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1. Introduction to Clinical/ Psychological Assessment

2. What Is Psychological Assessment

3. DEFINITIONS Scoring: The procedure of assigning a numerical value to assessment task. Assessment : The process of measuring something with the purpose of assigning a numerical value . DEFINITION OF ASSESSMENT: Assessment is a process in which collecting, analyzing, organizing information about a client to make and inform decision . According to APA (1999) “A psychological assessment is a comprehensive examination undertaken to answer specific question about a client’s psychological functioning during a particular time interval or to predict a client’s psychological functioning in the future.”

4. Conti… Defined as a way of testing people about their behavior, personality, and capabilities to draw conclusions using combinations of techniques. Psychological assessment is a process of testing that uses a combination of techniques to help arrive at some hypotheses about a person and their behavior, personality and capabilities.

5. Conti.. A psychological assessment evaluates Thinking learning Behavior Intelligence Interest etc

6. Psychological assessment is also known as Psychological Evaluation and Psychological Measurement. Clinical assessment is and probably will remain as much art as science, though grounded in disciplined thinking and knowledge. Clinical assessment describes any act by which clinician gain information about his client. Effectiveness of the assessment depends on the skills and wisdom of the clinician.

7. Types of Assessment

8. Types of Assessment Informal Assessment Clinical Observation Unstructured Interviews Formal Assessment Standardized Test Structured Interviews

9. Tasks of the Clinician To describe client’s personality structure and dynamics, his/her assets as well as failings.

10. Why Have an Assessment A psychological assessment is helpful in identifying strengths and weaknesses of the client. By detecting problems, an assessment can be used to assist in planning a program for the client, to identify needs, and to help you access resources in your community.

11. CLINICAL ASSESSMENT Clinical assessment is a way of diagnosing and planning treatment Evaluation of a patient's physical condition and prognosis based on information gathered. It involves the patient's medical history Psychological history Academic/ professional history. Physical screening Psychiatric/psychological screening

12. HISTORY OF ASSESSMENT: Chinese used testing some 4000 years ago for job selection purposes and appeared to be a test- dominated society Civil service examinations. Candidates were also assessed for their ability to memorize and understand the objects. Formal procedures were established. By the seventeenth century post-renaissance philosophers began to look at ideas, events and phenomena in more scientific ways, leading to a new way of thinking called ‘empiricism’. Experimental psychologists such as Wilhelm Wundt and Hermann discovered that psychological phenomena could be described in rational and quantitative ways. Galton was the first to emphasize the importance of individual differences, created the first tests of mental ability and was the first to use questionnaires, he founded psychometrics. constructed a series of tests.(cognitive process and daily life problem). Child ability in different ages . Performance test. Stanford– Binet Intelligence Test . designed techniques for measurement scales, for the assessment of attitudes and developed test theory.

13. ASSESSMENT TYPES Formative - for performance enhancement Formal - quizzes, tests, essays, lab reports, psychological tests etc . Summative - for performance assessment Informal - active questioning during and at end of session Four ways to gain information about another person Ask the person himself Ask someone who knows the person Observe the person as he behave naturally Observe the person in standardized test situation

14. GOALS OF ASSESSMENT: Initial screening and diagnosis. Differential diagnosis. Evaluating current performance and intervention. Monitoring intervention effectiveness. Making decision for termination of intervention. Diagnostic Classification and Description Treatment Planning Prediction

15. DIFFERENCES BETWEEN ASSESSMENT AND EVALUATION Assessment Assessment is done to determine the current level. Assessment is exploratory in nature. Collecting and analysis of data. Ongoing process. Diagnostic . Flexible. cooperative Evaluation Current level compared with previous level. Evaluation is confirmatory in nature. Application of value of judgment. Summative process. Judgmental. Fixed. Competitive.

