Home Study Psychological Assessment Course
"Learn about psychological assessment."
" The online courses are very easy to use and follow. Prompt friendly replies from tutor to any queries. Course structure flows freely. Very satisfied with course and results..."
- Diana (completed ACS Online course in Intro to Psych and Psych & Counselling)
Psychological tests assess and evaluate information that is given to the examiner by the client. This information is in the form of answers to interview questions or as answers on paper—or on a computer—to specific questions. Ultimately, a test’s accuracy depends on how carefully and seriously the client answers the questions they are asked.
What is a psychological assessment?
A psychological assessment is when a skilled psychologist uses the techniques and tools of psychology to learn general or specific facts about another person, either to information others how they function or to predict their behaviour and functioning in the future.
Mahoney and Ward (1976) stated that assessments –
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Often use tests
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Typically, do not follow defined procedures or steps
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Contribute to a decision making process to some problem, often be redefining a problem, breaking the problem down into smaller pieces or highlighting parts of a problem
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Requires that the examiner considers, evaluates and integrates the data
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Is less inflexible and routine
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Is individualised
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Produces results that cannot be solely evaluated on psychometric grounds
Assessment is usually for the point of diagnosis or classification. That is, placing a person into a loosely or strictly defined category of people. This allows us to understand what they are like in general and assess the presence of other relevant characteristics based on people similar to them.
TYPES OF PSYCHOLOGICAL TESTS
The understanding behind psychometric tests is that if things such as intelligence and personality exist, we should be able to measure them.
Psychological tests fall into several categories:
Achievement tests are usually seen in educational or employment settings, and they attempt to measure how much you know about a certain topic (i.e., your achieved knowledge), such as mathematics or spelling.
Aptitude tests are also generally used in educational and employment settings, and they attempt to measure how much of a capacity you have (i.e., your aptitude) to master material in a particular area, such as mechanical relationships.
Intelligence tests attempt to measure your intelligence, or your basic ability to understand the world around you, assimilate its functioning, and apply this knowledge to enhance the quality of your life. Intelligence, therefore, is a measure of a potential, not a measure of what you’ve learned (as in an achievement test), and so it is supposed to be independent of culture. The trick is to design a test that can actually be culture-free; most intelligence tests fail in this area to some extent for one reason or another.
Neuropsychological tests attempt to measure deficits in cognitive functioning (i.e., your ability to think, speak, reason, etc.) that may result from some sort of brain damage, such as a stroke or a brain injury.
Occupational tests attempt to match your interests with the interests of persons in known professions. The logic here is that if the things that interest you in life match up with, say, the things that interest most school teachers, then you might make a good school teacher yourself.
Personality tests attempt to measure your basic personality style and are most used in research or forensic settings to help with clinical diagnoses. Two of the most well-known personality tests are
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the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI), composed of several hundred “yes or no” questions, and
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the Rorschach (the “inkblot test”), composed of several cards of inkblots—you simply give a description of the images and feelings you experience in looking at the blots.
Specific clinical tests attempt to measure specific clinical matters, such as your current level of anxiety or depression.
COURSE AIM
To explain why and how to use psychological assessment, and the different types of assessment available.
CONTENT
There are seven lessons in this module, as follows:
1. Introduction
- What is psychological assessment
- Types of psychological tests
- Achievement tests
- Aptitude tests
- Intelligence tests
- Occupational tests
- Personality tests
- History of psychological testing
- Justification for using tests
- Advantages and disadvantages of using psychometric testing
- Ethnicity and different cultures
- Psychological testing of language minority and culturally different children
- Why your child should be tested
- Why it is important for parents to know about testing
- Validity and reliability
- Construct, discriminant and convergent validity
- Test retest reliability
2. Context of Clinical Assessment
- Ethical practice
- Confidentiality
- Case study: confidentiality
- Informed consent
- Record keeping
- Dual relationships
- Professional boundaries
- Selecting tests
- Case study: ethics and lie detection
- Computer assisted assessment
- Virtual reality; new tool for psychological assessment
- Personality traits and designing a questionnaire
- Weaknesses
- Ambiguity and bias
- Closed and open questions
3. The Assessment Interview
- The interview
- Screening for psychological disorders
- Structured and unstructured interviews
- SCID
- Assessing Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) among veterans
- Screening and referral procedure overview
- If patient refuses referral to mental health care
- Use of a primary care screen
- Discussing screening results with patients
- Discern if traumatic events are ongoing
- Making a recommendation
- Scheduling a follow up
- Psychomentric properties of SCID
4. Behavioural Assessment
- Behaviourism
- Kinds of consequences
- Reinforcers
- Intrinsic and extrinsic reinforcers
- Consequences and timing
- The premack principle
- Extinction
- Criticisms of behaviourism
- Methods of behavioural assessment
- The focus of assessment
- Functional analysis
- Analysis of problem behaviour
- Motivational analysis
- Behavioural vs traditional assessment
5. Wehsler Intelligence Scales
- Introduction
- Measuring intelligence
- Cognitive, cognitive contextural and biological theories
- Psychometric theories
- Wechsler Intelligence scales
- Normal results
- Sub tests, verbal subtests, performance subtests
- Cultural bias
- Precautions with intelligence testing
- The intelligence test as a tool
6. Wechsler Memory scales
- Memory
- Wechsler Memory test
- Wechsler Memory Scale III
7. Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory
- Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) Assessment
Problems - False negatives; false positives
Nominal Duration: 100 hours
What qualification will I achieve for completing this course?
