Testing

What are psychological tests and what are they used for?

A psychological assessment is used to understand an individual’s functioning and behaviour to arrive at a diagnosis and treatment.
Psychologists and psychiatrists conduct tests to understand an individual’s functioning and behavior to arrive at a diagnosis of a mental health issue and the corresponding treatment.

What is a psychological assessment?

Psychological assessment is a series of tests conducted by a psychologist, to gather information about how people think, feel, behave and react. The findings are used to develop a report of the person’s abilities and behavior—known as a psychological report—which is then used as a basis to make recommendations for the individual’s treatment. Psychological assessments and reports are used in other fields as well—like in the case of career planning for young adults or in the job application process to determine how well an applicant will fit into the open role.
The procedures used to create an assessment are:

• 1. Interview
• 2. Observation.
• 3. Written assessment.
• 4. Consultation with other mental health professionals.
• 5. Formal psychological tests.

Psychological assessment is also used in other fields, like:

• • Education—to assess a student’s ability to learn, and progress in the classroom.
• • Legal system—to assess the mental health status of a person.

What is a psychological test?

A psychological test is used to measure an individual’s different abilities, such as their aptitude in a particular field, cognitive functions like memory and spatial recognition, or even traits like introvert Ness. These tests are based on scientifically tested psychological theories. The format of a test can vary from pencil and paper tasks to computer-based ones. They include activities such as puzzle-solving, drawing, logic problem solving, and memory games.
Some tests also use techniques—known as projective techniques—which aim to access the unconscious. In these instances, the subject’s responses are analyzed through psychological interpretation and more complex algorithms than the non-projective techniques mentioned above. For example, the Rorschach test, popularly known as the ink-blot test can provide insight into the person’s personality and emotional functioning.
Psychological tests may also involve observing someone’s interactions and behavior. Based on the result of the test, an inference will be drawn about the individual’s inherent abilities and potential.

When Should You take Assessment Tests?

The assessment tests are done to collect information to identify and evaluate your dear one’s deficiency, plan for treatment and to help in diagnosing. The assessment is done prior to counselling. Assessment tests are designed to peer deep into the problems.
The Assessment Tests Available at Aaditya Foundation are –

• • Intelligence Quotient (IQ) Test
• • Learning Disability (LD) Test.
• • Autism assessments.
• • Personality assessments.
• • Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) Test.

Intelligence Quotient (IQ) Test

Intelligence is a general term referring to the ability to learn and to social demand. The IQ score often represents a measure of the child’s overall potential. An IQ score is typically used as a baseline for all psychological assessments. Based on the child’s IQ score, The child’s overall intellectual functioning can be evaluated. You must check your child’s IQ under the following circumstances.

• • Poor performance in studies.
• • Excessively distractive or hyperactive.
• • Immature behaviour up to their age.

Learning Disability (LD) Test

Intelligence is a general term referring to the ability to learn and to social demand. The IQ score often represents a measure of the child’s overall potential. An IQ score is typically used as a baseline for all psychological assessments. Based on the child’s IQ score, The child’s overall intellectual functioning can be evaluated. You must check your child’s IQ under the following circumstances.

• • Poor reading and writing skills.
• • Difficulty to perform mathematical operations.
• • Attention problems.
• • School anxiety.
• • Difficulty to complete homework independently.
• • Organizational difficulties.

Autism assessments

Autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder, usually diagnosed by the child’s behavior and development. Autism can be detected at 18 months or younger, but by the age two the test is more reliable. Your child must take an autism assessment under the following circumstances.

• • Shortage in social communication and interaction.
• • Restricted and repetitive speech.
• • Motor type movement or use of objects.
• • Difficulty to manage emotions.

Personality assessments

Personality assessment, is used to understand about the characteristic traits, attitudes, beliefs, values, needs, motives, emotional states, coping styles, or aspirations of an adult. A personality scale shows a specific level of personality, relative to others. For example, a personality test containing a single anxiety scale would indicate whether you are more anxious, normal level, or less anxious than people in general. An individual must take a personality test when you feel,

• • Frequently experiencing intense negative emotions.
• • You are not actively engaging with other people.
• • Not pleasant and cooperative to others.
• • Losing self-control.

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) Test

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a brain disorder commonly noticed by inattention, hyperactivity or impulsivity. Some people with ADHD only have problems with one of these deficiencies, but some others have both inattention and hyperactivity-impulsivity. Most children have the combined type of ADHD. In preschool, the most common ADHD symptom is hyperactivity.
But a person with ADD shows enough symptoms of inattention, but the symptom of hyperactivity is absent. Indeed, people with ADD can be calm and serene. It is advisable to take an ADHD or ADD test, under the following symptoms.

• • Inattention.
• • Unfocused motor activity and impulsivity(only for ADHD).
• • Make careless mistakes in schoolwork or at work.
• • Not seem to listen when spoken to directly.
• • Talk nonstop.
• • Have trouble waiting their turn.
• • Interrupt in conversations, games, or activities.

What do psychological tests measure?

