| A | B |
|---|
| DSM-IV-TR | Diagnostic & Statistical Manual of the American Psychiatric Association; the "gold standard" for diagnosis |
| RELIABILITY | consistency of measurement; when two diagnosticians agree on the diagnosis |
| VALIDITY | when the test measures what it should; when the diagnosis is correct |
| AXIS I | specific clinical syndromes such as depression or schizophrenia |
| AXIS II | personality disorders |
| PSYCHIATRIST | mental health professional who is a medical doctor, can prescribe medication |
| EPIDEMIOLOGY | the study of the incidence and prevalence of a disease in a population |
| CASE STUDY | an in-depth study of one patient with the disease |
| RETROSPECTIVE | a survey of known cases of the disease, reconstructing their past |
| PROSPECTIVE | a longitudinal study of people, starting from a point in time before the disease was diagnosed |
| SYNDROME | a characteristic cluster of symptoms which defines a disorder |
| INSANITY | a legal term indicating "not competent to manage one's own behavior" |
| EXPERIMENT | the best research technique for determining causation or effectiveness |
| SYMPTOMS | observable results of a disorder, or subjective patient reports |
| CLINICAL | branch of psychology working with mental patients |
| DIAGNOSIS | inferring a disorder based upon observation of symptoms |
| MALADAPTIVENESS | the key factor in abnormal behavior |
| REMISSION | when symptoms subside |
| BIOMEDICAL | the perspective of Hippocrates & Kraepelin |
| COMORBIDITY | when two symptoms overlap |
| DIATHESIS | predisposing causes of heredity, early childhood and culture constitute the |
| ETIOLOGY | the causal nexus of a disorder |
| FALSE POSITIVE | a patient falsely labeled as having a disorder |
| PSYCHOANALYSIS | Freud's perspective |
| RELAPSE | when the patient comes down with the same disorder again |
| EXORCISM | magico-religious cure for mental disorders; casting out of evil spirits |
| HIPPOCRATES | Greek physician; classified disorders; "mental disorders not due to demons but to bodily causes" |
| BENJAMIN RUSH | founder of American Psychiatric Association |
| DOROTHEA DIX | 19th century reformer for humane treatment of the insane |
| ALIENIST | 19th century term for psychiatrist |
| EMIL KRAEPELIN | 19th century psychiatrist; pioneer in classification of mental disorders |
| SIGMUND FREUD | founder of psychoanalysis |
| CATHARSIS | a release of emotion, supposedly purifying and curative |
| PRINCIPAL | the primary, or most important cause |
| PREDISPOSING | the diathesis, a background condition which makes the individual more susceptible or vulnerable |
| PRECIPITATING | an event which triggers the onset of the disorder (e.g., stress) |
| PERPETUATING | a reinforcing cause which keeps the disorder going in a vicious cycle |
| ETIOLOGY | the study of the causes or origins of a disorder |
| NEUROTRANSMITTERS | chemicals at the synapse; the focus of the bio-medical viewpoint |
| HUMANISM | the perspective of Adler & Rogers: people are basically good |
| COGNITIVE-BEHAVIORAL | emphasizes learning; (e.g., Aaron Beck) |
| ECLECTIC | approach which attempts to synthesize various perspectives |
| VICIOUS CYCLE | a perpetuating cause can sustain this |
| BIO-MEDICAL | neuroscience approach emphasizing anatomy and metabolism |
