Question

Little Alice is doing badly in school, and her parents bring her to the psychologist to find out why. The psychologist would use which of the following methods in this case?

• A. Experimental Method
• B. Clinical Method
• C. Systematic Observation
• D. Control Method

Hint:

Whenever an individual patient or client is brought in with a unique behavioral, emotional, or cognitive problem requiring direct assessment, the Clinical (or Case Study) Method is the most logical choice.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is B

Step 1: Understanding the Question:
The question asks for the most appropriate psychological investigation method to diagnose and understand why an individual child is struggling academically.

Step 2: Detailed Explanation:

• The clinical method, also known as the case study method, is designed to conduct an in-depth, detailed examination of a single individual.

• This method involves gathering extensive biographical history, interviewing family members, administering diagnostic tests, and examining environmental influences.

• Experimental methods are used to establish general cause-and-effect laws across large groups under highly controlled laboratory conditions, making them unsuitable for individual diagnoses.

• Systematic observation involves recording behavior in natural settings without intervention, which would not provide the deep historical and diagnostic insights needed for Alice.

• The control method is an experimental design technique to rule out confounding variables, not an independent diagnostic tool.

• Therefore, analyzing a specific child's academic deficit through personalized diagnostics and history-taking aligns with the clinical method.

Step 3: Final Answer:
The psychologist would use the Clinical Method to perform a thorough individual diagnostic assessment.