Assessments
Discover clarity and insight with our comprehensive assessments
What are the different types of assessment?
Psychological Assessment
A psychological assessment is a general term, used for comprehensive evaluation of an individual's psychological functioning, including cognitive, emotional, behavioral, and personality characteristics. It involves the use of various methods, and tools to gather information about the individual's thoughts, feelings, behaviours, and experiences from multiple sources (clinical interviews, standardised tests, self-report questionnaires, observation, and collateral information from other sources such as family members, teachers, and so on). These assessments are done by a clinical or general Psychologist to inform what kind of treatments they need.
Psychometric Assessment
A psychometric assessment is a systematic method for measuring psychological constructs, such as personality traits, cognitive abilities, or emotional functioning. These assessments typically involve the administration of standardised tests, questionnaires, or other assessment tools to individuals, often used in various contexts, including clinical psychology, educational settings, human resources, and research. These assessments are designed to tap into particular cognitive (thinking) abilities (e.g. intelligence, or more generally memory, attention etc).
Neuropsychological Assessment
Neuropsychological assessment is a specialised evaluation that can only be conducted by a trained Neuropsychologist, and involves a combination of psychometric testing and psychological assessment. It considers cognitive, medical, developmental, social, family and mental health factors, to determine what a person’s strengths and weaknesses are, why they might be happening, and how this impacts a person’s ability to function in their environment. The results of the assessment help inform diagnosis, treatment planning, rehabilitation strategies, and recommendations for individuals with neurological conditions.
Psychiatric Assessment
Psychiatric assessment can occur after a person has already seen a psychologist or neuropsychologist, and is then seeking medication from a Psychiatrist. The main goal is to comprehensively screen for any physical or psychiatric comorbidities that can preclude a person from receiving certain medications. Some conditions (e.g. heart disease, drug use, certain mental illnesses) may make someone ineligible for some types of medication.
Mental Health Assessment
Mental Health Assessment is done by a GP. This usually involves a short questionnaire to determine whether further support is needed, such as a referral to a specialist and/or a Mental Healthcare Plan.
How can psychological assessment assist?
Psychological Assessment can assist in developing early insight into unique individual strengths and challenges, as well as aid in making informed diagnosis.
Results may be used to assist in identifying areas for growth and improvement, in the development of individualised treatment and learning plans, and in providing practical recommendations for carers, parents, teachers, and health practitioners in relation to academic, social, behavioural and emotional functioning.
Our comprehensive assessments
Calder Psychology will provide comprehensive and thorough evaluations to help you gain a better understanding of your mental health, identify strengths and weaknesses in intellectual acuity, learning capacity, social and emotional functioning, and behavioural difficulties.
Our professional team provides comprehensive evaluations to help you gain a better understanding of your mental health and identify areas for growth and improvement.
Our comprehensive assessments can assist in the examination of:
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Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
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Executive functioning
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Psychometric testing for academic potential
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IQ (intelligence) test and giftedness
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Learning difficulties
Autism Diagnosis
Melanie Calder is actively involved in the assessment and diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder at Intervention Services for Autism and Developmental Delays (ISADD). ISADD is a specialised clinic with a long-standing history of providing Autism assessment, diagnosis and intervention for children, adolescents, and adults.
For more information, you may reach out to Melanie Calder or visit us at:
