Psychological Report Assignment Instructions
Overview
You will write a Psychological Report Assignment based upon four (4) psychological evaluations and information reported in the Initial Interview Assignment and Mental Status Examination (MSE) Assignment. Counselors are commonly required to write a psychological report that presents assessed and observation information about a client. This Psychological Report Assignment will require students to synthesize and report information about the character depicted in the Initial Interview Assignment and Mental Status Examination (MSE) Assignment.
Instructions
- Length of Psychological Report Assignment: 2100-2400 words (not including the title page)
- Format of Psychological Report Assignment: APA for font (Times New Roman, 12 pt.), title page, margins, and section headings
- Number of citations: none
- Acceptable sources: none
Using your character from the Initial Interview Assignment and Mental Status Examination (MSE) Assignment, you will take the assessments with the goal of answering one (1) of the referral questions posted below:
- Would this examinee be a good candidate for participation in a summer missions trip in a very challenging environment?
- Would this examinee be a good candidate for Senior Pastor at a large urban church?
- Would the examinee make a good Resident Assistant (RA) at Liberty University?
Assessment Selection
You will report on four (4) assessments. For one of your assessments, you must use the IPIP-NEO assessment (see Psychological Report Resources for the link). There are two versions (short/long) of the IPIP-NEO assessment. Please use the longer version. Copy and paste the NEO description and chart into the report. This will give you a nice template for writing an assessment description. Once you have the results of the IPIP-NEO, you will plug in your own numbers into the chart.
The three (3) additional tests may come from the assessment listed on Blackboard: Jung Personality Test, Beck Depression Inventory, and the Beck Anxiety Inventory. However, you may select other assessments to replace these assessment. Please make sure that any assessments that you select are designed to provide some of the information needed to answer the referral question. For example, if going on a mission trip is stressful, then you will want to pick an assessment that measures stress; you would not pick one that can be used to diagnose schizophrenia. When you have completed scoring the assessments, begin writing the psychological report.
You may not use the Symptom Questionnaire (SQ); Depression, Anxiety, Stress Scales (DASS) or the Clinical Anxiety Scale (CAS). These assessments are used in the sample paper, so you may not use them in your report. This would be plagiarism.
Please refer to the Psychological Report – Diagnostic Report Sample to ensure that you correctly format your Psychological Report Assignment paper. For this, you will not use APA formatting for the headers and page numbers. You will write it in a format consistent with a psychological report which you can use for future reference. Be sure to head your Psychological Report Assignment paper “Psychological Report.” Underneath this heading, fill in the following information (include the labels given):
Note: Your assignment will be checked for originality via the Turnitin plagiarism tool.
Be sure to review the criteria on the Psychological Report Grading Rubric before beginning this Psychological Report Assignment.
See Psychological Report Resources under the Psychological Report Assignment page.
Sections of the Psychological Evaluation Report
- IDENTIFICATION:
Student ID#
Client’s Name: (you can use a fictitious name)
Date of Report:
- REFERRAL QUESTION/REASON FOR TESTING: In this section, you will write a brief description (3-4 sentences) of why your subject is being tested.
- ASSESSMENT METHODS: List the full names of all the tests administered. The Examinee Biography should be the first measure on your list.
- EXAMINEE BACKGROUND: In no more than 2-3 paragraphs, use information from the Initial Interview (or Mental Status Exam) and write a well-organized succinct summary of the examinee’s background based on the information in the initial interview. Note that you will not include everything from the initial interview in this section. For example, you might decide certain pieces of information (e.g., perceived strengths and weaknesses, goals and aspiration, etc.) fit better in the Psychological Impressions section because they support or illustrate your interpretations of test results. See the Diagnostic Report Sample’s Psychological Impression section for more information.
- SUMMARY OF TEST RESULTS: The name of each test should be underlined and serve as subheadings in this section. The following information should be reported for EACH test:
- A brief description (4-5 sentences) of the test. The information you report on each test will vary considerably, but must include the purpose of the test, a general description of any subscales, and a statement relating to scores and norms (e.g., T-scores with a mean of 50 and a standard deviation of 10, specific raw score means, and standard deviations, etc.).
- Delineation of your subject’s scores: both raw scores and standard scores or percentiles (if applicable) should be reported.
- Additional Notes
- In this section, do NOT make any interpretive statements. Just report the scores.
- In “real-world” settings, most likely you would NOT include clients’ actual scores in the written report. Whether actual scores are reported depends in large part on the intended audience (e.g., other psychologists, attorneys or judges, parents, etc.).
