Monday, March 17, 2003

Guessing Game- Psychological Assessment

Guessing Game

Administering psychological tests ("intelligent" tests like WISC, "projective", "personality" tests like Rorschach inkblot test, etc.) means that doing a bunch of inferences on inferences. First, the test data and interpretations are inferences of the state of the minds, cognitive functions, and 'personality types."

Second, psychopathologists (if there is any) are not sure about the physiological and/or 'maps' of psycho-pathology. Psychologists and psychiatrists diagnose clients based on meeting with clients and adminstering paper-and-pencil (or derivatives). not physiological data.
(I've heard that some Japanese psychiatrists/neurologists use fMRI or something as a part of assessment in rare occasions, but I have not seen any consensus in the field. added on 6/21/07)

Are we professionally guessing� Yes, we are.

edited on 6/21/07

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