Deck 3: Research Methods in Clinical Psychology

Question 1

Aetiology is a term:

A)Used to describe a course of treatment
B)Used to predict the length of treatment
C)Used to describe the causes or origins of psychological symptoms
D)That describes a specific theory related to psychopathology

Answer 1

Used to describe the causes or origins of psychological symptoms

Question 2

In the ABA design,an initial baseline stage involves:

A)Observation and measurement of behaviour with intervention
B)Covert observation of behaviour
C)Observation and measurement of behaviour without any intervention
D)Observer observation of behaviour

Answer 2

Observation and measurement of behaviour without any intervention

Question 3

Analogue research involves:

A)Undertaking research to determine the efficacy of treatments and interventions
B)Undertaking research on healthy,non-clinical populations
C)Undertaking research to compare the effectiveness of two different types of treatment
D)Undertaking research on clinical populations

Answer 3

Undertaking research on healthy,non-clinical populations

Question 4

The ABAB design involves:

A)Observation and measurement of behaviour without any intervention
B)Covert observation of behaviour
C)A second treatment or manipulation stage

Question 5

A hypothesis is:

A)Abnormally low motor activity
B)A general term for impaired memory ability
C)Statements,propositions or assumptions that serve as tentative explanations of certain facts
D)Diminished smell sensitivity

Question 6

The B stage of the ABA design involves:

A)The introduction (or measurement)of the experimental manipulation and its effect on behaviour observed and measured
B)Treatment being introduced
C)Observation and measurement of behaviour without any intervention
D)Covert observation of behaviour

Question 7

The term replicable refers to:

A)Research which has been collected under controlled conditions that will allow any other researcher to replicate the research
B)Research involving a repeated measures design
C)Research that involves cross-cultural study
D)Research that has ecological validity

Question 8

Research can have a number of immediate goals,these include:

A)Prediction
B)Control
C)Understanding
D)All of the above

Question 9

The term theory refers to:

A)A set of propositions that attempt to explain a phenomenon by describing the cause-effect relationships that contribute to that phenomenon
B)A set of propositions that is falsifiable
C)A set of propositions that constitute a hypothesis
D)A set of propositions based on analogue research

Question 10

Analogue populations are:

A)Participants without any mental health problems
B)Consist of a normal sample of healthy,student participants
C)Allows access to a large population base
D)All of the above

Question 11

Forms of childhood abuse or neglect can raise the risk of developing a range of psychopathologies in a number of ways.This is known as:

A)Risk factors
B)Risk aversion
C)Risky shift
D)Risk taking

Question 12

NICE is the acronym for:

A)The National Institute for Cognitive Economy
B)The Neurological Intervention for Cognitive Experimentation
C)The National Institute for Health & Clinical Excellence
D)The National Institute for Clinical Experimentation

Question 13

An applied scientist is:

A)Someone who has more than 100 publications
B)Someone who is chartered
C)Someone who is competent as both a researcher and a practitioner
D)Someone who has expertise in more than one field

Question 14

When referring to treatments,'evidenced based' refers to:

A)When efficacy has been proven through research using the scientific method
B)When efficacy is based on bottom-up processes
C)When efficacy is based on top-down processes
D)None of the above

Question 15

Controlling events in research allows us to:

A)Provide a clear picture of the causal relationships involved
B)Develop methods of changing events for the better
C)Using knowledge of the causal relationships between events to control behaviour
D)All of the above

Question 16

Animal models allow:

A)Experimental investigation into factors such as the genetics of a psychopathology
B)Changes in brain biochemistry associated with specific psychopathologies
C)The effects of drugs on psychopathology
D)All of the above

Question 17

A scientist-practitioner is:

A)Someone who has expertise in more than one field
B)Someone who has more than 100 publications
C)Someone who is chartered
D)Someone who is competent as both a researcher and a practitioner

Question 18

The final A of the ABA design consists of:

A)Return to baseline state
B)Introduction of s second manipulation
C)Observation by a second experimenter
D)Client observation by video

Question 19

An alternative approach to research in clinical psychology is one based on social constructionism.This refers to:

A)Knowledge consists of multiple realities that are constructed by people
B)Knowledge that may be historically and culturally specific
C)Knowledge that frequently involves individuals creating their own realities
D)All of the above

Question 20

Prediction is:

A)Reasoning whereby two objects are assumed to be similar
B)A statement about what will be observed before it actually occurs
C)Anything that precedes another thing
D)A measure of success of a test,for test,rule,principal or theory

Question 21

Which of the following might provide information on the point prevalence of a disorder?

