Assessment Procedures, Ethics, and Psychometrics – Lecture Review

Vocabulary flashcards summarizing key terms, historical figures, ethical principles, diagnostic concepts, interview formats, and psychometric foundations from Chapters 1–5 of the lecture notes.

Informal Assessment

Non-standardized methods such as observations, rating scales, classification methods, records review, environmental and performance-based assessments.

Formal Assessment

Standardized tests with structured administration, scoring, and interpretation procedures.

Ability Testing

Formal tests that measure what a person can learn or do; includes aptitude and achievement tests.

Aptitude Test

Assessment of potential for learning or future performance (e.g., cognitive ability, special or multiple aptitude).

Achievement Test

Assessment of knowledge or skills already learned (e.g., survey battery, diagnostic, readiness tests).

Cognitive Ability

General mental capacity involving reasoning, problem solving, planning, abstract thinking, and learning.

Intelligence Testing

Standardized measures designed to estimate an individual’s overall intellectual functioning.

Neuropsychological Assessment

Evaluation of brain–behavior relationships, often after head injury or neurological illness.

Special Aptitude Test

Assessment focusing on a single specific ability (e.g., mechanical reasoning).

Multiple Aptitude Test

Battery measuring several distinct abilities to predict success in varied occupations or training programs.

Survey Battery Test

Broad achievement test covering multiple academic areas, usually in schools.

Diagnostic Test

Assessment that pinpoints specific skill deficits within an academic domain.

Readiness Test

Measure of whether a child is prepared to begin formal schooling or a specific grade.

Clinical Interview

Planned conversation to gather psychological information; can be structured, semistructured, or unstructured.

Objective Personality Test

Self-report inventory with standardized items and scoring (e.g., MMPI-2).

Projective Test

Assessment using ambiguous stimuli to elicit unconscious processes (e.g., Rorschach).

Interest Inventory

Questionnaire assessing likes and dislikes to aid career or educational planning.

Group Testing

Administering tests to many examinees simultaneously, increasing efficiency (e.g., Army Alpha/Beta).

Army Alpha

World War I group test using verbal problems to assess soldier aptitude.

Army Beta

Non-verbal WWI group test identifying missing elements in pictures, designed for low-literacy recruits.

Francis Galton

19th-century scientist who linked sensory-motor functioning to intelligence and inspired correlation methods.

Wilhelm Wundt

Founded first psychology laboratory (1879); studied responses to sensory stimuli.

James McKeen Cattell

American psychologist who coined the term “mental test” and promoted statistical study of individual differences.

G. Stanley Hall

Opened experimental lab at Johns Hopkins and became first APA president.

Alfred Binet

Created first modern intelligence test (1905) for Parisian schoolchildren to identify “subnormal” learners.

Frank Parsons

Pioneer of vocational counseling; promoted multiple aptitude group tests for job placement.

HIPAA

U.S. law restricting disclosure of health information and granting clients access to their own records.

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)

Law requiring testing accommodations and job-relevant assessments for persons with disabilities.

Confidentiality Exception – Danger

Counselors must break confidentiality when a client poses danger to self or others.

Release of Information (ROI)

Written client permission allowing specified disclosures of confidential data.

Level A Test

Instrument requiring no formal testing training; user follows manual instructions.

Level B Test

Assessment requiring graduate coursework or specialized training to administer and interpret.

Level C Test

Highly restricted test needing an advanced degree plus supervised experience.

Autonomy

Ethical principle of respecting clients’ right to self-determination.

Beneficence

Ethical obligation to promote the client’s welfare.

Nonmaleficence

Duty to avoid harming the client.

Justice

Ethical principle of fairness and equal treatment.

Fidelity

Maintaining trust and keeping commitments to clients.

Veracity

Truthfulness and honesty in professional interactions.

Moral Model

Framework (Autonomy, Beneficence, Nonmaleficence, Justice, Fidelity, Veracity) for ethical decision making.

Corey et al. Problem-Solving Model

Eight-step process: identify problem, issues, guidelines, laws, consult, actions, consequences, decide.

Principal Diagnosis

Primary condition listed first on a diagnostic report; most responsible for treatment need.

Specifier (DSM-5)

Additional descriptor (e.g., subtype, course) that clarifies a diagnosis.

Severity Rating

Assessment of intensity (mild, moderate, severe) attached to certain DSM-5 diagnoses.

Structured Interview

Interview using predetermined questions to ensure coverage and standardization.

Semi-Structured Interview

Interview with set questions but flexible probes, balancing breadth and depth.

Unstructured Interview

Open conversation guided by client topics, maximizing rapport and depth.

Electronic Health Record (EHR)

Digital storage system for client medical and psychological information.

Mental Status Exam

Systematic observation of appearance, behavior, mood, thought, cognition, insight, and judgment.

Content Validity

Extent to which test items represent the intended domain.

Face Validity

Superficial impression that a test appears to measure what it claims; not true technical validity.

Criterion-Related Validity

Degree to which test scores correlate with an external criterion.

Concurrent Validity

Correlation of test results with a criterion measured at the same time.

Predictive Validity

Correlation of test scores with a future outcome.

Construct Validity

Evidence that a test measures the theoretical trait it purports to measure.

Convergent Validity

High correlation between a new test and established measures of the same construct.

Discriminant Validity

Low correlation between a test and measures of different constructs.

Test-Retest Reliability

Consistency of scores when the same test is administered on two occasions.

Alternate-Forms Reliability

Agreement between scores on two equivalent versions of a test.

Internal Consistency

Degree to which test items interrelate and measure the same construct.

Split-Half Reliability

Correlation of two halves of a test (odd vs. even items) to gauge consistency.

Coefficient Alpha

Statistic (Cronbach’s α) estimating internal consistency for items with multiple scoring levels.

Kuder-Richardson

Reliability formulas (e.g., KR-20) for dichotomously scored items.

Cross-Cultural Fairness

Absence of bias that disadvantages examinees from diverse backgrounds.

Griggs v. Duke Power Company

1971 ruling that employment tests must relate directly to job performance.

Correlation Coefficient (r)

Numeric index (-1 to +1) of strength and direction of a linear relationship.

Practicality (Testing)

Feasibility factors—time, cost, format, readability, ease of administration, scoring, interpretation.

Factor Analysis

Statistical technique identifying clusters of related items to support construct validity.

Experimental Design Evidence

Research showing a test behaves as expected within a controlled study, supporting construct validity.