Psychological Testing and Assessment

Psychological Testing and Assessment

• Psychological assessment involves gathering and integrating psychology-related data to make a psychological evaluation using tools like tests, interviews, case studies, behavioral observation, and specialized equipment.
• Psychological testing measures psychology-related variables through devices or procedures to obtain a sample of behavior.

Testing vs. Assessment

• Testing seeks to obtain a numerical gauge of an ability or attribute.
• Assessment aims to answer a referral question, solve a problem, or make a decision using evaluation tools.
• Testing can be individual or group-based, with the tester summing correct answers with little regard for "how" content.
• Assessment is individualized and focuses on how a person processes information.
• In testing, the tester is not crucial and is easily replaceable.
• In assessment, the assessor is central to selecting tools and drawing conclusions.
• Testing requires technician-like skills in administering, scoring, and interpreting tests.
• Assessment necessitates educated tool selection, evaluation skills, and thoughtful data integration.
• Testing results in a test score.
• Assessment involves a logical problem-solving approach using various data sources to address a question.

Varieties of Assessment

• Therapeutic assessment helps individuals understand and solve their problems.

Processes of Assessment

• Referral for assessment can come from teachers, parents, school psychologists, counselors, judges, clinicians, and corporate HR specialists.
• Examples of referral questions include ones about a child's educational environment, a defendant's competence, or an employee's potential.
• The selection of assessment tools is influenced by the setting, referral question, assessor's experience, institution guidelines, and literature reviews.
• The assessment process also includes formal assessment, report writing, and feedback sessions with the assessee and/or interested third parties.

Approaches to Assessment

• Collaborative psychological assessment involves assessors and assessees working as partners from initial contact to final feedback.
• Therapeutic psychological assessment aims to be helpful throughout the process, sharing immediate results to co-develop interpretations and future questions.
• Dynamic assessment uses an interactive approach to psychological assessment that usually follows a model of evaluation, intervention of some sort, and evaluation.
• It's typically employed in educational settings to evaluate how the assesse processes or benefits from some type of intervention during the course of evaluation.

Tools of Psychological Assessment

• A test is defined as a measuring device or procedure.
• A psychological test measures variables related to psychology.

Psychological Tests

• Psychological tests almost always involve analysis of a sample of behavior
• They differ in content, format, administration procedures, scoring, and interpretation.
• Content is the subject matter of the test.
• Format pertains to the form, plan, structure, arrangement, and layout of test items like computerized or pencil-and-paper tests.
• Administration procedures refer to one-to-one or group environments.
• Scoring: A score is a code or summary statement that reflects an evaluation of performance on a test, task, interview, or some other sample of behavior
• Scoring is the process of assigning evaluative codes or statements to performance on tests, tasks, interviews, or other behavior samples
• Cut score/cutoff score/cutoff: Reference point, usually numerical, derived by judgment and used to divide a set of data into two or more classifications
• Tests score types can be self-scored, computer-scored, or scored by trained examiners.
• Psychometric soundness or technical quality refers to how consistently and how accurately a psychological test measure what it purports to measure.
• Psychometry/psychometrics: The science of psychological measurement
• Psychometric utility: The usefulness or practical value that a test or other tool of assessment has for a particular purpose

Interviewing

• Interviews involve more than just talking.
• Interviewers observe verbal and non-verbal behavior like body language, eye contact, and willingness to cooperate.
• Interviews can be face-to-face, telephonic (assessing voice pitch, pauses), online, via email, or text messaging.
• Information gathering is achieved through communication involving reciprocal exchange.
• Interviews differ in purpose, length, and nature.
• Panel interviews/board interviews– involve multiple interviewers.
• Motivational interviewing– uses person-centered listening skills with cognition-altering techniques for positive motivation and therapeutic change.

Other Methods and Tools of Psychological Assessment

• Portfolios are work products retained on paper, canvas, film, video, audio, or some other medium that are samples of an individual's ability and accomplishment.
• Case History Data includes records, transcripts, and other accounts that preserve archival information relevant to an assessee.
• Case study/case history - A report or illustrative account concerning a person or an event that was compiled on the basis of case history data
• Behavioral Observation involves monitoring actions visually or electronically while recording quantitative and/or qualitative data.
• It's often used in inpatient facilities, research laboratories, and classrooms.
• Naturalistic observation observes behavior in a natural setting.
• Role-Play Tests direct assessees to act as if they are in a particular situation to assess expressed thoughts, behaviors, abilities, and other variables.
• Formats can range from live scenarios with actors or computer-generated simulations.
• Computers can administer tests and efficiently score them on-site, locally, or centrally.
• Central processing involves sending test data for analysis, delivering simple or extended scoring reports with statistical analyses of performance. -Interpretive reports include numerical and interpretive statements. -Consultative reports provide expert opinions. -Integrative reports combine data from other sources.
• Computer adaptive testing (CAT) tailors tests to the testtaker, while computer-assisted psychological assessment (CAPA) supports test users.
• Q-Interactive administers tests via iPads with Bluetooth.
• "Test-client integrity" (Naglieri, et al., 2004) verifies testtaker identity online.
• Other tools include DVDs, interactive online programs such as virtual reality, thermometers, biofeedback equipment, and penile plethysmographs.

People Involved in Assessment

• Test developers and publishers create tests and methods of assessment.
• Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing details responsible test development and use.
• It covers test construction/evaluation, test administration/use, and special applications.
• It's authored by the American Educational Research Association, the American Psychological Association, and the National Council on Measurement in Education.
• Test users include clinicians, counselors, school, industrial-organizational, consumer, experimental and social psychologists, and human resources personnel.
• A testtaker or an assessee is anyone who is the subject of an assessment or an evaluation.
• Tests can also be used on groups like society at large, organizations, companies, government agencies, and academicians

Settings for Assessments

• Assessments are commonly conducted in educational, clinical, counseling, geriatric, business, military, government, organizational credentialing, academic research, and other settings.
• Educational settings use school ability, achievement, and diagnostic tests, as well as informal evaluation.
• Clinical settings employ tests to screen for or diagnose behavioral problems, including intelligence, personality, and neuropsychological tests for individuals.
• Counseling settings aim to improve adjustment, productivity, and related variables, measuring academic and social skills, personality, interests, attitudes, and values.
• Geriatric settings use psychological assessments to evaluate cognitive, psychological, and adaptive functioning, along with quality of life evaluations.
• Business and military settings use achievement, aptitude, interest, and motivational tests for hiring and promotions.
• They also use tools to assess consumer preferences and predict receptivity to products.
• Governmental and organizational credentialing assesses licensing and certification.
• Academic research settings are also areas where assessments are frequently conducted
• Other settings include courts, government programs, and health psychology, using individual interviews, surveys, and paper/pencil tests.

Sources of Information About Tests

• Test catalogs provide a general description, including what it does and with whom it's designed to be used
• The test manual is the most detailed source, offering information on standardization, administration, and psychometric soundness.
• Professional books supplement test manuals for assessment professionals.
• Reference volumes (e.g., Mental Measurements Yearbook) contain descriptions and critical reviews of tests by third parties.
• Journal articles offer up-to-date reviews and studies of psychometric soundness.
• Online databases (e.g., ERIC, PsycTESTS, PsycINFO) offer varying amounts of detail.
• The Educational Testing Service (ETS) in Princeton, New Jersey, is known for the SAT and GRE.
• Also, directories of Unpublished Experimental Mental Measures are helpful