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Psychological testing of children is a
concept that is not well understood by many parents or
people not familiar with psychological methods. Phrases and
terms such as "psychometric testing" or "assessment instrument" can
in fact sound invasive and scary. Nothing could be further from the
truth.
Psychologists use their knowledge to
help children overcome their difficulties and to
enhance their well being. Psychological assessment is part of this
process. Under most circumstances, relying only on clinical
judgments is unreliable and irresponsible. Without a
systematic approach to evaluate children's functioning,
professionals could be wrong. Reliably evaluating children's
functioning requires the combination of subjective judgment and
objective measures.
The following
paragraphs contain brief information related to both psychological
tests and the interview process. More information is available on
our test development page
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PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATIONS
Administering psychological tests is a relatively
straight forward process. Strict guidelines prescribe how to
introduce tests to children, what instructions to use and how
to explain test items. The difficult part of the assessment is
often not the assessment itself, but the interpretation
of observational information and test results. This is a
delicate process where clinicians "put the jigsaw puzzle pieces
together". During this process clinical judgment may override test
results, or vice versa, test results may challenge the clinician's
opinion. A good clinician will know how to use test results and at
the same time how to rely on his/her opinion.
For the above outlined reasons, ethical
guidelines strictly regulate access to standardised
tests. Without appropriate training and expertise,
psychological tests should NOT be administered and
interpreted. |
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TESTS
Tests are
simply measuring devices or procedures. Psychological tests are
highly specialised and aim to measure psychological constructs, such
as intelligence, personality, attitudes, emotional functioning, or
educational ability. This is where psychological tests differ
greatly. What essentially differentiates a good test from a bad (or
not so good) test is the test's capacity to measure what it intends
to measure. For example, a questionnaire about one's dietary intake
may be a good test of eating habits, but not a good test of
emotional functioning.
When psychologists talk about
"psychometric assessments", they talk about a differential approach
to assessment. The differential approach is a theory based model and
holds the view that psychological constructs, such as intelligence,
can be measured by appropriately designed tests. Performance on
these tests will reveal individual differences related to different
mental skills and attributes.
To
ensure that psychological tests appropriately measure what
they intend to measure, statistical methods are used at the
test development stage. For example, a good
test of intelligence will have items related to
different intellectual processes, including verbal
ability, non-verbal ability, processing speed and memory.
These areas all related to intelligence, and therefore should
be included in a good intelligence test. However, they should
be also balanced and representative. Statistical analysis
at the beginning of test development ensures that items are
balanced and tap into the same
construct.
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INFORMATION
SOURCES
Test results are useful to understand a
child's functioning. However, arriving at a final
conclusion based on a single test result, or even on several
different test results, can be a serious mistake.
Therefore, the collection of relevant background
information, such as medical history, family background and
developmental history, is part of the standard procedure of
child assessment. Yet the type of additional information
required often does not surface until the interview, or
in other cases, until tests are scored and evaluated. For
example, a child may be assessed for learning difficulties,
but may also present with severe behavioural difficulties
and the parents may reveal symptoms consistent with ADHD.
In this case the child's teachers would need to be
contacted to confirm the behavioural observations of both the
parents and the clinician).
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