Key Points Like family therapy, couples therapy is founded on systemic ideas. A couple's evaluation should include exploration of the presenting problem, as well as challenging and re-framing of the couple's problems. “The relationship” takes the role of the patient…
Key Points Short-term therapies typically last 12 to 36 sessions and focus on a single problem or symptom (called the focus or sector) by actively excluding less pivotal issues. Brief therapies differ from each other in how the focus is…
Key Points Research evidence supports the effectiveness of most psychotherapies. Psychotherapy training during residency includes competency in five basic psychotherapies. Child and adolescent psychotherapy includes more integrative strategies than does adult psychotherapy. All psychotherapies will require greater accountability under proposed…
Key Points Physicians are constantly appraising the coping styles of their patients, and these appraisals dictate both diagnosis and treatment. Though there are multiple definitions of coping, coping with chronic illness is best defined as the behavioral style that patients…
Key Points Neuropsychological assessment is a method of evaluating behavior that relies on administration of norm-referenced, standardized tests. A major goal of neuropsychological assessment is to determine whether, and to what extent, a patient's cognitive status has been altered. This…
Key Points Background Psychological assessment is a professional consultation service aimed at providing clinicians with a more complex and empirically-based picture of their patients across a number of relevant clinical domains (e.g., intellectual and neurocognitive functioning, psychopathology and clinical diagnosis,…
Key Points Background Diagnostic rating scales provide validated measures of symptom severity in psychiatric disorders. Rating scales may be employed in both clinical and research settings. History The format of psychiatric rating scales varies widely in content, length, and administration.…
Key Points Development is not a linear process; it proceeds unevenly throughout the life cycle with periods of great activity and periods of relative quiescence in particular areas. Development is a process of complex interactions between genes and the environment…
Key Points Background Among patients with a psychiatric illness, treatment adherence is associated with better treatment outcomes, a lower risk of relapse and hospitalization, and better adherence to treatments for co-morbid medical illnesses. However, barriers to adherence are common and…
Key Points The mainstay of psychiatric diagnosis involves a thorough history, mental status examination, and focused physical examination; however, laboratory tests and diagnostic studies are important adjuncts. Laboratory tests and diagnostic studies are especially useful in the diagnostic work-up of…