A)Are you experiencing symptoms of a specific psychopathology at the present time?
B)How many visits have you made to your GP with complaints of psychopathology this week?
C)How often have you felt depressed in the last week?
D)Have any members of your family experienced psychopathology within the last week?

Question 22

The term model refers to:

A)The most common score or occurrence
B)A hypothesised,cognitive,or perceptual faculty
C)A representation that mirrors,duplicates,imitates or illiterates a pattern of relationships observed in data or nature
D)The central idea behind the various uses of a term that always refers to large units if behaviour

Question 23

One of the most powerful research designs is the experiment.This is a design in which:

A)The design in which the researcher observes participant's behaviour
B)Research that always takes place in the laboratory
C)The researcher manipulates a particular variable and observes the effect of this manipulation on some outcome,such as the participant's behaviour
D)Research that produces measurable results

Question 24

Details primarily about the prevalence of psychological disorders can:

A)Be used to gather information about the factors that correlate with psychological disorders
B)Provide information about how a specific disorder affects people
C)Help us to understand what some of the risk factors are for a specific psychological disorder
D)All of the above

Question 25

An example of an experimental hypothesis or experimental prediction may predict that if we increase negative mood,our participants will worry more,and this hypothesis is derived either from:

A)An existing academic theory about worrying
B)Our observations of worrying in everyday life
C)The existing research literature on worrying
D)All of the above

Question 26

Statistical significance refers to:

A)The degree to which a result was sufficiently unlikely to have occurred by chance
B)The degree to which it may have been attributed to systematic manipulations
C)The degree is typically specified and denoted as a probability
D)All of the above

Question 27

In the traditional correlational design,all measures are taken at the same point in time.This is known as:

A)A repeated measures design
B)A cross-sectional design
C)A between subjects design
D)A horizontal design

Question 28

Studies of the frequency and distribution of disorders within specific populations over a specified period of time are known as:

A)Epistemological studies
B)Existential studies
C)Epidemiological studies
D)Experiential studies

Question 29

A Clinical audit is used to determine:

A)How many service providers are available in a particular post code
B)Whether existing clinical knowledge,skills and resources are effective
C)How often individuals are referred to clinical psychologists
D)How many service providers are qualified clinical psychologists

Question 30

Which of the following might provide information on the lifetime prevalence rate of a disorder?

A)Have you ever experienced symptoms of a specific psychopathology in your lifetime?
B)How many visits have you made to your GP with complaints of psychopathology?
C)How often do you feel depressed?
D)Have any members of your family ever suffered with psychopathology?

Question 31

The relationship between two variables can also be represented graphically.This is known as:

A)A scattergram
B)A histogram
C)A polygram
D)A line of best fit

Question 32

SPSS is the acronym for:

A)Statistical Predictions for Social Sciences
B)Statistical Package for the Social Sciences
C)Sexual Preferences for the Sixties and Seventies
D)Sexual Performance and SAD Syndrome

Question 33

The nature of the relationship between the two variables concerned in a scattergram is illustrated using:

A)A bell curve
B)Positive correlation
C)Negative correlation
D)The line of best fit

Question 34

Testable refers to:

A)A scientific explanation that can be tested and potentially falsified
B)Research which has been collected under controlled conditions that will allow any other researcher to replicate the research
C)Research that involves cross-cultural study
D)A repeated measured design

Question 35

Which of the following might provide information on one month prevalence rate of a disorder?

A)How many visits have you made to your GP with complaints of psychopathology in one month?
B)Have you ever experienced symptoms of a specific psychopathology in the last month?
C)How often have you felt depressed in the last month?
D)Have any members of your family experienced psychopathology within the last month?

Question 36

Once psychopathology has been described and categorised and some of the causal effects affecting psychopathology have been identified,we are at the point of:

A)Controlling
B)Predicting
C)Understanding
D)Underestimating

Question 37

In statistics a correlation coefficient can range from +1.00 through to 1.00.Which of the following is true?

A)A positive correlation = 0
B)A positive correlation = +1
C)A positive correlation = - 1
D)A positive correlation = 1.00

Question 38

A negative correlation between two variables refers to:

A)When scores on one variable increase,then scores on the other variables will decrease
B)When scores on one variable increase,then scores on the other variables will increase
C)When scores on one variable decrease,then scores on the other variables will decrease
D)When the two variables are completely unrelated

Question 39

Which of the following questions can assess prevalence rates?

