Deck 1: Diagnosis: Conceptual Issues and Controversies

Question 1

____________ are observable indicators (e.g., crying) of psychopathology, whereas _________ are subjective indicators (e.g., self-reports of sadness).

A) Signs; symptoms
B) Disorders; syndromes
C) Compulsions; symptoms
D) Syndromes; signs

Answer 1

A

Question 2

Which of the following is one of the four criteria Robins and Guze outlined for the validity of a psychiatric diagnosis:

A) A valid diagnosis must offer information regarding natural history including course and outcome.
B) A valid diagnosis must offer information regarding the prevalence of a disorder in first-degree relatives of probands.
C) A valid diagnosis includes data from psychological, biological, and laboratory tests
D) All the above are criteria for a valid diagnosis.

Answer 2

D

Question 3

One limitation of the Robins and Guze (1970) approach to construct validation is its exclusive emphasis on what type of validity?

A) Internal validity
B) External validity
C) Construct validity
D) Ecological validity

Answer 3

B

Question 4

Which of the following is true of psychiatric diagnoses:

A) Psychiatric diagnoses pigeonhole individuals.
B) Psychiatric diagnoses are unreliable.
C) Psychiatric diagnoses may reduce stigma.
D) None of the above.

Question 5

The _____________ model defines a disorder based on the relative infrequency with which a condition occurs in the general population.

A) Subjective-distress
B) Biological
C) Statistical
D) Phenotypic

Question 6

A lack of theoretical agnosticism is a criticism of which document(s) of psychiatric classification?

A) DSM-I and DSM-II
B) DSM-III
C) ICD 10
D) DSM-5

Question 7

The introduction of standardized diagnostic criteria, algorithms and hierarchical exclusion rules into the DSM-III led to what?

A) Criticisms as the "Chinese menu" approach to psychiatric diagnoses
B) Decreased subjectivity of diagnoses
C) Increased interrater reliability of psychiatric diagnoses
D) All of the above

Question 8

In the ________ approach to diagnosis, the signs and symptoms are neither necessary nor sufficient for a diagnosis.

A) Monothetic
B) Hierarchical
C) Polythetic
D) Biological

Question 9

DSM-IV and DSM-5 have been extensively criticized for which of the following?

A) Comorbidity
B) Medicalization of normality
C) Categorical classification of disorders
D) All of the above

Question 10

Which of the following is true about a dimensional approach to psychiatric diagnoses?

A) The approach has been adopted by the DSM-5.
B) Personality dimensions capture the full variance in psychiatric disorders.
C) The approach may be limited due to the neglected distinction between basic tendencies and characteristic adaptations.
D) None of the above.