549 Chapter 8

• •Useful for:
• –gathering information / data
• –making predictions / hypotheses
• –establishing rapport (using your personal skills, such as your ability to communicate effectively and your ability to establish a meaningful relationship)
• –direct observation of the client
• •in a “structured” setting
• –setting a “working diagnosis”
• •e.g., third party reimbursement
• –clarifying information from other sources
• •e.g., background questionnaire

• –largely controlled or driven by the interviewer
• –direction and structure-unity

• •(1) Directive vs.non-directive
• •(2) Structured vs.unstructured
• •(3) Case history
• –e.g., intake interview
• •(4) Mental status exam

• structured: highly structured. Interviewer read from a printed set of questions, using a standardized interview -asked the same questions in the same sequence. Directive-the interview is directed, guided, and controlled by the interviewer. Asks questions closed ended. e.g. Employment Interview
• Pros: reliability runs twice as high for structured
• Cons: Narrow & restricted

• unstructured: unstandardized, doesn't follow a set sequence of questions. Non Directive-allows patient to direct the course of interview. Tends to comment/reflects. Ask open ended questions.
• Pros: broad, unrestricted, unique, flexible
• Cons:

• (1) recognize the reciprocal nature of the interview
• –participants will influence each other
• •e.g., Akehurst & Vrij (1999)–increase in activity level
• –Heller (1971) – “social facilitation”
• •interviewers serve as models for interviewees
• (2) cast a positive attitude
• •e.g., warmth, genuineness, acceptance, openness…
• (3) leave your values at the door
• •e.g., evaluation or judgment statements
• (4) limit probing statements / questions
• •e.g., “Why?” questions
• (5) open-ended vs. closed-ended questions
• (6) try to walk a mile in the client’s shoes
• –i.e., empathy
• (7) monitor how you convey information

• -the younger the child, the more difficult the interview
• -Primary purpose of the interview – establish rapport with the child
• -allow child some latitude to drive discussion during interview
• -use mixture of open-ended and closed-ended questions
• -ask only one question at a time
• -keep questions as simple as possible
• -allow child to control physical boundary between self and examiner
• –allow child time to respond (i.e., allow for some silence)
• –avoid “leading” questions
• –consider whether child may need familiar face in room during interview
• –avoid too much eye contact
• –don’t be too overbearing in trying to initiate conversation with child
• –verbally reinforce child for self-disclosure

• –spend additional time talking about child’s interests
• –use slightly more open-ended questions
• –make general observations that child will be able to refute
• •generally results in child engaging in dialogue with examiner

• Cognitive Functioning
• •What they see is what they believe
• •Memory not fully developed
• •Difficulty w/ perspective taking, theory of mind
• Social-Emotional Functioning
• •Behavior is right or wrong based on whether one is punished
• •Narrow range of emotions–externalized behav. Poor self-contro

• Cognitive Functioning
• •Adequate verbal communication skills
• •Inductive reasoning
• •Concrete thinking
• •Can reverse
• •Appearance doesn’t change volume/quantity
• •Can see big picture of an event
• Social-Emotional Functioning
• •Behavior is wrong because rules say so
• •Peer grouping important
• •New challenges need to be mastered
• Industry v.inferiority

• –be more business-like in questioning
• –use mixture of open-ended and closed-ended questions•adolescents tend to be most comfortable with open-ended questions
• –be aware of and sensitive to developmental issues associated with adolescent period prior to making any determination•especially ED
• –adolescents should not be held exclusively to adult norms when considering emotionality
• •e.g., Archer (2005) – 25% of adolescents responded to original MMPI in a manner suggestive of psychotic behavior when strictly interpreted according to adult norms
• –higher level, abstract questions may be appropriate

• Cognitive Functioning
• •Formal logic/Abstract Reasoning (maybe)
• –hypothetical
• –what ifs
• –false beliefs possible
• •Systematic problem-solving
• •Intuitive thinking
• Social-Emotional Functioning
• •Post conventional moral reasoning
• –behavior wrong based on principals of conscience
• •Identity v. role confusion
• –Experimentation
• •Emotional intensity/lability
• •Peers become extremely important

• •Must observe and take notes of child characteristics while interviewing
• –Physical
• –Overt Behavior
• –Social-Emotional
• –Cognitive Functioning

Th e participants (interviewer and interviewee) infl uence each other. Th e tendency for people to behave like the models around them is called social facilitation. Good interviewers thus can set a good tone in an interview by maintaining a warm, open, confi dent atmosphere.

• (1) flexibility
• –types of questions asked
• –length of interview
• –flow should be guided partially by responses of client
• (2) observation of client under structured conditions
• –provides window for wide range of behaviors
• (3) build rapport
• –trust
• –security
• –establish collaborative relationships
• (4) clarification of information
• –e.g., background questionnaire

• (1) Data can lack reliability, consistency
• –over time
• –between interviewers
• •e.g., What is your comfort zone?–i.e., behavioral covariation
• (2) Subject to examiner distortion or bias–clinician – selective or faulty
• recall of relevant information•lack of attention to detail?–client – often follows cues
• he/she perceives of clinician•especially younger children
• (3) Often difficult to determine validity of client’s statements

• Interview validity – i.e., accurate decision-making
• –primacy, recency effects
• –halo, devil effects
• –bias to perceive psychopathology:
• •common finding in literature – we tend to over-perceive psychopathology
• –interviewer’s faulty recall of information
• –interviewer’s nonverbal behavior

• Interview reliability–e.g., inter-rater agreement
• •wide variability in literature
• –e.g., ratings of traits (.23 - .97)
• –overall ability (-.20 - .85)
• –Webster (1964) – different interviewers tend to look for different things

• •Consider interview data with a “grain of salt”
• –use to draw tentative conclusions
• –e.g., lying is fairly common among children and adolescents
• •more so for children referred for mental health reasons or special education
• •Increasing the validity of clients’ responses:
• (1) avoid accusatory or inflammatory questions
• (2) ask any potential inflammatory questions in non-judgmental fashion
• (3) be highly selective in determining whether to confront suspected lie
• •“choose battles wisely”

• •Interpersonal context
• –Rapport, empathy, respect, expertness, attractiveness, trustworthiness
• •Cultural context
• –Eye contact, physical distance
• •Behavioral context
• –instruct client about desirable ways of responding
• –use of reinforcement (verbal praise; use foods with caution & parental consent)
• •Truth context
• –Lying-avoid direct confrontation
• •Physical context
• –e.g., avoid physical barriers
• (use corner of desk as barrier)