abnormal psyc chapter 2

systematic search for facts through the use of careful observations and investigations It is the key to accuracy in all fields but it is particularly important in the field of abnormal psychology Theories and treatments that seem reasonable and effective in individual instances may prove disastrous when widely applied Only by fully testing a theory or technique on representative groups of individuals can clinicians evaluate the accuracy, effectiveness, and safety of their ideas and techniques

Measuring unconscious motives Assessing private thoughts Monitoring mood changes Calculating human potential Clinical researchers must consider different cultural backgrounds, races, and genders of the people they study They must always ensure that the rights of their research participants, both human and animal, are not violated

try to discover universal laws or principles of abnormal psychology functioning search for nomothetic understanding Do not typically assess, diagnose, or treat individual clients Rely on the scientific method to pinpoint relationships between variables Use three methods of investigation to form and test hypotheses and to draw broad conclusions...

general or universal laws or truths

a detailed description of a person's life and psychological problems can be a source of new ideas about behavior may offer tentative support for a theory or challenge a theory's assumptions may inspire new therapeutic techniques may offer opportunities to study unusual problems

the degree to which the results of a study may be generalized beyond that study

the accuracy with which a study can pinpoint one factor as the cause of a phenomenon

Reported by biased observers Relies on subjective evidence Has low internal validity Provides little basis for generalization Has low external validity These limitations are addressed by the two other methods of investigation

These research methods: Do not offer richness of detail Do allow researchers to draw broad conclusions Preferred method of clinical investigation Typically involve observing many individuals Researchers apply procedures uniformly Studies can be replicated Researchers use statistical tests to analyze results

Correlation is the degree to which events or characteristics vary with each other The correlational method is a research procedure used to determine the \"co-relationship\" between variables The people chosen for a study are its subjects or participants, collectively called a sample The sample must be representative of the larger population

Are stress and onset of mental disorders related? Is culture (or gender or race) generally linked to mental disorders? Are income and mental disorders related? Are social skills tied to mental disorders? Is social support tied to mental disorders? Are family conflict and mental disorders related? Is treatment responsiveness tied to culture? Which symptoms of a disorder disappear altogether? How common is a disorder in a particular population?

Correlational data can be graphed and a \"line of best fit\" can be drawn Positive correlation (slope is upward and to the right) = variables change in the same direction Negative correlation (downward slope) = variables change in the opposite direction Unrelated (no slope) = no consistent relationship

important High magnitude = variables which vary closely together; fall close to the line of best fit Low magnitude = variables which do not vary as closely together; loosely scattered around the line of best fit

\"r\" direction and magnitude of a correlation The correlation coefficient can vary from +1.00 (perfect positive correlation) to -1.00 (perfect negative correlation) Sign (+ or -) indicates direction Number indicates magnitude 0.00 = no consistent relationship Most correlations found in psychological research fall far short of \"perfect\"

Correlations can be trusted based on a statistical analysis of probability \"Statistical significance\" means that the finding is unlikely to have occurred by chance By convention, if there is less than a 5% probability that findings are due to chance (p < .05), results are considered \"statistically significant\" and are thought to reflect the larger population Generally, confidence increases with the size of the sample and the magnitude of the correlation

Advantages of the correlational method: Has high external validity Can generalize findings Can repeat (replicate) studies on other samples Difficulties with correlational studies: Lack internal validity Results describe but do not explain a relationship Results say nothing about causation

Epidemiological Studies and Longitudinal Studies

Reveal the incidence and prevalence of a disorder in a particular population Incidence = number of new cases that emerge in a given period Prevalence = total number of cases in a given period

number of new cases that emerge in a given period

total number of cases in a given period

Researchers observe the same individuals on many occasions over a long period

An experiment is a research procedure in which a variable is manipulated and the manipulation's effect on another variable is observed Manipulated variable = independent variable Variable being observed = dependent variable Allows researchers to ask questions such as: Does a particular therapy relieve the symptoms of a particular disorder?\" Questions about causal relationships can only be answered by an experiment

Independent variable

dependent variable

in an experiment, a variable other than the independent variable that is also acting on the dependent variable

Does factor X cause a disorder? Is cause A more influential than cause B? How does family communication and structure affect family members? How does a disorder affect the quality of a person's life? Does treatment X alleviate a disorder? Is treatment X more helpful than no treatment at all? Is treatment A more helpful than treatment B? Why does treatment X work? Can an intervention prevent abnormal functioning?

Researchers must try to eliminate all confounds - variables other than the independent variable that may also be affecting the dependent variable Three features are included in experiments to guard against confounds: A control group Random assignment Blind design

A control group is a group of research participants who are not exposed to the independent variable, but whose experience is similar to that of the experimental group By comparing the two groups, researchers can better determine the effect of the independent variable Rules of statistical significance are applied In addition, clinicians may also evaluate clinical significance

Researchers must also watch out for differences in the makeup of the experimental and control groups To do so, researchers use random assignment - any selection procedure that ensures that every participant in the experiment is as likely to be placed in one group as another Examples: coin flip; picking names out of a hat

In 2001, he presented a paper at a meeting of the American Psychiatric Association about something called \"reparative therapy\" [also known as \"conversion therapy\"] of gay men and women. By undergoing reparative therapy, the paper claimed, gay men and women could change their sexual orientation. In 2012, month he sent a letter to the Archives of Sexual Behavior, which published his work in 2003, asking that the journal retract his paper because of the negative effect it had on the gay community.

A final confound problem is bias To avoid bias by the participant, experimenters employ a \"blind design,\" in which participants are kept from knowing which assigned group (experimental or control) they are in One strategy for this is providing a placebo - something that simulates real therapy but has none of its key ingredients

To avoid bias by the experimenter, experimenters employ a \"double-blind design,\" in which the experimenters and the participants are kept from knowing which condition of the study participants are in Often used in medication trials

It is not easy to devise an experiment that is both well controlled and enlightening Clinical researchers often must settle for designs that are less than ideal and include: Quasi-experimental designs Natural experiments Analogue experiments Single-subject experiments

mixed designs investigators do not randomly assign participants to control and experimental groups, but instead make use of groups that already exist in the world at large child abuse is an example matched control participants

nature itself manipulates the independent variable and the experimenter observes the effects used for studying the psychological effects of unusual or unpredictable events such as natural disasters participants are selected by accident of fate

a research method in which the experimenter produces abnormal-like behavior in laboratory participants and then conducts experiments on the participants often use animals less ethical than human experiments

a research method in which a single participant is observed and measured both before and after the manipulation of an independent variable has greater internal validity than the case study limited external validity

Institutional Review Board (IRB): An ethics committee in a research facility that is empowered to protect the rights and safety of human research participants IRBs try to endure that each study grants the following rights to participants: The participants enlist voluntarily. Before enlisting, the participants are adequately informed about what the study entails (\"informed consent\"). The participants can end their participation in the study at any time. The benefits of the study outweigh its costs/risks. The participants are protected from physical and psychological harm. The participants have access to information about the study. The participants' privacy is protected by principles such as confidentiality or anonymity.

the Tuskegee Institute study

the Willowbrook State School study