A)Have you ever experienced symptoms of a specific psychopathology in your lifetime?
B)Have you experienced symptoms of a specific psychopathology in the last month?
C)Are you experiencing symptoms of a specific psychopathology at the present time?
D)All of the above

Question 40

Most NHS service providers will want to ensure that the service they are offering is effective.This refers to:

A)Evaluation research
B)Analogue research
C)Effective research
D)Empirical research

Question 41

To avoid experimenter bias,when neither the experimenter nor the participant is aware of which group the participant is in,this is known as:

A)Null hypothesis
B)Random assignment
C)Variable manipulation
D)Double blind

Question 42

In an experiment,control conditions refer to:

A)The various treatments in the experiment are regulated so that the causal factors may be unambiguously identified
B)Follow up experiments designed to replicate and solidify the findings of a previous study
C)When irrelevant factors are beyond direct experimenter control
D)Awareness of the difference between two stimulus conditions,resulting from bringing them together

Question 43

In an experiment,if participants are given a pill that contains an inactive substance,this is known as:

A)The placebo control condition
B)The participant control condition
C)The medical control condition
D)Multiple baseline design

Question 44

If an experimental group may get better simply because they are being giving a pill and this leads them to expect to get better.This is known as:

A)The domino effect
B)The butterfly effect
C)The placebo effect
D)The expectancy effect

Question 45

In experimentation external validity means that:

A)Results have been obtained from cross cultural studies
B)Experiments were performed in the open air
C)Results are generalisable to other populations
D)Results are replicable

Question 46

Quantitative methods involve:

A)Drawing conclusions from studies on the basis of self-report questionnaires
B)Drawing conclusions from studies on the basis of the size of cohort
C)Drawing conclusions from studies on the basis of observation of behaviour
D)Drawing conclusions from studies on the basis of statistical inference

Question 47

Natural experiments are useful because they allow:

A)Collection of data from animal studies
B)Observation studies
C)Collection of data from events that cannot usually be manipulated in the laboratory
D)Data to be collected from naturist centres

Question 48

In most experiments the researcher manipulates one particular variable to assess its effects on a particular outcome.This variable is:

A)The independent variable
B)The static variable
C)The dependent variable
D)The outcome variable

Question 49

Meta-analysis detects trends by:

A)Comparing effect sizes across studies
B)Comparing sample sizes across studies
C)Comparing standard deviations across studies
D)Comparing standard errors across studies

Question 50

In an experiment,a mixed design is so called because:

A)Elements from the experimental approach are adopted
B)Participants are assigned non-randomly to the experimental groups
C)Researchers may want to find if a particular variable will affect individuals with different psychopathologies in similar or different ways
D)All of the above

Question 51

In an experiment,a control group or condition is:

A)The group that is exposed to the independent variables under investigation
B)The group not exposed to the independent variables under investigation
C)A group that is covertly observed
D)A group of analogue participants

Question 52

In an experiment,an experimental group or condition is:

A)The group not exposed to the independent variables under investigation
B)A group that is covertly observed
C)The group that is exposed to the independent variables under investigation
D)A group of clinical participants

Question 53

Meta-analysis attempts to:

A)Analyse very large studies
B)Analysis of the methods of statistical analysis
C)Detect trends across studies that may have used different procedures,numbers of participants,types of control procedures,and different forms of measurement
D)Establish external validity

Question 54

During an experiment,a participant may begin to think about the purpose of the experiment and behave in a way which is consistent with these thoughts.This is referred to as:

A)Double blind
B)Demand characteristics
C)Experimenter bias
D)Cognitive dissonance

Question 55

Which of the following are advantages of a multiple-baseline design?

A)Using a single participant,the researcher can select two or more behaviours to measure and can target the treatment or manipulation on one behaviour but allow the other behaviours to act as control comparisons
B)The researcher can use multiple participants by first taking baseline measures from each and then introducing the treatment or manipulation successively across the participants
C)Each individual within the study can receive the treatment for a maximum amount of time without compromising the experimental balance of the study
D)All of the above

Question 56

The outcome of what is being measured is known as?

A)The independent variable
B)The dependant variable
C)The predictor variable
D)The hypothetical variable

Question 57

Clinical trials can be used to test whether:

A)A treatment is more effective than no treatment
B)Whether treatment A is more effective than treatment B
C)Whether a newly developed treatment is more effective than existing treatment
D)All of the above

Question 58

An effect size is:

A)The success of experimental manipulation
B)Effective hypothesis testing
C)An objective and standardised measure of the magnitude of the effect observed in a study
D)Measurement of how successfully you carried out the experiment

Question 59

Mixed designs are frequently used in:

A)Treatment outcome studies
B)Planned procedure studies
C)Placebo effect studies
D)Non experimental studies

Question 60

Random assignment of participants to experimental conditions is to ensure that at the outset of the experiment:

A)All groups have odd numbers of males vs females
B)Each member of the group is given a different instruction
C)Each member of the group has to practice a different distracter task before the onset of the experiment
D)All groups have participants with similar characteristics

