Psychology – A Level specialist option – Health Psychology | e-Consult
A Level specialist option – Health Psychology (1 questions)
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Objective methods
- Physiological monitoring (e.g., heart rate variability, galvanic skin response): Provides quantifiable data on autonomic arousal associated with pain or stress. Strength: continuous, non‑invasive measurement. Limitation: physiological responses can be influenced by factors unrelated to pain/stress, such as medication or fitness level.
- Neuroimaging (e.g., functional MRI): Identifies brain regions activated during painful or stressful stimuli. Strength: offers insight into neural mechanisms. Limitation: expensive, limited ecological validity, and not practical for routine clinical use.
Subjective methods
- Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) for pain: Patients mark a point on a 10‑cm line representing pain intensity. Strength: simple, quick, and sensitive to change. Limitation: relies on patient’s self‑awareness and literacy; cultural factors may affect reporting.
- Perceived Stress Scale (PSS): A 10‑item questionnaire assessing how unpredictable, uncontrollable, and overloaded respondents feel. Strength: validated across diverse populations. Limitation: retrospective self‑report may be biased by mood or social desirability.
Combining objective and subjective measures provides a more comprehensive assessment, balancing physiological precision with personal experience.