuroimaging method that utilizes radio waves and magnetic fields to generate high-resolution structural images of the brain based on tissue water content.

Positron Emission Tomography (PET Scan)

A functional brain imaging technique that uses injected radioactive compounds emitting positrons to map localized metabolic activity and neurotransmission.

Abnormal Behavior

Behavior characterized by being nontypical or statistically uncommon and socially unacceptable within a given social context.

Clinical Significance

A diagnostic criterion indicating that a behavior causes a measurable, observable degree of functional impairment or disability.

Biopsychosocial Perspective

An integrative model positing that psychological disorders emerge from dynamic interactions among biological factors, psychological processes, and sociocultural environments.

Trephining

An ancient prehistoric intervention where a circular hole was bored into the skull, historically practiced under a spiritual framework to release evil spirits.

Moral Treatment

A humanitarian reform movement advocating compassionate care, humane institutional environments, and respect for the dignity of individuals with mental disorders.

Deinstitutionalization

The policy shift within the humanitarian movement that transferred individuals with psychiatric disorders from long-stay mental hospitals into community-based care.

Prevalence

A statistical epidemiological metric derived from surveys indicating how widespread, common, or rare a disorder is within a specific population.

Case Study

A qualitative research design involving an intensive, in-depth investigation of a single individual or a small group of individuals.

Correlational Design

A non-experimental scientific method that examines the statistical relationship and predictive association between variables without researcher manipulation.

Positive Correlation

A statistical relationship where the scores of two variables move in the same direction, with values ranging up to $+1.0$.

Negative Correlation

A statistical relationship where the scores of two variables move in opposite directions, with values ranging down to $-1.0$.

Independent Variable

The experimental factor deliberately manipulated or controlled by the researcher to determine its causal effect.

Dependent Variable

The measured outcome variable whose value changes in response to the manipulation of the independent variable.

Single Case Research Design (A-B-A-B Design)

An experimental research framework where the same individual participates as both the experimental and control subject across alternating baseline and treatment phases.

Genetic Epidemiology

A behavioral genetics methodology comparing rates of mental disorders among individuals varying in degrees of biological relatedness.

Concordance Rate

The agreement ratio or statistical probability that two genetically related individuals will both manifest a specific psychological disorder.

Gene Mapping

The process of identifying specific gene locations on chromosomes and correlating chromosomal variations with psychological test scores or clinical disorders.