Psychological Testing And Assessment

The United States Social Security Administration (SSA) administers two disability programs: Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI), for disabled individuals, and their dependent family members, who have worked and contributed to the Social Security trust funds, and Supplemental Security Income (SSSI), which is a means-tested program based on income and financial assets for adults aged 65 years or older and disabled adults and children. Both programs require that claimants have a disability and meet specific medical criteria in order to qualify for benefits. SSA establishes the presence of a medically-determined impairment in individuals with mental disorders other than intellectual disability through the use of standard diagnostic criteria, which include symptoms and signs. These impairments are established largely on reports of signs and symptoms of impairment and functional limitation. Psychological Testing in the Service of Disability Determination considers the use of psychological tests in evaluating disability claims submitted to the SSA. This report critically reviews selected psychological tests, including symptom validity tests, that could contribute to SSA disability determinations. The report discusses the possible uses of such tests and their contribution to disability determinations. Psychological Testing in the Service of Disability Determination discusses testing norms, qualifications for administration of tests, administration of tests, and reporting results. The recommendations of this report will help SSA improve the consistency and accuracy of disability determination in certain cases.

"Overall, this is an excellent guide to the use and administration of psychological tests. It provides straightforward directions and instructions on how to utilize testing in such a way as to better inform clinical practice. I could see this book as a mainstay on any counselorís bookshelf, especially those who are seeking a way to utilize standardized testing in their practice."--The Professional Counselor Journal ìFinally, a detailed and crystal clear guide to psychological assessment that effectively integrates 'best practices' with the realities of negotiating the mental health care system and insurance providers. I plan to draw on this practical guide in my private practice and to incorporate it as a required text in my advanced counseling assessment classes at both the masterís and doctoral level. This book is a treasure for any mental health professional involved in psychological assessment.î Joseph G. Ponterotto, PhD Professor of Counseling Psychology, Fordham University Standardized psychological testing is often essential for reliably determining the presence of a wide range of psychiatric and personality disorders, along with effectively addressing related issues that may require a psychological referral. This nuts-and-bolts guide to conducting efficient and accurate psychological testing in clinical settings provides mental health professionals with experienced guidance in the entire process, and includes a complete set of forms and templates for all aspects of assessment and testing, from the initial referral and diagnostic interview to the final report. Based on the authorís experience with over two thousand psychological and neuropsychological testing cases, this highly practical book presents a standardized process of assessment, testing, interpretation, report-writing, and presenting feedback to patients, family members, and other professionals. Actual case examples of patients from a wide age range illustrate the assessment and testing process in action. The text provides printed and electronic versions of referral and related forms, initial psychological assessment report templates that include critical areas of coverage for obtaining insurance approval, and interpretation tables for an exceptional inventory of key standardized psychological tests. Integral to the book is a review of psychological tests in seven key categories that most effectively address differential diagnostic dilemmas and related referral questions that clinicians are likely to encounter in practice. It also provides effective strategies for selecting the appropriate tests based on the particular diagnostic questions, guidance for successfully obtaining insurance approval for a targeted yet feasible number of testing hours, and an efficient system for simultaneous test interpretation and report writing. Key Features: Includes an overview of the assessment process, from the initial referral to completion of the final report Features effective reviews of commonly used tests, including neuropsychological, intelligence, personality, and behavioral inventories Includes print and digital templates and forms for all phases of assessment and testing Aids clinicians in both private practice and other health care settings to work within managed care and be effectively reimbursed for services Includes information on conducting forensic competency to stand trial assessments, including the authorís new measure of assessing a defendantís understanding of the legal system

