Measuring Change in Counseling and Psychotherapy

by Scott T. Meier

Overview

This book provides researchers, clinicians, and students with a useful overview of measuring client change in clinical practice. It reviews the history, conceptual foundations, and current status of trait- and state-based assessment models and approaches, exploring their strengths and limitations for measuring change across therapy sessions. Scott T. Meier shows how to effectively interpret and use measurement and assessment data to improve treatment evaluation and clinical care. A series of exercises guides the reader to gather information about particular tests and evaluate their suitability for intended testing purposes.

About the Author:
Scott T. Meier is Professor and Chair of the Department of Counseling, School, and Educational Psychology at the University at Buffalo, The State University of New York

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781462531042
Publisher:	Guilford Publications, Inc.
Publication date:	11/18/2013
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	NOOK Book
Pages:	303
File size:	4 MB

About the Author

Scott T. Meier is Professor and Chair of the Department of Counseling, School, and Educational Psychology at the University at Buffalo, The State University of New York. His main research and teaching are in the areas of psychological measurement (particularly outcome assessment), research methods (program evaluation), and counseling skills (integration of case conceptualization and assessment with intervention). Dr. Meier is a member of the American Evaluation Association, the Association for Psychological Science, and the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies. He is the author or coauthor of four books (including The Elements of Counseling) and has published in American Psychologist, Journal of Counseling Psychology, Measurement and Evaluation in Counseling and Development, and the American Journal of Evaluation.

Table of Contents

Introduction and Rationale     1
Contemporary Psychological Testing     1
Contemporary Psychotherapy Research and Practice     2
The Implications of Research Stuckness for Clinical Practice     4
Summary and Conclusions     7
A History of Traits     9
The Seeds of Conflict     9
The Desire to Be Scientific     10
The Model of Physiology     10
Biology and Individual Differences     12
The Desire to Be Relevant     14
The Need for Classification     14
The Consequences of the Adoption of a Trait-Based Measurement Paradigm     16
Loss of Experimental Methods Inhibits Recognition of Method Variance     17
The Gain of Traits and Loss of Situations     19
Handling Error with Classical Test Theory     20
Statistics Related to Measurement     21
Assessment as a Complement to Measurement     25
Deemphasizing Measurement Theory     27
Loss of Precision     30
The Wisdom and Tyranny of Tradition     35
The Success and Failure of the Market     36
Summary and Implications     38
Reliability, Validity, and Systematic Errors     42
Introduction     42
Thinking about Reliability and Validity     43
Types of Validity     43
Constructs, Theories, and Valid Measurement     46
Construct Explication     47
Multitrait-Multimethod Matrices: Investigating the Effects of Method Variance on Validity     48
Campbell and Fiske     49
Criteria for Construct Validity     50
An MTMM Example     51
Problems with Campbell and Fiske's Approach     56
The Factor Analytic Approach to Construct Validity     57
History of Self-Report and Interview Errors     60
Self-Reports     61
Interviews and Observational Methods     63
Measurement Error     64
Systematic Errors Associated with Self-Reports     65
Dissimulation and Malingering     65
Systematic Errors Associated with Ratings by Others     69
Halo Errors     70
Leniency and Criticalness Errors     71
Hypothesis Confirmation Errors     72
Causes of Inconsistency     74
Cognitive Influences     75
Item Comprehension Problems     76
Test Cues     77
Low Cognitive Ability      80
Affective and Motivational Influences     81
Test Anxiety     82
Negative Emotional States     83
Environmental and Cultural Influences     84
Reactivity     84
Stereotype Threat     85
Summary and Implications     86
States, Traits, and Validity     89
Introduction     89
History     90
The Controversy of Mischel and Peterson: The Benefits of Conflict     93
The Rejection of Traits: Behavioral Assessment     94
Reinforcing the Trait Argument     96
Person-Environment Interactions     98
Aptitude-by-Treatment Interactions     101
Environmental Assessment     103
Moderators of Cross-Situational Consistency     105
Summary and Integration     106
Context Effects and Validity
Introduction     110
Understanding Inconsistency: Clues from Psychophysics Measurement     111
The Limitations of Psychophysical Measurement     112
Conclusions and Implications from Psychophysical Research     115
Improving the Principles of Construct Explication     116
Test Purpose     117
Test Content     119
Test Context      122
Shared Contexts and Method Variance     124
The Context of Positive and Negative Item Wording     125
The Context of Item-Instruction Presentation     126
The Context of Response Format     126
Context and Test Instructions     128
Context and Item Content     130
Shared Contexts and Systematic Errors     131
Shared Contexts and Social Roles     134
Conversational Rules     134
Narrative Therapy     136
Shared Role Contexts     137
Applications     140
Recommendations Related to Test Purpose     141
Recommendations Related to Test Content     145
Recommendations Related to Test Contexts     147
Provide Testing Contexts That Help Test Takers Remember Better     147
Summary and Implications     155
Nomothetic Approaches to Measuring Change and Influencing Outcomes     159
History and Background     159
Examples of Nomothetic Measures     161
Beck Depression Inventory     161
State-Trait Anxiety Inventory     161
Global Assessment of Functioning     162
Outcome Questionnaire     162
Reliability of Nomothetic Measures     163
Validity of Nomothetic Measures     164
Change-Sensitive Tests     165
Using Outcome Data for Clinical Feedback     169
Use Measures with a Strong Theoretical Basis     174
Use Brief Measures     177
Applications     177
Creating Change-Sensitive Measures     177
Psychometric Properties of Aggregate Scales     186
Using Change-Sensitive Tests in Program Evaluations     189
An Evidence-Based Approach to Supervision     192
Summary and Integration     196
Idiographic Approaches to Measuring Change and Influencing Outcomes     198
History and Background     198
Reliability of Idiographic Measures     199
Validity of Idiographic Measures     200
Behavioral Assessment     202
Self- and Other Monitoring     206
The Use of Natural Language     208
Narrative Therapy     208
Pennebaker's Word Use Approach     212
Idiographically Based Feedback Procedures     214
Applications     216
Begin with the Case Conceptualization     216
Explicate Constructs     218
Measure Behaviors      219
Collect as Much Data as Possible     220
Analyze Idiographic Data     220
Consider Progress Notes for Process and Outcome Data     223
Summary and Implications     226
Summary, Integration, and Future Directions     229
Major Ideas     229
Initial Findings and Future Research     234
Nomothetic Outcome Measures     234
Idiographic Outcome Measures     235
Context Effects     236
Innovative Research Methods     237
Conclusion     239
References     243
Author Index     283
Subject Index     295
About the Author     303

