INTRODUCTION TO

PSYCHOLOGICAL ASSESSMENT
TERMS TO REMEMBER

• A test is a measurement device or technique used to quantify

behavior or aid in the understanding and prediction of behavior.
• An item is a specific stimulus to which a person responds overtly; this
response can be scored or evaluated.
• A psychological test or educational test is a set of items that are
designed to measure characteristics of human beings that pertain to
behavior.
PSYCHOLOGICAL TEST
• It is a systematic procedure for obtaining samples of
behavior, relevant to cognitive, affective, or
interpersonal functioning, and for scoring and
evaluating those samples according to standards.
 Types of Test
1) ABILITY TEST, tests that sample knowledge, skills, or cognitive functions.
• Group test, by contrast, can be administered to more than one person at a
time by a single examiner, such as when an instructor gives everyone in the
class a test at the same time.
• Achievement refers to previous learning. A test that measures or evaluates
how many words you can spell correctly is called a spelling achievement test.
• Aptitude, by contrast, refers to the potential for learning or acquiring a specific
skill. A spelling aptitude test measures how many words you might be able to
spell given a certain amount of training, education, and experience.
• Intelligence refers to a person’s general potential to solve problems, adapt to
changing circumstances, think abstractly, and profit from experience.
2) PERSONALITY TESTS are related to the overt and covert dispositions of the
individual.
Types of Personality Test
• Structured personality tests provide a statement, usually of
the “self-report” variety, and require the subject to choose
between two or more alternative responses such as “True”
or “False.”
• Projective personality test, either the stimulus (test
materials) or the required response—or both—are
ambiguous.
Urbina, 2014
Urbina, 2014
Urbina, 2014
Urbina, 2014
 Lowest Tier
(Level A)
Types of instruments A limited range of instruments,
such as educational achievement
tests, that can be administered,
scored, and interpreted without
specialized training, by following
the instructions in their manuals.
Kinds of credentials Some publishers do not require
any credentials to purchase tests
at this level. Others may require a
bachelor’s degree in an
appropriate field or that orders
for materials be placed through
an agency or institution, or both.
Intermediate
Tier (Level B)
Tools that call for some
specialized training in test
construction, test use, and in
the area in which the
instruments will be applied,
such as aptitude tests and
personality inventories
applicable to normal
populations.
Test purchasers usually must
have either a Master’s level
degree in psychology (or in a
related field), or course work
in testing and assessment
commensurate with the
requirements for using the
instruments in question.
Highest Tier
(Level C)
Instruments that require
extensive familiarity with
testing and assessment
principles, as well as with the
psychological fields to which
the instruments pertain, such
as individual intelligence
tests and projective
techniques.
Test purchasers must have
the kind of advanced training
and supervised
experience that is acquired in
the course of obtaining a
doctoral degree or
professional licensure in a
field pertinent to the
intended use of the
instruments, or both.
 HISTORY
OCCUPATIONAL
200 BCE – Ancient Chinese empire for Chinese civil service examination
1850s – Great Britain was inspired with the system of civil service and
applied it to their country.
1860s – US was stimulated by the movement of Great Britain and
created US civil service examination
EDUCATION
Middle Ages – first universities in Europe in 13th century
- Eventually oral exams were replaced by written exams
Late 19th century – exams in US and Europe were well-established
 HISTORY
CLINICAL
• 1838 – Jean Esquirol (French), distinguished psychosis and mental
retardation
• Late 19th Century – Germany
• Problems in testing occurred:
2 reasons were:
1. misconceptions and superstitions
2. lack of standardization
 HISTORY
SCIENTIFIC PSYCHOLOGY
1879 - Wilhelm Wundt, first experimental laboratory in Leipzig,
Germany
- Francis Galton, anthropometric data
- James McKeen Cattell, mental tests
Late 1800s – Hermann Ebbinghaus, devised fill-in-the-blank
- Alfred Binet, inspired to use the completion technique
and other complex mental tasks
 USES OF PSYCHOLOGICAL TESTS
(1) decision making
(2) psychological research, and
(3) self-understanding and personal development