Psychological Testing

Psychological testing may sound intimidating, but it's designed to help you. Psychologists use tests and other assessment tools to measure and observe a client’s behavior to arrive at a diagnosis and guide treatment. Only a psychologist can offer evaluations. Medical doctors and psychiatrists don’t have the necessary training or expertise to conduct evaluations.

What is It?

What is a "Standardized" Test?

What is a "Norm-Referenced" Test?

How is Testing Done?

What Happens After the Evaluation?

Psychological testing is similar to a medical test. When a patient has symptoms of an illness, their doctor may order lab tests or x-rays to understand what's causing those symptoms. The results of the tests will help inform develop a treatment plan.

Psychological testing has the same goal. Psychologists use tests to objectively measure a client's behavior, personality, learning, and cognitive functioning to arrive at a diagnosis and guide treatment.

A psychological assessment can include numerous components such as norm-referenced psychological tests, informal tests and surveys, interview information, school or medical records, medical evaluation and observational data. A psychologist determines what information to use based on the specific questions being asked. For example, assessments can be used to determine if a person has a learning disorder, is competent to stand trial or has a traumatic brain injury. They can also be used to determine if a person would be a good manager or how well they may work with a team.

Testing involves the use of structured tests that measure personality, intelligence, memory, executive function skills, attention, and learning. A structured test has been standardized so that every test-taker is evaluated the same way as any other test-taker, no matter who administers the test. A standardized test is objective, which means that the ratings made on the test are not based on opinion, but are based on strict rating criteria.

When a test is “norm-referenced” it allows a test taker’s performance to be compared with 1000s of other people who have taken the same test. In this way, the psychologist can determine whether the test taker’s scores are “average” or “below” or “above” average compared with the standardization sample.

Norm-referenced testing of a child's reading abilities, for example, may rank that child's ability compared to other children of similar age or grade level. Norm-referenced tests have been developed and evaluated by researchers and proven to be effective for measuring a particular trait or disorder.

The way I conduct evaluations involves several steps. For people under age 18, the first step is a parent-only appointment in order to help me gather important background information, medical and psychological history, and information concerning current and past symptoms. For people 18 and over, the first appointment is a clinical interview with the tester which accomplishes the same goals as the parent-only appointment for children. You will go home with some paperwork, including questionnaires to complete.

The next visit for a child is a clinical interview for me to speak with the child to hear what their complaints are and to establish rapport.

The next 2 or 3 visits (for children) or 1 2-hour visit (for adults) consist of taking the standardized, norm-referenced tests. What tests are used depends on what the concerns are. The test battery can include an IQ test, a memory test, an attention test, or an academic achievement test.

Psychological tests are not one-size-fits-all. Psychologists pick and choose a specific set of assessments and tests for each individual client. And not just anyone can perform a psychological evaluation. Licensed clinical psychologists are expertly trained to administer assessments and tests and interpret the results.

Psychological testing isn't like taking a multiple-choice exam that you either pass or fail. Rather, psychologists use information from the various tests and assessments to reach a specific diagnosis and develop a treatment plan.

In many cases, psychologists who administer tests will then treat patients with psychotherapy. Some psychologists focus only on evaluating patients, and then refer them to other specialists for treatment after they've made a diagnosis. In either case, the testing and assessment process will help ensure that the client receives treatment that's tailored to his or her individual needs. In my practice, I refer the tester out for intervention. I will make an individualized referral to the best professional to help with the tester’s concerns. I will also make other recommendations, including whether or not medication would help, what kinds of accommodations can be made for you at school or work, and what strategies would be helpful for you to adopt to help address your symptoms.