Clinician's Thesaurus The Guide to Conducting Interviews and Writing Psychological Reports

by Zuckerman, Edward L.; Estes, Bradley W.

• ISBN13: 9781462558087
• ISBN10: 1462558089
• Edition: 9th
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2025-07-23
• Publisher: The Guilford Press

Summary

Hundreds of thousands of students and early-career mental health professionals have relied on this authoritative reference, now in an updated ninth edition including the latest terms and diagnostic codes. In a convenient large-size format, the Thesaurus covers nearly all areas of concern addressed in intakes, assessments, treatment plans, progress notes, and closing summaries. Users seeking the right wording for a clinical document can scan and select from thousands of technical terms, behavioral descriptors, and standard statements. The book provides  interview questions for almost every symptomatic behavior, a huge collection of mental status questions, and hundreds of internet resources. Also featured is a list of all psychiatric ICD-10-CM diagnoses, including Z codes and medical codes essential to a comprehensive biopsychosocial evaluation. The companion website presents web links, reproducible forms from the book, and a detailed list of psychiatric medications.

New to This Edition
*Updated for DSM-5-TR and ICD-10-CM code changes for 2025.
*Updated and new listings of assessment and screening tools. 
*Revised descriptors and terms pertaining to internet use, gender and sexuality, relationships, race and ethnicity, and more. 
*Updated treatment planning tips, web links, and psychiatric drug information. 

Author Biography

Edward L. Zuckerman, PhD, consults and creates effective practice tools for clinicians. He found his life’s passion while working as a psychiatric aide at New York’s Bellevue Hospital in the 1960s. Dr. Zuckerman has worked with adults in a variety of clinical contexts, acted as liaison with state hospitals, taught undergraduates and professional clinicians, and maintained an independent practice in general clinical psychology for many years. He lives in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Bradley W. Estes, PsyD, is a clinical neuropsychologist with a passion for serving others through diagnostics, psychotherapy, and professional consultation. Dr. Estes has worked with children and adults of all ages in a variety of settings, including psychiatric hospitals, rehabilitation hospitals, skilled nursing facilities, and schools. He lives in Indiana, where he has an independent practice focused on clinical and forensic neuropsychological and psychological assessment. Dr. Estes is also a faculty advisor for the Brain Health Initiative.

Table of Contents

Getting Oriented to the Clinician’s Thesaurus
A Functional Guide to Report Construction
I. Conducting a Mental Health Evaluation
1. Beginning and Ending the Interview
2. Mental Status Evaluation Questions/Tasks
3. Questions about Signs, Symptoms, and Other Behavior Patterns
II. Standard Terms and Statements for Wording Psychological Reports
A. Introducing the Report
4. Beginning the Report: Preliminary Information
5. Referral Reasons
6. Background Information and History
B. The Person in the Evaluation
7. Behavioral Observations
8. Responses to Aspects of the Examination
9. Presentation of Self
10. Emotional/Affective Symptoms and Disorders
11. Cognition and Mental Status
12. Abnormal Signs, Symptoms, and Syndromes
13. Personality Patterns
C. The Person in the Environment
14. Activities of Daily Living
15. Social/Community Functioning
16. Couple and Family Relationships
17. Vocational/Academic Skills
18. Recreational Functioning
19. Other Specialized Evaluations
D. Completing the Report
20. Summary of Findings and Conclusions
21. Diagnostic Statement/Impression
22. Recommendations
23. Prognostic Statements
24. Closing Statements
III. Useful Resources
25. Treatment Planning and Treatment Plan Formats
26. Formats for Reports, Evaluations, and Summaries
27. Treatments for Specific Disorders and Concerns
28. Listing of Common Psychiatric and Psychoactive Drugs
29. Psychiatric Masquerade of Medical Conditions
Appendices
A. Abbreviations in Common Use
B. Annotated Readings in Assessment, Interviewing, and Report Writing
Feedback Solicitation Form
References