PS280 Chapter Notes - Chapter 4: Intellectual Giftedness, Mental Status Examination, Twin
Document Summary
Psychological assessment a systematic gathering and evaluation of information pertaining to an individual with suspected abnormal behaviour: usually results in a diagnosis, can appraise social, psychological, and/or biological factors. A good diagnosis hinges on the development of accurate assessment tools. Psychological assessment is not a single score but a series of scores placed within the context of the history, referral information, behavioural observations, and life of an individual in order to provide a comprehensive understanding of them. A test is only a sample of behaviour a tool to be used in process of assessment. May also be used for school placement, to assess the progression of a disorder or to evaluate the success of a treatment. Good assessment tools depend on two things: accurate ability to measure some aspect of the person being assessed, knowledge of how people in general fare on such a measure for purposes of comparison. To be useful, any test must be both reliable and valid.