Question 61

Prospective studies describe:

A)Knowing the outcome of studies before they are conducted
B)Taking measures at a particular point in time then going back to the same participants at some future time and take the same or similar measures again
C)Studies that do not involves specific variables or measures
D)Predicting participants future psychological health

Question 62

Informed consent for experimental participation should include:

A)Details of the purpose of the experiment
B)A description of the procedures the participant will encounter
C)The duration of the study
D)All of the above

Question 63

When a researcher withholds effective treatment from someone suffering from a psychopathology,this referred to as:

A)A no-treatment control condition
B)The non-placebo condition
C)The short straw condition
D)A high risk - low reward condition

Question 64

In psychological research,the term privacy refers to which of the following options:

A)Participants in psychological research have a right to expect that information they provide will be treated confidentially
B)Participants can decide not to provide some forms of information to the researcher if they so wish
C)Participants have the right to withdraw from the experiment at any time
D)The design of the experiment is double-blind

Question 65

Social constructionism argues the only means of understanding human experience is:

A)The study of language and discourse
B)The study of the unconscious mind
C)Exploration by experimental method
D)Genealogy

Question 66

Researchers tend to try and overcome the ethical issues involved in allocating a patient to a no treatment condition by adopting:

A)Waiting-list controls
B)Random controls
C)A control condition using animals
D)Cambridge housewives

Question 67

Which of the following is true of a scientific method?

A)The pursuit of knowledge through systematic and thorough observation
B)That research findings are replicable and testable
C)The construction of theories to explain phenomena
D)All of the above

Question 68

Which of the following would occur in a longitudinal study?

A)Measures are taken from different participants over an extended period of time
B)Measures are taken from the same participants on different occasions usually over extended periods of time
C)Participation is expected to last for a minimum of 24 hours
D)Measures are taken from participants in at least six different countries

Question 69

Which of the following are main goals of clinical research?

A)Prediction
B)Description
C)Control
D)All of the above

Question 70

The primary aim of clinical psychology research is to:

A)Further our knowledge and understanding of psychopathology
B)Develop treatment plans
C)Improve diagnostic criteria
D)Design classification systems

Question 71

Qualitative methods involve:

A)Emphasising mathematical analyses of data
B)Self analysis
C)Verbal analysis of data
D)Group analysis

Question 72

In drug treatment studies,researchers may have to use deception.This may involve:

A)Participant not knowing they are taking part in the study
B)Participants not being paid
C)Participants unknowingly receiving a placebo
D)Asking participants to deceive other participants about the effectiveness of their treatment

Question 73

Features of clinical psychology research include:

A)May involve experiments on human participants,whether patients,patients as volunteers,or healthy volunteers
B)May involve allocating patients randomly to different treatment groups
C)May involve a completely new treatment)
D)All of the above

Question 74

In psychological research the term confidentiality means that:

A)Participants have a right to expect that information they provide will be treated confidentially
B)The experimenter appears confident during the experimental situation
C)The experiment will involve the participant confiding in the experimenter
D)The experimenter is confident that the hypothesis will be proved

Question 75

Features of clinical audit/service evaluation include:

A)Never involves allocating patients randomly to different treatment groups
B)Places demands on patients and staff that do not significantly exceed those required for normal clinical management
C)Never involves a completely new treatment
D)All of the above

Question 76

Which of the following ways are correlation designs are valuable for clinical psychology researchers?

A)They allow the researcher to begin to understand what variables may be interrelated
B)They are useful for researching how individual differences and personality factors may relate to psychopathology
C)They allow us to determine whether certain experiences were associated with specific psychopathologies
D)All of the above

Question 77

Those with more complex psychopathologies are likely to be excluded from treatment outcome studies and so denied access to the treatment programme associated with the study.This is referred to as:

A)Narrow inclusion criteria
B)Simple diagnosis criteria
C)A no-treatment control condition
D)Complex exclusion criteria

Question 78

Epidemiology is the study of:

A)Frequency and distribution of disorders within specific populations over a specified period of time
B)The origins,nature,methods and limits of human knowledge
C)Extreme highly developed sensitivity
D)The causes of psychopathology

Question 79

In clinical psychology correlational designs are among those most commonly used.The aim of this methodology is to:

A)Manipulate one variable to produce an outcome
B)Ensure that results are always reliable
C)Try and determine whether there is a relationship between two or more variables
D)Predict behaviour

Question 80

Grounded theory is an approach to qualitative analysis)It involves:

A)Identifying significant childhood experiences
B)Identifying unconscious defence mechanisms
C)Identifying baseline measurements
D)Identifying consistent categories or themes within the data