CNL523_T2_EthicsinPsychologicalAssessment
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Ethics in Psychological Assessments
College of Humanities and Social Sciences, Grand Canyon University
CNL-523: Assessments Tests and Measurements
May 31
st
, 2023
Ethics in Psychological Assessments
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The therapeutic journey for a client begins at the initial evaluation. A psychological evaluation is comprised of two elements, the psychological test and psychological evaluation. The testing component is standardized and measures the client’s level of functioning, ability to understand certain concepts, as well as determining whether a diagnosis is applicable (Russell, 2021). The assessment piece is more informal and considers that clients are unique individuals and cannot be summed up with a standardized system alone. During the assessment, the psychologist can develop a sense of the client’s personality and character, as well as individual strengths, needs, and potential treatment recommendation (Russell, 2021). For a psychological assessment to be meaningful, it must be ethically administered and consider the client’s background, culture of origin, and language (Cohen, et al., 2022). The following will provide a discussion on common ethical issues and how to avoid them in assessment, how to assess culturally derived behaviors, as well as how a client’s background has an impact on which assessment is most appropriate. Common Ethical Issues
There are a variety of ethical issues that a counselor must consider when administering a psychological assessment. To avoid incorrect and potentially harmful outcomes, it is imperative that clinicians familiarize themselves with the established ethical codes.
Mental health professionals must have self-awareness and understand their scope of practice. The American Counseling Association (ACA, 2014) provides guidance in the ACA Code of Ethics
section E.2.a. where it states, “Counselors use only those testing and assessment services for which they have been trained and are competent”. Clinicians must take reasonable steps to ensure they are sufficiently trained on the instruments being utilized, and that they can effectively interpret the results. Diversity and cultural awareness can also affect interpretation. In section E.5.b., the ACA
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Code of Ethics states, “Counselors recognize that culture affects the manner in which clients’ problems are defined and experienced. Clients’ socioeconomic and cultural experiences are considered when diagnosing mental disorders”. Clinicians must be able to interpret a client’s responses (both verbal and nonverbal) in a way that considers their cultural background and process the results in the appropriate perspective. In addition to the counselor’s scope of competency and the client’s cultural identification,
the clinician must always consider the client’s welfare and potential inference of diagnosis. This may mean avoiding diagnosis altogether. Section E.5.d. indicates that, “Counselors may refrain from making and/or reporting a diagnosis if they believe that it would cause harm to the
client or others. Counselors carefully consider both the positive and negative implications of a diagnosis”. The client’s well-being should always be at the forefront of the clinician’s mind and should drive all decisions that are made. If a clinician suspects that a diagnosis is appropriate, but
to assign/report it would do harm, it must be avoided. How to Avoid Ethical Problems While memorizing the entire ACA Code of Ethics would be helpful in navigating ethical issues, that is not necessarily the most realistic scenario. There are some measures that clinicians can take to be prepared and safeguarded against potential pitfalls. Something that is advised to address competence issues, for example, is to maintain contact with the profession through conferences, ongoing education, consulting with colleagues, and reading journals and other available literature (Smith, 2003). When new assessment tools become available, be proactive and learn about them and seek training. As far as diagnosis, any time a clinician does not feel comfortable assigning a diagnosis to a client, they should consult a supervisor. This is especially true if it is believed that a report of the potential diagnosis could cause harm to the client. When 3
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it comes to interpretation of multicultural clients during assessment, it may be necessary to enlist an interpreter if there is a language barrier. The counselor should also do their due diligence to ensure they are familiar with nuances that may affect client’s responses to assessment questions. If the client does not fully understand the material, they cannot give a meaningful response. Additionally, if the counselor does not understand the client, they cannot make a clinically sound
judgement.
Culturally Derived Behaviors and How to Assess
Mental health professionals should understand their own cultural values, preferences, attributes, and conditions and seek to gain understanding of those of their clients. Additionally, counselors should be aware of personal biases and how they may affect the therapeutic relationship (Fong, et al., 2016). Counselors should also familiarize themselves with behaviors that stem from cultures or subcultures, so that an unfair/incorrect judgement is not made. Facial expressions and body language can say a lot, and cultural variances can impact how the assessor interprets these behaviors. In western American culture, eye contact is an indication of honesty, however, there are some cultures where failure to make eye contact is not a sign of dishonesty, but of respect (Cohen, et al., 2022). Counselors should also be aware of how clients view themselves in relation to their culture. If a client was raised in a country where the culture is collectivist, they will likely not have the strong, independent, self-will motivation that we typically see here in the United States (Cohen, et al., 2022). Goals for treatment often include such objectives as independence and self-
empowerment, however, this type of client may not have that goal in mind. Assessors must respect the client’s cultural background and discover how they identify and help determine what it means for them to be their best self. To do this, they must consider how a client responds 4
during the process. For example, people of Filipino descent tend to be reserved and shy about responding to someone who they perceive to be in a position of authority, so they may be agreeable and say “yes” to a goal ‘to be self-reliant’, when that is not their true desire. Eventually, it will be revealed through the process that they were not being forthright (Fong, et al., 2016). Counselors should ensure that goals are culturally appropriate and what the client desires. Assessment Choice
The questions that are asked during assessment are arguably just as important as how the answers are interpreted. Clinicians should ensure that the assessment tools being utilized consider the client’s level of education, vocation, personal, and social development. The ACA Code of Ethics (2014) provides guidance here as well, in section E.8. where it states “Counselors
select and use with caution assessment techniques normed on populations other than that of the
client”. In other words, if an instrument was tested on a sample group made up entirely of college professors and PhDs, the interpretation would likely not be relevant for someone who has
a 9
th
grade education and works at a gas station. Conclusion
When an individual makes the decision to embark on a therapeutic journey, it is likely not
a decision they made lightly. It is vital that mental health professionals are prepared to provide a comprehensive psychological evaluation that includes proper testing and assessment components. Assessors should be mindful of their own competency to use the tools they are administering, as well as of their own culture and potential biases. The client’s culture may impact which assessment tools to use, as well as how responses are interpreted and what goals are appropriate for the client’s desires outcomes. Counselors must always hold the client’s 5
welfare in the highest regard. All decisions made in the therapeutic process are centered around what is best for the client, and this includes the initial assessment.
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References
American Counseling Association (2014). ACA Code of Ethics
. https://www.counseling.org/resources/aca-code-of-ethics.pdf
Cohen, R. J., Schneider, W. J., & Tobin, R. M. (2022). Psychological testing and assessment: An introduction to tests and measurement
(10th ed.). McGraw-Hill Companies. ISBN-13: 9781260837025
Fong E., Catagnus R., Brodhead M., Quigley S., Field S. (2016). Developing the Cultural Awareness Skills of Behavior Analysts. Behav Anal Pract.
doi: 10.1007/s40617-016-
0111-6. PMID: 27606242; PMCID: PMC4788642.
Russell, R. (2021). What Is a Psychological Evaluation? PsychCentral
. https://psychcentral.com/lib/what-is-a-psychological-evaluation
Smith, D. (2003). 10 ways practitioners can avoid frequent ethical pitfalls. American Psychological Association. https://www.apa.org/monitor/jan03/10ways
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