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Clinical Assessment of Psychological Adaptive Mechanisms in Medical Settings
Author(s) -
Beresford Thomas P.
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
journal of clinical psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.124
H-Index - 119
eISSN - 1097-4679
pISSN - 0021-9762
DOI - 10.1002/jclp.22090
Subject(s) - psychology , cognition , anxiety , adaptive functioning , clinical practice , dynamic assessment , function (biology) , psychological testing , clinical psychology , maturity (psychological) , cognitive psychology , psychotherapist , developmental psychology , psychiatry , medicine , nursing , evolutionary biology , biology
The psychological adaptive mechanism (PAM) model for systematic clinical assessment can be applied in any human setting in which individuals adapt to the conditions of their lives. This report focuses on applying the PAM assessment technique to the stress and anxiety of physical illness. To do so, we must consider maturity of PAMs simultaneously in relation to the cognitive functioning of the brain as assessed either in the office or at bedside. After considering case examples to illustrate this application, the discussion proceeds to include larger patient groups to which clinical PAM assessment might be applied, with special reference to cognitive function. The report concludes with suggestions for further improvement of the PAM clinical recognition method as well as its current practical applicability as an acquired clinical skill designed for use in everyday practice.