Psychological Testing NYC: What Does a Psychological Evaluation Really Tell You?
Sometimes it might even be difficult to see what really is going on.
The kid seems okay at home despite difficulties in school. The teenager begins to become withdrawn, anxious, or extra grumpy. The adult is spending many years trying to figure out what is wrong with attention, organization, emotion, and relationship control that feels more difficult for him/her than for other people.
In such cases, the single look at one symptom will not show everything.
And here is when Psychological Testing is needed.
According to the definition of the American Psychological Association, psychological testing is a set of procedures aimed to gather detailed information about a person's psychological functioning. Clinical interviews, observations, assessment tools, and other information are used in the process of psychological testing. Psychological assessment is defined by the APA as a bigger problem solving process, which includes test information and other sources of data.
Families who want to find Psychological Testing NYC do not just want to get a diagnosis.
They want to know the person better.
What Is Psychological Testing?
Psychological testing refers to using standardized tests intended to assess various aspects of functioning.
The following domains can be assessed depending on the purpose of the evaluation:
Attention and concentration
Memory
Learning and academic functioning
Emotional functioning
Behavior
Personality traits
Cognitive skills
Executive functioning
Social and interpersonal functioning
Symptoms related to such disorders as ADHD, anxiety disorder, depression, and others
Not everybody requires the same tests.
A sound psychological assessment starts with a question: What is our target?
The answer to this question will help us select proper assessment techniques.
Why Would Someone Need Psychological Testing?
The parents may need assessment if their child is having problems in the school.
The individual might want an assessment after many years of having organizational and concentration problems.
The adolescent may be undergoing some confusing emotional changes.
The individuals might already have a diagnosis but would like to have a better understanding of their assets, weaknesses, and treatment needs.
Assessment should be considered if there are problems that are:
Persistent
Having effects on schooling or working
Impairing interpersonal relationships
Affecting emotional health
Challenging to comprehend based on the symptoms
Not getting better with the help currently offered
In the case of children and adolescents, a complete evaluation will consider the developmental history, academic performance, family background, behavior, emotional concerns, and information gathered from the parents or any other significant adult. According to AACAP
, complete assessments should consider information from a variety of sources rather than from a single visit or test.
Psychological Testing vs. Neuropsychological Testing: What's the Difference?
However, these terms are often interchangeable, although they do not always refer to the same thing.
Psychological testing may assess emotions, behaviors, personality, cognition, or other psychological aspects, depending on the goal of the evaluation.
In contrast, neuropsychological testing tends to be more focused on the relationship between brain functioning and attention, memory, language, reasoning, processing speed, and executive functions.
The kind of testing recommended depends on the question being answered.
For instance, a child having problems at school may benefit from testing that takes into account learning and cognition.
An individual who experiences high levels of anxiety would probably require a different kind of assessment.
An individual concerned about his/her attention problems would probably benefit from testing that allows for an examination of attention, executive functioning, emotional considerations, and other possibilities.
The crucial point here is that testing should be question-driven, rather than test-driven.
What Can Psychological Testing Help Identify?
Psychological testing is no magical remedy for solving every issue at hand.
It might assist one in making sense out of the information and gaining a more organized insight into what was previously hard to see.
Depending on the test taken, some issues might relate to:
ADHD and Attention Difficulties
Problems concentrating do not always mean ADHD.
Other issues like stress, anxiety, difficulty sleeping, different ways of learning, depression, among others, can interfere with concentration as well.
An evaluation will help place these attention difficulties in perspective.
Learning Difficulties
Some kids who work very hard still have trouble with reading, writing, math, organizing things, or following complex instructions.
Tests might reveal what their strengths and weaknesses are.
Cognitive Functioning
Assessments can offer insight into various areas of cognitive functioning, based on the specific assessment.
Reasoning, memory, attention, processing, problem-solving, and others can be among those areas.
Insight into strengths and weaknesses can be helpful in providing recommendations.
What Happens During Psychological Testing?
However, many people think of psychological tests as sitting in a room answering hundreds of questions.
This procedure can be much more personalized in reality.
1. First Interview
The procedure usually starts with finding out the reason for conducting the evaluation.
Questions can cover present problems, personal development history, school or work performance, medical history, past diagnoses, treatment, etc.
2. Choosing the Suitable Test
There is no universal psychological test that covers all questions.
Tests depend on age, problems, history, and objectives of the test.
APA stresses that ethical psychological assessment involves appropriate qualifications and the combination of standardized testing with professional judgment and pertinent information.
3. Conducting the Psychological Test
According to the type of evaluation, a person has to undertake some standardized tasks, take some questionnaires, or undergo some interviews.
In case of a child, parents, teachers, or other care-takers can provide useful information too.
4. Interpretation of the Results
It is the clinician who interprets the results, as opposed to giving the family a set of numbers.
The point here is to comprehend what the results signify within the particular framework of the individual's past and current situation.
