Assessment of mental disorders (1)

confession – признание \ turn up doubts about — ставить под сомнение

investigation [ɪnˌvestɪ'geɪʃ(ə)n] - расследование, следствие

assessment - определение; оценка

evaluate - оценивать; давать оценку; составлять мнение;

an attitude - позиция; отношение ( about; of; to, towards - к чему-л. )

a mood disorder – расстройство настроения

abuse –жестоко обращаться; совращать ( малолетних ); насиловать

identify – установить \ scare [skeə] - пугать; испугать, напугать

figure out – выяснить, понять

respond – отвечать

contribute - содействовать, способствовать ( to )

testify - давать показания, свидетельствовать

accompany - сопровождать

In some cases, it’s relatively easy to identify what’s wrong with a person. But in other cases, it’s more difficult to identify exactly what the person’s motivation and mental problem are. Take the tragic case of Susan Smith. Susan Smith appeared on the “Today” show, crying for the return of her two little boys, Michael, 3 years old, and Alex, 14 months old, who, she said, had been kidnapped. She begged the kidnapper to feed them, care for them, and please, please, return them. And then, nine days later, after an investigation turned up doubts about the kidnapping story, the police questioned Susan again. Not only did she change her story, but she made the confession that she had killed her two children.

Susan’s confession stunned (поразило) the nation as everyone asked, “How could she have killed her own children?” “What’s wrong with Susan?” To answer these questions, mental health

professionals evaluated Susan’s mental health with a procedure called the clinical assessment.

A clinical assessment involves a systematic evaluation of an individual’s various psychological, biological, and social factors, as well as identifying past and present problems, stressors, and other cognitive or behavioral symptoms. A clinical assessment is the first step in figuring out which past or current problems may have contributed to Susan killing her own children.

Mental health professionals use one or more of three major techniques—neurological exams, clinical interviews, and psychological tests—to do clinical assessments.

During the clinical interview, Susan would have been asked about the history of her current problems, such as when they started and what other events accompanied them. The focus of the interview would have been on Susan’s current problem, killing her children, especially on the details of the symptoms that led up to the killing.

Based on 15 hours of interviews, Dr. Seymour Halleck testified that Susan was scarred by her father’s suicide and her stepfather sexually abusing her, which led to periods of depression, her current problem.

As part of her assessment, psychologists may have given Susan a number of personality tests.

Based on her symptoms, Susan was described as having a mood disorder.

QUESTIONS

1. What procedures does a clinical assessment involve?

2. What is the goal of doing a clinical assessment?

3. What method of gathering information about a person’s past and current behaviors is used in a clinical assessment?

4. What are Susan’s past and current psychological problems?