Discussion Questions 523 and 545 PTSD, EMDR, Reliability and Validity

Discussion Questions 523 and 545 PTSD, EMDR, Reliability and Validity

545 – Write a 250 word response with 2 scholarly references to each. The goal is to have a discussion based on the topic of your peer. You can be pro or against or can elaborate on top of what they have said. Grammar is important so if there are any grammar errors you will be docked points.

1) Topic 3 DQ 1 (Obj. 3.1) – Tolliver Ander

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a psychiatric disorder that can be found in individuals who have experienced a traumatic event, for example, a natural disaster, a severe accident, war/combat, or a personal assault (APA,2013). I feel that Maryam meets the criteria for PTSD because she was involved in an accident that caused severe injury to someone. Maryam traumatic incident happened two months ago which involved three cars where one person was critically injured, and the other person was seen and released from the hospital. Maryam has symptoms that are due to trauma. She complains about having a lack of sleep, and she avoids driving a car because she is afraid she will injure more people. Individuals with PTSD have negative thoughts and feelings about their traumatic experience long after the event has ended (APA, 2013). She feels stupid and does not have a reason to live; this is due to her negative thoughts. Her sleep patterns are off, and she is displaying reckless behavior by drinking nightly to go to sleep. Drinking causes Maryam to miss class that may result in her failing school. Since her symptoms have been longer than a month she meets the criteria for PTSD.

Reference

American Psychiatric Association (APA). (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (5th ed.). Washington, DC: Author. Retrieved on April 2, 2019, from https://www.psychiatry.org/patients-families/ptsd/what-is-ptsd

2) Topic 3 DQ 1 (Obj. 3.1) – Kelly Stebbins

Hi Class,

the main reason why I believe Maryam suffers from PTSD is because of the timing. She was involved in a 3 car accident two months ago and that is affecting her sleep patterns, which in turn is affecting her everyday life because she cannot attend her classes due to the lack of sleep. When she does sleep she suffers terrible nightmares which are probably flashbacks from the accident. Because she accepted responsibility for this and one person was critically injured, she is also stuggling with guilt. She is facing legal issues over this so that probably has her stressed as well. It appears that her symptoms have gotten worse over time and this is why it is affecting her everyday life now and she is suffering.

The main differences between ASD and PTSD are a few things: There are mostly similar with the exceptions of duration and timing. But, they both occur because of a traumatic event taking place. ASD diagnosis can carry with it symptoms of dissociation. A PTSD diagnosis involves a dissocaiative subtype when these symptoms are present. These symptoms involve disconnecting from the world or oneself. Also if someone has PTSD it does not mean that they will develop PTSD or that someone who has ASD will develop PTSD in the future. This is why getting treatment early on is so important so that a proper diagnosis can be found and the client can learn better ways of how to cope with the experience in the near future (www.ptsd.va.gov, 2019). On a side note, about 2 years ago I was involved in a bad car accident myself in which I still suffer from the affects of that today. It was my fault and I blamed myself for a long time for this. However, it was an accident. I never intentionally meant to hurt anyone or myself for that matter. I did not drive for a while after the accident either so I totally understand why someone goes through these feelings but I also know that it is possible to recover and stop blaming yourself for things you cannot control. You have to move forward and learn from these experiences.

https://www.ptsd.va.gov/understand/related/acute_stress.asp

3) Topic 3 DQ 2 (Obj. 3.2) – Martin Doyle

There are multiple evidence based treatment options for clients dealing with trauma and other mental health disorders. One that is particularly interesting to me is EMDR or eye movement desensitization and reprocessing. EMDR has been shown to be effective in treating people with trauma. It is a viable option for people with trauma, but it has limitations into other areas of mental health. For example, in using EMDR for people who have both trauma and addiction, EMDR significantly reduced the trauma symptoms, but did not help the addiction issues (Perez-Dandieu & Tapia, 2014). Cognitive behavioral therapy is another evidence based model for the treatment of trauma as well as having a broader application to other mental health disorders such as addiction, depression, and anxiety. Trauma focused cognitive behavioral therapy has been shown effective in many instances, one in particular with children who had gone through a single trauma incident. The results of trauma focused CBT led to long term gains in these children with no signs of PTSD at a one year follow up (Nixon, Sterk, Pearce & Weber, 2017). Both CBT and EMDR have evidence backing them as great options for the treatment of trauma. In making a decision of which to use often the therapist’s training and competence should be the biggest decision. Using the modality that you are most comfortable and skilled in as a clinician will create better outcomes for the client.