We offer Psychological testing in a number of different areas:
 

1.Mental health assessment

A mental health assessment includes information about a person’s medical history, their family history, and the current status of their mental health. The assessment helps identify if there are any mental health issues present, and determine a diagnosis and treatment accordingly.
 A psychologist or psychiatrist is likely to start an appointment with a mental health assessment, which will enable them to correctly diagnose and treat you.
 

2.Adaptive behavior assessments

This measures the social and practical skills of a person, to determine their ability to function on a daily basis at home, school or work; and are usually conducted along with cognitive tests.
 For example, it may be used to assess a child’s ability to function in social activities with other students in school.
 

3.Aptitude testing

An aptitude test measures a person’s ability to perform different kinds of tasks. This is done to determine the areas in which their skills are the strongest. Some people may be better with quantitative tasks that require math and logical reasoning skills, some at language, and some at creative thinking.
 These tests are used by vocational therapists to measure ability, and figure out the kind of professions or job roles a person may be suited for. They may also be used by career counselors to guide people towards higher education in fields where they demonstrate high ability.
 

4.Cognitive testing

A cognitive test measures a person’s cognitive abilities— problem solving, reasoning, vocabulary, comprehension, and memory. They are more commonly known as intelligence or IQ tests, and are used in the field of education to identify a person’s strengths and potential.
 For instance, a child may be given a cognitive test to measure their ability in different subjects; allowing educators to help the child work on the subjects they’re having trouble with.
 

5.Educational/achievement testing

Educational testing is conducted to test how much an individual has progressed in learning a specific subject—like mathematics, reading comprehension—to identify any difficulties they may have had in it.
 Achievement tests are the examinations that students take in schools and colleges.
 

6.Forensic psychological testing

Forensic testing is used in the legal field, to determine whether a suspect is capable of committing the crime they have been accused of. It comprises cognitive, personality, and neuropsychological tests.
 

7.Neuropsychological testing

Neuropsychological tests analyze how an individual’s brain works, in order to identify any problems in its functioning.
 For instance, a person with a head injury may have to undergo neuropsychological tests to check their brain’s ability to retain information.
 

8.Personality assessment

A personality test focuses on the personality traits of an individual. It helps evaluate if a person is more introverted or extroverted, cautious or spontaneous, and how they may react or respond to various life situations.
 

9.Interpretation of psychological tests

Psychological tests are not meant to be interpreted without the context of the person being tested—their environment, socioeconomic status or physical health. While the tests do use scientifically verified scales, using its results as a stand-alone criteria can lead to misinterpretation.
For example, in the case of a blood work report—it is necessary for a doctor to read the numbers in relation to your symptoms and general physical health to arrive at an accurate diagnosis.
Similarly, it’s important to note that even though many of the psychological tests mentioned above are easily available on the internet, taking them without consulting a mental health professional may not lead to getting an actual analysis of your personality, aptitude or behavior. This in turn, could mean not getting the help you need.
Various Tests offered by Aaditya Foundation are –

PSYCHOLOGICAL ASSESSMENTS
Intelligent Quotient Assessment	• Wechsler’s Intelligence Scale for children (WISC III). • Wechsler’s Intelligence Scale for children (WISC IV). • Nonverbal test of Intelligence (NVTI). • Standard Progressive Matrices (SPM). • Vineland social maturity scale.. • Segwin Form Board Test (S.F.B). • Binet Kamat Test of Intelligence. • C.M Bhatia.
Projective assessments	• Children’s Apperception Test (CAT). • Thematic apperception Test (TAT). • House Tree Person test (HTP). • Draw A Person (DAP).
Social Quotient Assessments	• Vineland Social Maturity Scale (VSMS).
ADHD Assessment	• Vanderbilt Assessment. • ADHD Checklist.
Autism Spectrum Assessments	• Childhood Autism Rating Scale (Cars). • Aperger’s Syndrome Checklist.

EDUCATIONAL ASSESSMENTS
Intelligent Quotient Assessment	• Customized grade appropriate and Board appropriate.
Educational Assessments	• Diagnostic Test of Learning Disability (DTLD). •  Wide Range Assessment Test (WRAT). • Aston Index.
Memory test	• Wechsler Memory Scale form 1(WMS).
Personality Test	• Multi-Dimensional Assessment of Personality (MAP form A). • Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory 2 (MMPI-2). • Draw a person(DAP). •  House Tree Person (HTP). •  Hamilton Anxiety Test. •  Hamilton psychiatric rating scale of depression. •  Multi-Dimensional Assessment of Personality (MAP form T). • Multi-Dimensional Assessment of personality (MAP form C). •  Rorschach Inkblot Test (ROR). •  Bender Gestalt Test (B.G).
Interest Test	• Vocational Interest Record (VIR). •  Thurstone Interest Schedule.
Interest Test	•  Differential Aptitude Test (D.A.T). • David’s Battery of Differential Ability –R(DBDA). •  Learning Disability checklist. • 7Creativity test (how do you think inventory).