Exam 2: Research Methods in Abnormal Psychology

It is possible to accurately draw conclusions about the cause of a disorder using a case study methodology.

The sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems are important antagonistic systems within the autonomic nervous system. Discuss the functions of each of these systems and provide a scenario demonstrating your understanding of their influence on us when we confront a stressor.

Dr. Shomeyer is conducting a twin study in order to determine the presence of ADHD in familial cohorts. Ultimately, she hopes to uncover information on the degree to which the disorder might be heritable. Dr. Shomeyer's methodology would be described as a __________ approach.

The behavioral genetics approach

An older client is being evaluated for memory deficits. After completing an assessment, the clinician suspects that the client suffers from Alzheimer's disease. This client would most likely have problems in which part of the limbic system?

Alleles are responsible for variability within a species such as height, hair and eye color, personality, and disease risk.

How might correlational analyses be of use to researchers interested in treatment-focused research?

The fact that there is considerable variation among individuals in height, eye color, and other characteristics demonstrates Mendel's law of

Sometimes it could be unethical to remove a treatment in an ABAB reversal design.

Dr. Santiago is interested in evaluating the prevalence of binge drinking in freshmen and seniors at a local college. After collecting data from a self-report survey, he concludes that freshmen have a higher rate of binge drinking than seniors. Given these findings, what is Dr. Santiago able to conclude from the research?

Both CAT scans and MRIs are neuroimaging techniques that allow us to understand brain structures. While the CAT scan relies on __________, the MRI uses _______ to produce images of the brain.

In a longitudinal study of depression in children cited in your text, it was found that as girls with a history of depression matured, they were more likely to

Random assignment to groups is a critical part of the methodology in controlled design experiments because each participant has

The National Institutes of Health is conducting a study of aging that has been in progress for several years. This study requires that each participant agree to undergo a complete psychological and physical evaluation every three years. Information from this study has generated new findings in risk factors for many disorders. This research has a ________ design.

Cohort designs have been useful in studying the incidence, causes, and prognosis of mental illness.

One way to overcome a limitation of the case study method is to

Lack of diversity in a sample may limit the generalizability of the study's findings.

Correlation coefficients obtained in group research studies indicate the

With respect to randomized controlled designs, reliability is to validity as _____ is to _____.

Single-case research designs