This is an individual module course. The individual module courses are 100 hour long usually and can be taken on their own or as part of a larger program of study.
If you wish to take an individual module course as a stand alone course, you can elect to sit an optional exam at the end of it.
If you successfully pass the exam and all assignments, you will receive a Statement of Attainment. You can take examinations at a time and location to suit you. If you enrol, you will be sent further information on how to arrange examinations at the end of the course.
If you do not wish to take the exam, you will receive a Course Completion letter when you have passed all assignments.
There is an assignment at the end of each lesson. So for example, if an individual module course contains ten lessons, you will need to complete ten assignments. Assignments can be sent to us via email, post or fax.
Other qualifications, such as certificates, diplomas etc may require examinations to be taken as part of the overall assessment process.
You can find further information on the examinations process by clicking on the “Enrolment” link above.
You can find further information on other courses by clicking on the “Courses” link above.
Aims
- Explain the main kinds of psychological tests and why they are used, and meaning of test reliability and validity
- Explain ethical and other factors that constrain clinical assessment
- Describe a structured and an unstructured interview
- Explain behavioural assessment and how it can be conducted
- Discuss Wechsler scales in detail
- Explain the purpose and use of the Wechsler Memory Test
- Explain the purpose and usage of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory
EXAMPLES OF WHAT YOU MAY DO IN THIS COURSE
Consider why are reliability and validity important in Psychological Assessment (500 words)?
List and describe the different types of validity.
List and describe the different types of reliability.
Discuss the advantage and disadvantages of using psychometric tests.
What are the following tests used for –
a) Achievement tests?
b) Aptitude tests?
c) Intelligence tests?
d) Occupational tests?
Consider -Have you ever taken a group or individual achievement or intelligence test? If so:
a. Describe your general impressions of the test and the testing situation.
b. Describe your perceptions of the purposes of administering the tests.
c. What outcomes occurred as a result of your participation? What impact (if any) did the test taking experience(s) have on your life?
d. How you felt during testing. What factors might have enhanced or negatively affected your performance? What sources of error may have been operating?
If you have not taken such a test, ask someone who has.
What do you consider characteristics of a "good" test and a "bad" test?
Give different examples of test formats (e.g., computerized tests). What has your own experience been with computerized tests? How do the advantages of computer-assisted psychological assessment from the standpoint of the test user, compare to your perceptions as the test taker?
Using your friends’ comments on the test you designed in the set task, discuss how you could improve your questionnaire.
Other courses that may interest you or may be relevant if you wish to pursue a career in psychometric testing are –
http://www.acsedu.co.uk/Courses/Psychology/ABNORMAL-PSYCHOLOGY-BPS307-509.aspx Abnormal psychology
http://www.acsedu.co.uk/Courses/Business-and-Management/INDUSTRIAL-PSYCHOLOGY-BPS103-444.aspx Industrial Psychology
http://www.acsedu.co.uk/Courses/Business-and-Management/MARKETING-PSYCHOLOGY-BPS107-399.aspx Marketing Psychology
If you would like to see our range of psychology books, please visit - http://www.acsbookshop.com/books_productcategory.aspx?id=14
For more information on the range of careers available in psychology, have a look at - http://www.thecareersguide.com/articles.aspx?category=14
We have some interesting articles on psychology and counseling at - http://www.acs.edu.au/psychol/
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