Ethical Foundations
This principle requires psychologists to maximize benefits and minimize harm in assessment contexts.
What is beneficence and nonmaleficence?
What must be included in informed consent for an assessment?
Purpose, procedures, risks, benefits, confidentiality limits, and how results will be used.
Why is strict reliance on norm-referenced scores potentially unethical in cross-cultural assessment?
Norms may not be valid for diverse populations, risking misdiagnosis.
Why can psychologists not post full test items on public platforms or therapy notes?
It violates test security and compromises future validity.
Impaired performance on the Trail Making Test Part B suggests deficits in this executive function domain.
What is cognitive flexibility?
According to APA standards, what is the clinician’s responsibility when choosing an assessment instrument for a culturally diverse client?
Ensure the instrument is valid and appropriate for the client's cultural, linguistic, and demographic characteristics.
When is informed consent not required for psychological assessment?
Court-ordered evaluations or mandated forensic assessments (though notification of purpose is still required).
What does “cultural humility” imply in psychological testing?
A continuous process of learning, self-reflection, and adjusting assessment practices.
What is required before a clinician administers a specialized test battery (e.g., neuropsych)?
Demonstrated training, supervised experience, and competence specific to those instruments.
A markedly elevated F scale on the MMPI may indicate severe psychopathology — or this alternate explanation.
What is overreporting due to crisis or misunderstanding items?
What is “test misuse,” and who is ethically accountable for preventing it?
Using assessments outside the scope of one’s competence; the clinician administering or interpreting the test is responsible.
This element of informed consent requires psychologists to explain foreseeable limits to autonomy when an assessment is court-ordered.
What is discussing the limits of voluntary participation?
Name a strategy to reduce cultural bias in assessment interpretation.
Using multiple data sources (triangulation) rather than relying on a single test.
What does “standardized administration” mean?
Following the exact testing instructions specified in the manual to ensure reliability and validity.
On the WAIS-IV, this subtest is considered the most sensitive to neurological impairment.
What is Coding?
What is the ethical justification for not releasing raw test data to a patient?
Risk of harm, misinterpretation, or violation of test security.
Under APA Ethics Code Standard 4.05, psychologists may disclose confidential assessment information without consent only under these two conditions.
What are (1) when mandated by law and (2) when permitted to protect the client or others from harm?
When assessing bilingual clients, why is translated testing often insufficient?
Translations may not capture linguistic, conceptual, or cultural meaning.
What must a psychologist do if they discover a commonly used assessment tool is invalid for a certain group?
Use alternative methods and document why the tool was inappropriate.
The Rorschach variable “M” (Human Movement) is most commonly interpreted as reflecting this psychological capacity.
What is ideational complexity or psychological sophistication?
What is the difference between an ethical standard and an aspirational principle in psychological assessment?
Standards are enforceable rules; aspirational principles guide professional ideals but are not enforceable.
When a third party (e.g., school, court, employer) requests assessment results, what must the psychologist do ethically?
Obtain signed authorization from the client before releasing any information.
Why must culturally loaded interpretations (e.g., “client is uncooperative”) be avoided?
They may reflect bias and lack contextual understanding.
What should a clinician do if test results contradict observational or collateral data?
Integrate all evidence and discuss possible reasons for discrepancies before forming conclusions.
This performance-based test is a non-verbal measure of executive functioning that assesses rule-learning, set-shifting, and concept formation without relying on expressive language.
Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST)