psychological assessment

the gathering and integration of data to evaluate a person’s behavior, abilities, and other characteristics, particularly for the purposes of making a diagnosis or treatment recommendation. Psychologists assess diverse psychiatric problems (e.g., anxiety, substance abuse) and nonpsychiatric concerns (e.g., intelligence, career interests) in a range of clinical, educational, organizational, forensic, and other settings. Assessment data may be gathered through interviews, observation, standardized tests, self-report measures, physiological or psychophysiological measurement devices, or other specialized procedures and apparatuses.

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Psychology term of the day

February 16th 2025

cause

1. an event or state that brings about another (its effect).

2. in Aristotelian and rationalist philosophy, an entity or event that is a requirement for another entity or event’s coming to be. Aristotle proposed that there were four types of cause—material, formal, efficient, and final. In the case of a sculpture, for example, the material cause is the stone or metal from which it is made, the formal cause is the form or structure that it takes, the efficient cause is the sculptor, and the final cause is the sculptor’s aim or purpose in making it. —causal adj.