16. DIFFERENCES BETWEEN ASSESSMENT AND TESTING Assessment Assessment is a broad process. Provides qualitative and quantitative data. Structured and flexible. Testing Testing is a part of assessment. Provide only quantitative data. Structured un flexible

17. EVALUATION TYPES Criterion-referenced evaluation -- student performance is assessed against a set of predetermined standards Norm-referenced evaluation -- student performance is assessed relative to the other students. THE PURPOSE OF CLINICAL ASSESSMENT Understanding the whole person Gather information from different sources Case history of the client Past and present life situations are also considered. comprehensive picture of the client's life, which helps in determining the diagnosis and course of treatment.

18. Stages in the Assessment Process Preparation Input Processing Output

19. STEPS IN THE ASSESSMENT PROCESS STEP Step 1 : Deciding What Is Being Assessed The assessment process begins with a series of questions. Is there a significant psychological problem? What is the nature of this person's problem? Is the problem primarily one of the emotion, thought, or behavior ?

20. Step 2:DETERMINING ALL THE GOALS OF ASSESMENT The second step in the process of clinical assessment is the formulation of the psychologist's goal in a particular case. Goals may include diagnostic classification, determination of the severity of a problem , risk screening for future problems and evaluation of the effects of treatment , and prediction about the likelihood of certain types of future behavior.

21. Step 3:SELECTING STANDARDS FOR MAKING DECISIONS  Making decisions about the information and decisions and judgments require points of reference for comparison. Standards are used to determine if a problem exists, how severe a problem is, and whether the individual has evidenced improvement over a specified period of time.

22. STEP 4: COLLECTING ASSESSMENT DATA Psychologist they must decide which of many methods will be used to assess the targets that have been selected.  These choices include the use of structured or unstructured clinical interviews, reviews of the individual's history from school or medical records, measurements of physiological functioning.  Interviews can be relatively open ended.  preferences or style of the individual psychologist, or highly structured in which a series of questions asked.

23. STEP 5: MAKING DECISIONS The information obtained in the psychological assessment process is valuable only to the extent that it can be used in making important decisions about the person or persons who are the focus of assessment . The goals of assessment--diagnosis, screening, prediction, and evaluation of intervention—determine the types of decisions that are made. The decisions that are made on the basis of psychological assessments can have profound effects on people's lives. The process of making decisions is complex and the stakes are high. Therefore, it is important to understand the factors that influence the decisions and judgments made by clinical psychologists and ways to optimize the quality of these decisions

24. STEP 6: COMMUNICATING THE INFORMATION After collecting information that is relevant to the evaluation of an individual and the environments in which she or he functions, scoring the measures that were used , and interpreting the scores, the psychologist is faced with the final task of clinical assessment: communicating this information and interpretations to the interested parties. This communication typically takes the form of a written psychological report shared with the client, and professionals (physicians, teachers, and other mental health professionals), a court of law, or family members who are responsible for the client. The challenges for psychologists in conveying assessment information are many, including the need to be accurate, to provide an explanation of the basis for their judgments, and to communicate free of technical jargon.

25. RELIABILITY AND VALIDITY Reliability : the extent to which an assessment tool is consistent or free from error in measurement Validity : the extent to which an assessment tool measures what it is intended to measure

26. Considerations Psychological testing is nearly always performed by a licensed psychologist, or a psychology trainee (such as an intern). Psychologists are the only profession that is expertly trained to perform and interpret psychological tests. Psychological assessment should never be performed in a vacuum. A part of a thorough assessment of an individual is that they also undergo a full medical examination, to rule out the possibilities of a medical, disease or organic cause for the individual’s symptoms.

27. History Taking Identifying Data Source and Reason of Referral Presenting Complaints Initial Observation History of Present Problem Background Information Family history General home atmosphere History of psychiatry/medical illness in the family Personal history Educational history Occupational history Marital history Medical history Pre-morbid personality Psychological Assessment Tentative Diagnosis Prognosis Case Formulation Summary of Case Formulation Management Plan Short term goals Long term goals Recommendation

28. Cont.. Summary of the Therapeutic Intervention Outcome Limitations Recommendations Session Report References

29. Ethical Considerations Respect for peoples right and dignity Privacy and Confidentiality Unfair discrimination Multiple relationships Informed consent Reliability Validity