Interviews

Researchers, clinicians, and graduate students in clinical psychology, counseling, educational psychology, and related mental health fields. Will serve as a text in masters'- or doctoral-level courses such as Counseling/Psychotherapy Practicum, Clinical Psychology, School Psychology, Personality Assessment, or Psychodiagnostic Assessment and Measurement.

Editorial Reviews

"This text should have a prominent place in professional psychology training programs. It offers an important and needed perspective on measurement for those preparing for careers in counseling and psychotherapy, and a helpful corrective to the practice of relying on trait measures for the evaluation of clinical change. Meier has done a fine job of tying measurement to practice issues, showing how outcome data can be used for clinical feedback and to inform clinical decision making. He clearly distinguishes how a test that is valid for measuring traits may not be valid for measuring clinical change, and vice versa. At a time when accountability is a driving force in the profession, the measurement and assessment perspectives provided by this book couldn’t be more opportune. This book would be most pertinent to doctoral and master's students in counseling psychology and would make an excellent addition to an assessment sequence—in particular, as a companion text in a personality/psychodiagnostic assessment course."—James W. Lichtenberg, PhD, Professor of Counseling Psychology and Associate Dean, School of Education, University of Kansas

"The strength of this book is that it offers comprehensive and sophisticated coverage of issues related to psychological testing, with a special focus on issues related to counseling and psychotherapy, which makes it unique and valuable. The author does a very good job of explaining terms and concepts and takes the reader deep into the complex and sophisticated world of psychological testing. I would highly recommend it to colleagues interested in psychotherapy research and empirical evaluations of psychotherapy services."—John Suler, PhD, Department of Psychology, Rider University

"A cutting-edge text that highlights the theoretical, methodological, and practical differences between traditional psychological measurement and the measurement of change in counseling/psychotherapy. It is very timely given the current pressures for accountability."—David A. Vermeersch, PhD, Department of Psychology, Loma Linda University

"The approach makes a great deal of sense. It covers important conceptual issues as well as practical matters. When students complete the assignments they will be prepared to go through the same steps in either selecting an outcome measure or in organizing an assessment strategy as well as critically appraising existing practices and their limitations. I would recommend the book to a colleague who wants students to have a good primer for assessing treatment effects."—Michael J. Lambert, PhD, Department of Psychology, Brigham Young University

From the Publisher