Comer, Abnormal Psychology, 6th edition - Midlands Technical 来的人，心理异常，第六版-米德兰技术.pptVIP

Comer, Fundamentals of Abnormal Psychology, 3e Chapter 2 Research in Abnormal Psychology What Do Clinical Researchers Do? Clinical researchers try to discover laws and principles of abnormal psychological functioning: Search for nomothetic understanding: a general understanding of the nature, causes and treatment of abnormal behavior. Use the scientific method to pinpoint relationships among variables They systematically collect and evaluate information through careful observation Use three methods of investigation to form and test hypotheses… The Case Study Provides a detailed, interpretative description of a person’s life psychological problems Can serve as a source of new ideas about behavior Freud’s theories based entirely on case studies May offer tentative support for a theory May challenge a theory’s assumptions May inspire new therapeutic techniques May offer opportunities to study unusual problems The Case Study Has limitations: Observers are biased Relies on subjective evidence Has low internal validity Provides little basis for generalization Has low external validity: the degree to which the results of a study can be generalized to other people. These limitations are addressed by the two other methods of investigation… The Correlational Method The Experimental Method Do not offer richness of detail Do allow researchers to draw broad conclusions Typically involve observing many individuals Researchers apply procedures uniformly Studies can be replicated Researchers use statistical tests to analyze results The Correlational Method Correlation is the degree to which events or characteristics vary with each other Measures the strength of a relationship Does not imply cause and effect The people chosen for a study are its subjects or participants, collectively called a sample The sample must be representative The Correlational Method Correlational data can be graphed and a “line of best fit” can be drawn Positive correlation = variables change in the sam