Notes and comments: Importance of diagnostic categories in evaluating psychological data.

Abstract

Analyses of psychological data for psychiatric populations indicate that test results are specifically related to diagnostic groups when the results are evaluated with respect to a work-outcome criterion. Predictive accuracy of work success for psychiatric patients was found to vary with each diagnostic category and in every case exceeded the combined population prediction rate. These results indicate the usefulness of diagnostic information in selecting patients and in evaluating rehabilitation outcomes.

Intrapsychic variables and the patient's environment as factors in prognosis.

“…When diagnosis was used as a moderator variable, however, these two predictor variables were found related to rehospitalization in the schizophrenic subgroup only. Diagnostic category has been reported to moderate the predictor criterion relationship in three other studies Goss, 1968;Gunderson & Arthur, 1967). These studies were concerned with a number of different diagnostic categories, however; although their data suggest the importance of looking at diagnosis as a moderator, the fact that they address many diagnostic categories and numerous criteria permits no generalizations to be made from them.…”

Prognostic indexes in a military psychiatric population.

“…Finally, research in prognosis has, by virtue of the populations available, concentrated on schizophrenia. Most probably, variables relevant to the prognosis of schizophrenics are not applicable to other diagnostic groups (Goss, 1968). A military population affords the opportunity to study factors related to prognosis in large samples of neurotics and character disorders.…”

Diagnoses as moderators of the relationship between biographical variables and psychiatric decision in a combat zone.

“…Furthermore, clinical classification could act as a moderator in that the decision maker may look at other variables and weight them differentially. Goss (1968), for example, found prediction of successful completion of a vocational rehabilitation program to be greatly facilitated when alcoholic, anxiety-depressed, and schizophrenic groups were analyzed separately. In effect, Goss was utilizing diagnostic group as a moderator between patient characteristics and prognosis.…”