Psychological tests review

Psychological testing uses carefully designed questionnaires or other samples of behavior to evaluate individual’s patterns of psychological, cognitive and emotional habits and functioning. This field of science is also known as psychometrics, and it is primarily concerned with the construction and validation of measurement instruments. These instruments usually include various questionnaires, tests, and personality assessments. During the psychological testing, an individual is asked to answer particular questions or to conduct certain tasks. The responses of the individual are later compiled into the statistical tables, and the evaluator is asked to compare the individual’s responses to the responses of a group that is considered as normal.

Types of psychological tests

There are various types of psychological tests. All of them are aimed to measure an individual’s performance in the specific field and at a specific point in time. Different types of psychological tests address different aspects of a person’s psychological makeup. Consequently, certain tests are used to determine individual’s intellectual capacity, while others evaluate individual’s personality or some other skills. Psychological testing typically last anywhere from 1 1/2 hours to a full day. They are usually done in a psychologist’s office and consist of paper-and-pencil tests or software testing administered on a computer.

IQ/achievement tests

IQ tests are used to measure intelligence while achievement tests measure the use of the ability. IQ and achievement tests are norm-referenced tests where the results are graded in reference to carefully tailored guidelines. IQ tests are usually made for people of the same age, and they generally include tasks in verbal and non verbal performance. For example, a person may need to answer general knowledge questions, to complete the puzzles and to identify a number that completes a given pattern.

Attitude tests

This type of testing evaluates person’s feeling about an event, person or an object. This test is designed to help the person figure out how the others recognize how their attitude is perceived by others. It may also determine person’s preferences for certain items or brands and point out to particular limitations of their personality.

Neuropsychological tests

These tests are used to measure a psychological function known to be linked to a particular brain structure or pathway. These tests are generally used to evaluate a degree of the impairment after an injury or illness that affects neurocognitive functioning.

Personality tests

These tests are also known as objective or projective tests. Personality’s tests are aimed to determine aspects of person’s character that remain unchanged throughout person’s person's lifetime. These tests actually measure person’s pattern of behavior, thoughts, and feelings.