Assessment, Statistics, and Research

Psychologists assess shame as one of a few measures of self-conscious emotions. In addition to shame, the list includes embarrassment, guilt, humiliation, and pride. As with many measures of person characteristics, there are measures of traits or dispositions and measures of states.  State shame is a temporary emotion such as a state of shame following a specific act that has been made public. Trait shame is a durable condition, which means a person experiences shame for a period of time in multiple settings. The classic measure of shame is the TOSCA (Test of Self-Conscious Affect. The TOSCA, developed by June P. Tangney , is now in its third edition and includes versions for adolescents (TOSCA-A) and children (TOSCA-C; Tangney & Dearing, 2002). People taking the TOSCA read a scenario and provide a response.  The TOSCA-3 is a 16-item scale. The responses reflect different ways to respond to a situation, which yield six dimensions of shame:  1. shame-proneness 2. g

The PCL-5 is a 20-item self-report checklist of symptoms that can help clinicians screen patients for PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder). The scale can assist in making a diagnosis and in monitoring change during and after treatment. The VA site suggests the scale can be completed in 5-10 minutes. The scores range from 0 to 80. The items are organized according to DSM-5 clusters. Scale availability link Weathers, F.W., Litz, B.T., Keane, T.M., Palmieri, P.A., Marx, B.P., & Schnurr, P.P. (2013). The PTSD Checklist for  DSM-5  (PCL-5). Scale available from the National Center for PTSD at  www.ptsd.va.gov . Web link detail:  https://www.ptsd.va.gov/professional/assessment/adult-sr/ptsd-checklist.asp Resource Link:  A – Z Test Index Applied Statistics for Counselors:   Buy on Amazon References (PCL-5) Blevins, C. A., Weathers, F. W., Davis, M. T., Witte, T. K., & Domino, J. L. (2015). The Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist for  DSM-5  

What are the leading causes of death in the United States? Based on what you have read or learned from news sources, what did you expect to see in the top five? If you thought of one that is missing, perhaps it is in the top 10. Still, when you look at the numbers, you may be surprised to learn how few people die in a given year, given the size of the US population. My point in this post is that we ought to examine total data instead of being guided by the headlines of news stories and misleading charts when we want to understand a health or social condition. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention , the five leading causes of death in 2017 were heart disease, cancer, unintentional injury, chronic lower respiratory disease, and stroke. The report includes more causes, but I chose the top five based on the deaths per 100,000 U.S. standard population. When you add the numbers for the five causes, you find the top five causes of death accounted for 445 peo