Nixon, R. D. V., Sterk, J., Pearce, A., & Weber, N. (2017). A randomized trial of cognitive behavior therapy and cognitive therapy for children with posttraumatic stress disorder following single-incident trauma: Predictors and outcome at 1-year follow-up. Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy, 9(4), 471–478. https://doi-org.lopes.idm.oclc.org/10.1037/tra0000… (Supplemental)

Perez-Dandieu, B., & Tapia, G. (2014). Treating trauma in addiction with EMDR: A pilot study. Journal of Psychoactive Drugs, 46(4), 303–309. https://doi-org.lopes.idm.oclc.org/10.1080/0279107…

523

1) Topic 3 DQ 1 (Obj. 3.1) – Tarneshala Cowans

Class,

Validation is the process of accumulating evidence that supports the appropriateness of the inferences that are made of student responses for specified assessment uses. Validity refers to the degree to which the evidence supports that these interpretations are correct and that the manner in which the interpretations are used is appropriate (American Educational Research Association, American Psychological Association & National Council on Measurement in Education, 1999). Three types of evidence are commonly examined to support the validity of an assessment instrument: content, construct, and criterion. This section begins by defining these types of evidence and is followed by a discussion of how evidence of validity should be considered in the development of scoring rubrics.

Validity refers to how well a test measures what it is purported to measure. While reliability is necessary, it alone is not sufficient. For a test to be reliable, it also needs to be valid. For example, if your scale is off by 5 lbs, it reads your weight every day with an excess of 5lbs. The scale is reliable because it consistently reports the same weight every day, but it is not valid because it adds 5lbs to your true weight. It is not a valid measure of your weight.

What are some ways to improve validity?

1. Make sure your goals and objectives are clearly defined and operationalized. Expectations of students should be written down.
2. Match your assessment measure to your goals and objectives. Additionally, have the test reviewed by faculty at other schools to obtain feedback from an outside party who is less invested in the instrument.
3. Get students involved; have the students look over the assessment for troublesome wording, or other difficulties.
4. If possible, compare your measure with other measures, or data that may be available.

Reliability refers to the consistency of assessment scores. For example, on a reliable test, a student would expect to attain the same score regardless of when the student completed the assessment, when the response was scored, and who scored the response. On an unreliable examination, a student’s score may vary based on factors that are not related to the purpose of the assessment.

References

Moskal, B.M., & Leydens, J.A. (2000). Scoring rubric development: Validity and reliability. Practical Assessment, Research & Evaluation

2) Topic 3 DQ 1 (Obj. 3.1) – Lucrecia

One of the assumptions about psychological appraisals is that testing and assessment can be conducted in both a fair and unbiased manner. According to Cohen and Swerdlik (2018), “today all major test publishers strive to develop instruments that are fair when used in strict accordance with guidelines in the test manual, “ (p. 121). Due to the fact that the counselor will be administering and scoring, how they go about these tasks can impact both the validity and the reliability of the data gathered from the test results. For example, aspects such as how the counselor handles language barriers during testing, the determination between level of education of the client and that required for the test, and even the consistency of the individual scoring the test in terms of how the measuring tool us used, can all impact the reliability and validity of the test results (Cohen & Swerdlik, 2018). This is why the individuals that are administering and scoring the psychological test or assessment must have a certain level of clearance in order for the results to possess meaning within the psychological field. The highest level actually requires hands on training to ensure that the assessments are conducted in adequate and unbiased manner by the counselor (Levin & Buckett, 2011).

Cohen, R. J., & Swerdlik, M. E. (2018). Psychological Testing and Assessment: An Introduction to Tests and Measurment(9th ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Education. Retrieved from: https://viewer.gcu.edu/67qk8f

Levin, M. M., & Buckett, A. (2011). Discourses regarding ethical challenges in assessments — Insights through a novel approach. SAJIP: South African Journal of Industrial Psychology, 37(1), 251–263. https://doi-org.lopes.idm.oclc.org/10.4102/sajip.v…

3) Topic 3 DQ 2 (Obj. 3.1) – Demetress Hall

Reliability without Validity

For ethical reasons assessment professionals want to evaluate test quality for Reliability and Validity. Were the result is dependable and accurately measure what it was intended to measure. The is key in testtaker willingness to participate by having confidence in validity of the intended results. Cohen and Swerdlik (2018) points out that from the professional test user perspective the test lacking validity may produce necessary and contribute useful data.

Substance Use and the Opioid Crisis

There are times when assessments produce reliable consistent results but does not measure what it designed to measure. For example, it has long been known that poverty, early childhood trauma and violence are risk factors in substance use in certain communities but the recent opioid crisis, risk factors are not consistent in target population. The opioid crisis has devastated mainstream and middle-income populations. In assessing the risk and protective factors in substance use. SAMHSA (2018) states that some risk and protective factors don’t change and are consistent over time, however others factors fluctuate. Variable risk factors include economic status, peer influence, adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and employment status. Researchers see value in understanding more about the correlation between individual or group vulnerability or resiliency to substance use (SAMHSA, 2018).

Research

Cohen, R. J., & Swerdlik, M.E. (2018). Psychological Testing and Assessment: An Introduction to Test and Measurements (9th ed). McGraw Hill Education. Retrieved from http://www.gcumedia.com/digital-resources/mcgraw-hill/2017/psychological-testing-and-assessment_9e.php

Substance abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) (2018). Risk and Protective Factors. SAMHSA website. Retrieved from https://www.samhsa.gov/capt/practicing-effective-p…