Marcus is a 22-year-old junior who was referred to the university counseling center by an academic advisor because of a significant decline in academic performance

Marcus is a 22-year-old junior who was referred to the university counseling center by an academic advisor because of a significant decline in academic performance.

During his first two years of college, Marcus earned mostly Bs and occasionally As. He participated in intramural sports and maintained several close friendships.

Over approximately the past five months, Marcus has become increasingly isolated. He stopped participating in intramural sports and rarely leaves his residence hall room.

His roommate reports that Marcus sometimes sits alone and appears to be listening to someone who is not present. Marcus has stated that he hears a man’s voice criticizing him and telling him that people on campus are “plotting against” him.

Marcus recently told his professor that the university’s security cameras were specifically installed to monitor him.

His personal hygiene has declined considerably. He has missed multiple classes and has stopped completing assignments.

When asked about these changes, Marcus states:

“Nothing is wrong with me. You need to ask yourself why everyone seems to be following me.”

Marcus denies having a mental health problem.

CLINICAL OBSERVATION

Identify at least six clinically significant observations from your assigned case.

For each observation, explain why it is clinically relevant.

PSYCHOTIC SYMPTOM ANALYSIS

Identify examples of the following, if present:

Hallucinations

Delusions

Disorganized thinking or speech

Negative symptoms

Cognitive or functional changes

DIAGNOSTIC REASONING

Use the Seven Steps for Psychiatric Diagnosis to confirm the patients diagnosis/diagnoses. The Seven Steps for Psychiatric Diagnosis begins on page 161-165, include ALL of the steps. This assignment should be written in APA format. All Assignments should be uploaded into CANVAS.

Collecting Data: Performed during the assessment

Identifying Psychopathology: Performed during the assessment

Evaluating the Reliability of the Data

Determining the overall distinctive feature

Arriving at a diagnosis

Checking Diagnostic Criteria

Resolving Diagnostic Uncertainty