Exam 13: Critical Thinking in Clinical Reasoning and Diagnosis

A reliable test or measure is one that:

As the text explains, it was difficult to diagnose Andrea Yates, who murdered her children, because she:

Which statement is TRUE about comorbidity?

Should we try to reduce superstition and magical thinking? Examine both the pro and con positions on this question, using research on superstition as evidence to support a position whenever it is appropriate.

A _____ consists of a set of symptoms, signs, behaviors, and other features that go together and have a specific outcome and course.

Explain how to engage in good thinking and assessment practices that are more likely to lead to a correct diagnosis of a mental disorder, including how to avoid thinking errors that may occur during the assessment phase.

Both psychosis and delusions:

Andrea Yates, who murdered her children, was diagnosed with postpartum depression, had flat affect (showed little emotional response), experienced social withdrawal, and had delusions and other psychotic symptoms associated with schizophrenia. Taken together, these facts and symptoms suggest that she:

When trying to diagnose Tanika's problem, her psychologist observed that she was showing delusions and other serious thought disturbances. Her psychologist then used the DSM-5 to check whether Tanika had a history of a communication disorder and signs of depression as a way to:

Explain how abnormal behavior is defined and how mental disorders are diagnosed by those using the DSM system. Compare this DSM view to alternative ways of defining abnormal behavior.

Suppose someone drawing a conclusion from the research on expertise noted that many studies have found that people show more expert-like performance after considerable, deliberate practice in various domains such as chess, musical performance, mathematics, acting, and memory performance. The person then concludes that psychotherapists show more expert performance after years of practice, which is:

Andrea Yates, who murdered her children, was diagnosed with postpartum depression, had attempted suicide, had shown symptoms of psychosis and delusions, and had been treated repeatedly by mental health professionals. Yet her defense of "not guilty by reason of insanity" failed. Why might this outcome surprise many people?

To make a good diagnosis of a client, a clinician should:

An advantage of the view that psychological disorders are on a continuum and differ by degree is that this view is:

According to the text, it is a misconception to think that diagnostic labels are always bad, because for some people:

In clinical settings, the Barnum effect is likely to be a problem when a clinician:

According to the text, which one of the three basic, preliminary questions helps to decide if a person has a severe psychological problem?

Validity in testing or measurement is demonstrated when a measure:

Which component of clinical assessment is especially involved in evaluating various aspects of psychological functioning?

Which description is accurate concerning the mental status examination?