Outlined in the text are two popular types of errors made in clinical decision making, false negative and false positive. Distinguish between both.

What will be an ideal response?

Ans: False negative is the name of the error made when a clinician or therapist fails to diagnose the problem accurately or mistakenly diagnoses the client’s symptoms and fails to provide proper treatment. This error involves not recognizing a problem that exists. False positive is the name of the error given when a clinician inappropriately diagnoses the client with a disorder that he or she does not have. A false positive exists when a diagnostic label is inappropriately given to a client. An example of a false-positive judgment is when a mental health professional incorrectly diagnoses a client with depression when, in fact, the client is mourning the death of a loved one and is actually suffering from a normal grief reaction.
Cognitive Domain: Application
Answer Location: Biases in Clinical Decision Making
Difficulty Level: Medium