Chapter 3: Clinical Assessments and Diagnosis
MULTIPLE CHOICE
1. What do we call the systematic evaluation of psychological, biological, and social factors in a person
with a possible mental disorder?
a. clinical interpretation
b. clinical diagnosis
c. clinical assessment
d. clinical standardization
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: 69 BLM: Remember
2. Which of the following is NOT part of a clinical assessment?
a. evaluation of financial factors
b. evaluation of biological factors
c. evaluation of social factors
d. evaluation of psychological factors
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: 69 BLM: Remember
3. What do we call the process of determining whether an individual’s symptoms meet the criteria for a
specific psychological disorder?
a. prognosis
b. diagnosis
c. analysis
d. classification
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: 69 BLM: Remember
4. What is the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders?
a. a guide for training psychology students in assessment techniques
b. a textbook about the etiology of psychological disorders
c. a classification system for abnormal behaviour
d. an encyclopedia of treatment approaches for psychological disorders
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: 69 BLM: Remember
5. What organization publishes the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders?
a. the International Medical Association
b. the American Psychological Association
c. the American Psychiatric Association
d. the National Institute of Mental Health
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: 69 BLM: Remember
6. For what purpose does the process of clinical assessment result in narrowing the focus?
a. to consider a broad range of problems
b. to focus on ―inter‖ and ―intra‖ personal problems equally
, c. to concentrate on problem areas that seem most relevant
d. to uncover all possible causes of stress in the person’s life
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: 70 BLM: Higher Order
7. A patient who had recurrent headaches, fatigue, and loss of appetite received different diagnoses from
several psychiatrists. In terms of assessment, what type of problem does this example illustrate?
a. a problem with classification
b. a problem with reliability
c. a problem with validity
d. a problem with standardization
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: 70 BLM: Higher Order
8. Dr. Evans conducts a study that showed his colleague’s ―depression screener‖ doesn’t predict
depressive symptoms. What is the problem with the depression screener?
a. validity
b. standardization
c. reliability
d. classification
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: 70–71 BLM: Higher Order
9. If an assessment measures what it is intended to measure it is said to be considered to be which of the
following?
a. valid
b. reliable
c. standardized
d. clinical
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: 71 BLM: Remember
10. An IQ test indicates a level of intelligence that closely corresponds with a student’s high school grades
and with teachers’ ratings of the student’s intelligence. In this instance, what does this IQ test have?
a. concurrent validity
b. content validity
c. predictive validity
d. construct validity
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: 71 BLM: Higher Order
11. When Ms. Rath was seeking employment, a job consultant gave her a standard IQ test. The following
year, the same consultant gave Ms. Rath the same IQ test. Ms. Rath’s score was similar on both
occasions. What does this indicate?
a. The test has concurrent validity.
b. The test has long-term validity.
c. The test has inter-rater reliability.
d. The test has test-retest reliability.
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: 71 BLM: Higher Order
MULTIPLE CHOICE
1. What do we call the systematic evaluation of psychological, biological, and social factors in a person
with a possible mental disorder?
a. clinical interpretation
b. clinical diagnosis
c. clinical assessment
d. clinical standardization
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: 69 BLM: Remember
2. Which of the following is NOT part of a clinical assessment?
a. evaluation of financial factors
b. evaluation of biological factors
c. evaluation of social factors
d. evaluation of psychological factors
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: 69 BLM: Remember
3. What do we call the process of determining whether an individual’s symptoms meet the criteria for a
specific psychological disorder?
a. prognosis
b. diagnosis
c. analysis
d. classification
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: 69 BLM: Remember
4. What is the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders?
a. a guide for training psychology students in assessment techniques
b. a textbook about the etiology of psychological disorders
c. a classification system for abnormal behaviour
d. an encyclopedia of treatment approaches for psychological disorders
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: 69 BLM: Remember
5. What organization publishes the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders?
a. the International Medical Association
b. the American Psychological Association
c. the American Psychiatric Association
d. the National Institute of Mental Health
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: 69 BLM: Remember
6. For what purpose does the process of clinical assessment result in narrowing the focus?
a. to consider a broad range of problems
b. to focus on ―inter‖ and ―intra‖ personal problems equally
, c. to concentrate on problem areas that seem most relevant
d. to uncover all possible causes of stress in the person’s life
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: 70 BLM: Higher Order
7. A patient who had recurrent headaches, fatigue, and loss of appetite received different diagnoses from
several psychiatrists. In terms of assessment, what type of problem does this example illustrate?
a. a problem with classification
b. a problem with reliability
c. a problem with validity
d. a problem with standardization
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: 70 BLM: Higher Order
8. Dr. Evans conducts a study that showed his colleague’s ―depression screener‖ doesn’t predict
depressive symptoms. What is the problem with the depression screener?
a. validity
b. standardization
c. reliability
d. classification
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: 70–71 BLM: Higher Order
9. If an assessment measures what it is intended to measure it is said to be considered to be which of the
following?
a. valid
b. reliable
c. standardized
d. clinical
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: 71 BLM: Remember
10. An IQ test indicates a level of intelligence that closely corresponds with a student’s high school grades
and with teachers’ ratings of the student’s intelligence. In this instance, what does this IQ test have?
a. concurrent validity
b. content validity
c. predictive validity
d. construct validity
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: 71 BLM: Higher Order
11. When Ms. Rath was seeking employment, a job consultant gave her a standard IQ test. The following
year, the same consultant gave Ms. Rath the same IQ test. Ms. Rath’s score was similar on both
occasions. What does this indicate?
a. The test has concurrent validity.
b. The test has long-term validity.
c. The test has inter-rater reliability.
d. The test has test-retest reliability.
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: 71 BLM: Higher Order