Introductory texts on psychological testing and evaluation historically are not in short supply. Typically, however, such texts have been relatively superficial in their discussion of clinical material and have focused primarily on the theoretical and psychometric properties of indi vidual tests. More practical, clinically relevant presentations of psychological instruments have been confined to individual volumes with advanced and often very technical information geared to the more sophisticated user. Professors in introductory graduate courses are often forced to adopt several advanced texts to cover the material, at the same time helping students wade through unnecessary technical information in order to provide a basic working knowl edge of each test. Understanding Psychological Assessment is an attempt to address these concerns. It brings together into a single volume a broad sampling of the most respected instruments in the psychologist's armamentarium along with promising new tests of cognitive, vocational, and personality functioning. Additionally, it presents the most updated versions of these tests, all in a practical, clearly written format that covers the development, psychometrics, administra tive considerations, and interpretive hypotheses for each instrument. Clinical case studies allow the reader to apply the interpretive guidelines to real clinical data, thereby reinforcing basic understanding of the instrument and helping to insure that both the student and practi tioner can actually begin to use the test. Understanding Psychological Assessment includes cognitive and personality tests for adults, children, and adolescents, as well as chapters on the theory of psychological measurement and integrated report writing.

Psychological Testing: A Practical Approach to Design and Evaluation offers a fresh and innovative approach for graduate students and faculty in the fields of testing, measurement, psychometrics, research design, and related areas of study. Author Theresa J.B. Kline guides readers through the process of designing and evaluating a test, while ensuring that the test meets the highest professional standards. The author uses simple, clear examples throughout and fully details the required statistical analyses. Topics include—but are not limited to—design of item stems and responses; sampling strategies; classical and modern test theory; IRT program examples; reliability of tests and raters; validation using content, criterion-related, and factor analytic approaches; test and item bias; and professional and ethical issues in testing.

In today's time-pressured managed care environment, it is important for clinicians to quickly identify the nature of a patient's problem and initiate treatment. With thousands of psychological instruments available, this can often be difficult. This book offers a form of psychological assessment "triage." It eliminates the guesswork and helps psychologists quickly select, administer, and interpret psychological tests.

This book explains the psychological assessment process and reviews the origins of psychological testing, referral and testing processes, and prominent psychological assessment instruments. Most important, this book details how to evaluate testing data and use them to understand an individual’s needs and to inform interventions and treatments. This book addresses specific domains of psychological assessment, including: · Intelligence and academic achievement. · Speech-language and visual-motor abilities. · Memory, attention/concentration, and executive functioning. · Behavioral and social-emotional functioning. · Developmental status. Practical Guide to Child and Adolescent Psychological Testing is an essential resource for clinicians, primary care providers, and other practitioners as well as researchers, professors, and graduate students in the fields of child, school, and developmental psychology, pediatrics and social work, child and adolescent psychiatry, primary care medicine, and related disciplines.

Discover a comprehensive and practical guide to the use of tele-assessments in psychological testing from two leading voices in psychology. Essentials of Psychological Tele-Assessment delivers a primer on the current state of professional knowledge related to psychological tele-assessment, ranging from the ethical and empirical considerations to the practical applications of tele-assessment procedures. The overarching framework encourages the balancing of the limitations of the current state of the research literature with the very real needs for assessment services to continue, even when in-person procedures are not feasible. This book includes discussion on a broad range of tests and measures, with information related to both the state of the empirical support for tele-tests and measures, with information related to both the state of the empirical support for tele-assessment utilizing them and the practical 'how-to' for administering, scoring and interpreting data that emerge from them. Additionally, frameworks for integrating the data that emerge from tele-assessment procedures are discussed. The book is applicable to those transitioning to tele-assessment practice and those training in a wide variety of training programs. Readers will also benefit from the inclusion of: Practical checklists and information about specific tests must be adapted to the realities of the tele-health environment. Information about how the results of tests should be interpreted differently to account for the tele-health environment. Case examples and studies to illustrate many of the challenges of working in tele-assessment Guidance on how to balance the limitations of the state of the empirical literature on the validity of tele-assessment with the real-world needs of clients. Perfect for psychologists and trainees in a variety of health services, including clinical, counseling, school and forensic psychology, Essentials of Psychological Tele-Assessment will also earn a place in the libraries of anyone utilizing or training in cognitive, developmental, neuropsychological, psychoanalytic, psychodynamic, and interpersonal models of psychological assessment.