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Prevalence of disorders: PTSD

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  • Prevalence of disorders: PTSD

Prevalence of disorders

Psychologists are interested in why the prevalence rates of a disorder are not constant.  For many disorders, prevalence rates change over time and are not consistent cross-culturally.  This component explores the difficulties in measuring prevalence and the factors that may play a role in its change. The question that will be asked will most likely ask you to discuss "one or more disorders," so knowing specific prevalence rates is not required.

Key concepts

Before completing the module below, please read the section of the textbook called Prevalence of disorders. When reading this section, please make note of the following important concepts:

  • Incidence
  • Prevalence

text

Conceptual understanding and research

Read through the following presentation. Be sure to pay attention to the terminology at the beginning of the presentation and the summary at the end of the presentation.  For a potential essay, you should be able to discuss two or three factors that are listed on the final slide using relevant research.

Preparing for assessment

In the presentation, there are a few key studies that are discussed.

First, there is the study carried out by Bolton et al (2002) to determine the prevalence of depression and PTSD in Rwandan communities after the genocide.

Then there is the study by Becker et al (2002) that looked at the role of globalization on eating behaviours in Fiji.

Be sure to read each of the studies carefully, making note of the procedures and findings.

Which of the following is not a limitation of prevalence rates?

The goal of prevalence rates is to describe the health problem in the population; since this is the goal, the fact that it is only relevant to the population from which the data are taken is not a limitation.

 

Which of the following is not a reason that prevalence rates change over time?

Although theoretically, a genetic mutation could lead to a change in prevalence, this is a long-term process and not usually observed in abnormal research. 

 

Which of the following statements is not true about prevalence rates?

Several factors may influence prevalence rates over time.  In addition, cultural, economic, and gender differences may account for differences in prevalence rates - so they are not universal.

 

According to Abu-Ras & Abu-Bader's (2009)'s study, the reason for the higher prevalence of PTSD in some refugee communities in the USA is

Abu-Ras and Abu Bader found that a lack of social support played a key role in the development of PTSD after 9/11.  Experienced or perceived discrimination also played a key role. Refugees who had moved to areas of the USA with a larger Arab population showed lower levels of PTSD than those that felt more isolated.

 

Which research method was used in Becker's (2002) study of how television influenced the self-concept and eating behaviours of adolescent Fijian girls?

Although interviews were used to collect data, the study was a natural experiment.  There was a "before" and "after" television design.  The independent variable - the introduction of television - was not manipulated by the researcher.  It was an independent measures design.

 

What is meant by the statement that Bolton (2002) used an “emic approach” to the diagnosis of depression and PTSD in Rwanda?

An emic approach uses local knowledge to make a diagnosis. It is inductive in nature and attempts to be objective - that is, not influenced by the culture of the researcher.

 

According to Cheng (2018), which factor may play a key role in men seeking out psychological help?

Cheng (2018) found that education makes a difference.  However, the study was done also done on university students, so the generalizability of the findings may be limited.

 

Which of the following is a limitation of Brommelhof et al's (2004) study of gender bias in the diagnosis of depression?

As the study was trying to determine why more women are diagnosed with depression than men, it is not a problem that only women were studied - that was the population of interest. The sample size was 205, which is actually a reasonable size.  The fact that it was a quasi-experiment is not problematic as cause and effect were not really being investigated.  However, the study does not look directly at how clinicians make diagnoses.  Assumptions are made that the data provided by families to clinicians or reported to others may be biased.

 

Total Score:

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