Psychological testing assesses an individual’s abilities, behavior, and emotions through responses to interviews or paper tests, including IQ, aptitude, personality, and neuropsychological tests. These tests follow guidelines to ensure equal opportunity and are used in various fields, such as employment screening and brain injury evaluation.
Psychological testing, also known as psychometrics, is a broad term that refers to observations of an individual used to assess and evaluate their abilities, psychophysical behavior, and emotional functioning. These observations are typically based on responses given during an interview or paper test. There are many tests available ranging from IQ (intelligence quotient) to aptitude tests and personality tests.
Most of the time, psychological tests ask the individual to answer a series of problems or tasks to evaluate his abilities and thought processes. In many cases, the individual is asked to respond to the best of her ability so that her psychological abilities can be fully measured. These tests are often required to follow certain guidelines that ensure that every individual has an equal opportunity to answer correctly. For example, if a test asks questions that only those living in a specific region might know, it isn’t considered effective for a large audience.
The IQ test is one of the best known forms of psychological testing. Its basic purpose is to help classify individuals into specific categories such as learning disabled or gifted. Unlike similar achievement tests, which focus on learned facts, the IQ test is thought to help identify the cognitive ability to understand underlying theories, understand how these theories work, and determine how to apply them.
Some forms of psychological testing focus on personality. Personality tests are often used by employers as a method of pre-screening job candidates, as well as in forensics and research, and are generally divided into projective and objective groups. Objective testing typically consists of true or false questions used to understand an individual’s personality by how they respond, while projective testing focuses on making sense of the individual’s spontaneous responses. Occupational psychological tests are also often used by employers and are said to help identify personal strengths and match an individual’s interests with certain careers.
Neuropsychology is a form of psychological testing used to evaluate the connection between behavior and brain functioning. These tests are often used to screen for patients who have suffered some sort of brain injury. To help determine the presence or extent of brain damage, neuropsychological tests are used to measure a patient’s memory and concentration, attention span, learning ability, and intelligence.
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