Formal Assessment, Fewer Rules

Therefore, I’d guess that you are a keen observer and you notice how other people’s actions relate to you. An example might include noticing that other people are laughing and then wondering if maybe they are laughing at you. Also, higher scores on scale 6 are associated with intelligence. So your high score here might mean that on your good days, you are intelligent and sensitive, but on your bad days, days when you’re experiencing lots of stress, you can become touchy and suspicious of others. Does any of this seem to ?t how you see yourself ?” Perhaps more important than the speci?c scores obtained by young clients who complete such questionnaires is the manner in which the tests are administered and feedback is provided. Openness with young clients regarding the purpose of formal assessment procedures and results can facilitate the development of trust. Because assessment procedures, depending on how they are used, can either interfere with or facilitate trust development, select speci?c procedures carefully and present them to clients in an open and honest manner.

Considerations of when, why, and how to administer formal assessments should be informed by graduate training in appraisal, test construction, and diagnosis. With regard to young people, it is especially important to note that formal assessment can have Interviewing Young Clients 327a strong impact on the therapeutic relationship and often does not yield as much information as you might have hoped.

General Considerations for the Body of the Interview When using play or physically interactive strategies with children, think through stated and/or unstated ground rules and be prepared to set limits that ?t within your theoretical framework. In an assessment situation, the fewer rules, the better, as this allows the child more free expression. However, children often test limits. They try leaving the room, tinkering with items on your desk, opening windows, or even placing a call on your phone. More infrequently, they try mild aggression toward you: poking with a tack, spitting a spitball, swearing, and blowing smoke . Rather than having stated rules covering all such potentials, it is better to be prepared to set ?rm limits as needed. Some theoretical orientations prefer to leave all rules unstated; others suggest the statement of one or two basic rules . The most common rule is usually stated something like this: “Billy, you’re welcome to play with things in my of?ce . We don’t have too many rules about playing here, but it’s important that you know my one basic rule: It is not okay to break things or hurt yourself or anyone else with the toys or the art supplies.” Cleaning up and putting things away is also an assessment activity. It is challenging to keep time boundaries that include cleanup time before moving into the closing few minutes of the interview. Doing so provides information about how the child interacts when play is ending. An abrupt shift in attitude toward the toys or game may occur. The emotions directed at the toys may be an important signal about how the child feels about endings. In addition, note behaviors directed toward you. Does the child refuse to cooperate? Does he or she scurry around, cleaning frantically to impress you? Those few cleanup minutes at the session’s end can be very revealing.