5. Recommendations
An effective evaluation would be followed by concrete actions to take.
The recommendations can pertain to different areas of treatment, education, behavior, and more.
Does Psychological Testing Give You a Diagnosis?
Sometimes, testing helps form a diagnosis, yet testing does not consist of mere checklists.
Typically, a diagnosis includes several sources of information, such as symptoms, history, functioning, and interviews along with assessment data.
According to the APA guidelines, a psychological assessment should include an interaction of test findings, clinical judgment, and other information as opposed to merely looking at test results.
Such an approach is especially important when it comes to children.
A child who is unable to focus in school can suffer from ADHD, anxiety, lack of sleep, learning problems, stress, or any combination of the above.
The goal of a comprehensive assessment is to explore these possible causes.
What Should Parents Know About Psychological Testing for Children?
Many parents wonder if a test suggests there is "something wrong" with their child.
There is not.
Children progress at different rates, and there are lots of reasons why they might struggle.
Psychological testing does not just assess areas where children are struggling but may uncover strengths.
For instance, a child may have advanced verbal reasoning but slow processing speed or an inability to sustain attention.
A child may also have superior memory skills but poor emotional regulation.
Recognizing this profile of strengths and weaknesses can assist families, teachers, and psychologists in formulating the right kind of interventions.
The American Psychological Association defines the field of clinical child and adolescent psychology as addressing psychological, cognitive, emotional, developmental, and behavioral issues within a child's wider social environment.
How Long Does Psychological Testing Take?
No one-size-fits-all approach can be used.
The length of the assessment will depend on why the assessment was ordered, the age of the individual being assessed, the number of tests and their type, and the complexity of the issues at hand.
While some tests may be shorter, others will need more time in order to be thorough.
What is important is not only completing the test quickly but having gathered sufficient information in order to answer the clinical questions.
What Makes a Psychological Evaluation Useful?
The psychological evaluation becomes very useful when it helps to answer some real questions.
Rather than just stating:
"These are your scores."
It is more helpful when it can help to understand:
"What are his/her strengths?"
"Where does he/she struggle?"
"What might cause such struggles?"
"How do these problems impact his/her functioning?"
"What kind of help might he/she need?"
That is why the interpretation and recommendations become equally important as the tests.
Psychological Testing in NYC With Dr. Andrew Lima
Psychological testing is one of the services offered at Center for Cognitive Growth as a way of addressing various issues related to cognition, emotions, behavior, and learning.
The center’s address is 928 Broadway, Suite 305, New York, NY 10010. The website provides details of full evaluations of such issues as ADHD, learning disabilities, and cognitive functioning.
According to the center, Dr. Andrew Lima, PsyD is a licensed child and adolescent psychologist and health psychologist with neuropsychological testing, qEEG brain mapping, neurofeedback, biofeedback, and psychological treatment.
This wider approach can be quite useful when overlapping symptoms are in question.
Thus, difficulty concentrating may be associated with such problems as attention, anxiety, sleeping, learning, stress, or multiple issues all at once.
Such an evaluation could make the difference in moving away from “Why is this happening?” to “How can we address this?”
Frequently Asked Questions About Psychological Testing NYC
What is psychological testing?
Psychological testing refers to a set of standardized measures and clinical data collected to learn about aspects of a person such as cognition, emotions, behaviors, personality, attention, and learning.
Who could benefit from psychological testing?
Psychological testing may help children, adolescents, and adults whose emotional, behavioral, cognitive, learning, or attentional problems are persistent and hard to figure out.
Does psychological testing apply to children only?
Not necessarily. Psychological testing can be conducted with people of all ages, depending on the clinical question being asked.
Does psychological testing help diagnose ADHD?
Testing is useful in contributing information towards an ADHD diagnosis, although ADHD cannot be diagnosed using one test alone. An individual's symptoms, history, functioning, and data from appropriate settings would be considered by the clinician.
Is psychological testing the same as neuropsychological evaluation?
Not necessarily. While there are some similarities between psychological and neuropsychological testing, neuropsychological evaluations tend to focus more on brain functioning, including memory, attention, processing speed, and executive functioning, among others.
Would you give me recommendations following the testing?
Recommendations as a component of the comprehensive evaluation are always provided.
When to Consider Psychological Testing
There is no need to wait until the issue has become overwhelming to start asking questions.
If your child is underperforming in school, you yourself have trouble with paying attention consistently, or emotional and behavioral issues are affecting your daily activities, you might find out more with an assessment.
Psychological testing is not about putting a person in a box.
Its purpose is to get to know the individual better.
In case of families looking for psychological testing in NYC, the proper evaluation will take into consideration not just the isolated symptoms, but the entire picture, including strengths, weaknesses, past, environment, and functioning.
Our assessments at Center for Cognitive Growth located in Manhattan provide people and their families with more clarity on their needs.
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