- Example of a Test Summary:
Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI-2): The MMPI-2 is a structured, self-report personality test that was designed to assist in the assessment of personality and the diagnosis of major psychiatric disorders. The MMPI-2 consists of 10 clinical subscales measuring different domains of psychological functioning or symptomology, several validity scales assessing subjects’ approaches to taking the test (e.g., defensiveness, acquiescence), and content scales relating to a specific content areas (e.g., anger). Distinct norm are provided for male and female examinees. MMPI-2 scores are reported in standard T-scores (mean=50, SD=10), with scores above 65 falling in the clinical range.
John’s scores on the MMPI-2 are presented below; standard scores are given in boldface type followed by raw scores in parentheses:
Scale 1, Hypochondriasis: 45 (11).
Scale 7, Psychasthenia: 72 (39).
- PSYCHOLOGICAL IMPRESSIONS: This section is the most important (approximately 600-900 words). Your goal in this section is to integrate test results into a cohesive summary. In other words, rather than simply reporting each interpretation on a test-by-test basis, you will integrate your interpretations. For example, you should address how the examinee is likely to interact with others. Findings from most of the tests will be relevant to this question. While you will specify your sources of information following each interpretive statement (e.g., Examinee Biography, specific subscales of a named test, etc.), you must also make interpretations based on an integration of findings from multiple sources.
- Additional Notes
- You are NOT expected to interpret every single result of each test! After examining test results, try to identify consistent patterns or characteristic styles that emerge on several measures. Address findings that seem most relevant, important, or interesting in the context of the referral question.
- In this section, you are stating hypotheses about the examinee’s functioning. You can express the probabilistic nature of your interpretations as follows:
- “Test results indicate (or suggest) that…” (instead of “Test results show that…”)
- “John seems (or appears) to be…” (rather than “John is…”)
- “It is possible that John could…” or “John is likely to…” (not “John will…”)
- Example (this represents only a portion of this section, not the entire section):
In regard to interpersonal functioning, results of Test X (list relevant scales here), Test Y (list relevant scales here), and Test Z (list relevant scales here) suggest that John generally interacts well with others. Specifically, he seems to be aware of the needs of others and is likely to respond in a positive manner if asked to help others. John’s family likely fostered his sense of interpersonal responsibility; in his biography, John reported that a primary influence in his life was his father, to whom John credits his “unfailing loyalty to the people in my life.” In addition, Test X (list relevant scales) and Test Z (list relevant scales) indicate that John is rather extraverted. He likely will enjoy having a lot of contact with people. He seems motivated to seek out situations that will allow him to help others solve problems and to feel good about themselves.
On the other hand, John may experience difficulties in certain kinds of interpersonal situations. Results of Test Q (list relevant scales here) and Test Y (list relevant scales here) indicate that he tends to be somewhat anxious and unsure of himself. Coupled with his strong need for affiliation (i.e., for others to like and accept him) suggested in Test Z (list relevant scales here) and supported by Projective Test A, John’s anxiety is likely to surface in situations requiring assertive interpersonal responses. For example, it is possible John feels somewhat intimidated when challenged by others, and might acquiesce to the wishes of others rather than assert his own opinions or needs. In support of this hypothesis, John stated that one of his perceived weaknesses was “speaking up for myself.” It appears John would make a good team player because he is interested in considering others’ views, but could be challenged in leadership roles requiring him to direct others or to make independent decisions that might not be popular with peers, colleagues, or subordinates.
- Questions you might address in this section include (but are not limited to):
- Intrapersonal functioning: How does this person view himself/herself? What are this person’s intrapersonal resources or strengths? What kinds of situations might pose challenges to this person? Is this person motivated more by internal or external influences/factors? How is this person likely to deal with stressful situations of a personal nature?
- Interpersonal functioning: Is this person a “loner” or a “people-person?” What are this person’s needs for interpersonal contact? How does this person interact with others? How would you describe this person’s interpersonal style? How might this person respond to interpersonal stressors or conflicts? Does this person seem responsible and able to follow through on commitments?
- CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS: Begin this section by writing 3-4 sentences summarizing the examinee’s background and the referral question. Next, you will address the referral questions by:
- Stating an opinion or recommendation (e.g., acceptance or rejection) relevant to the referral question.
- Providing a set of statements that clearly and logically tie your recommendation to integrated psychological impressions. This section should highlight important findings that led you to your conclusion.
Example:
John Doe is an unmarried 23-year-old Hispanic male who holds a bachelor’s degree in Literature. Currently, John is employed as an editorial assistant for a large publishing company. John was referred for psychological testing as part of his application to the Walden Three community. Based on findings from a battery of psychological tests, it is the recommendation of this examiner that John (should/should not) be accepted to the Walden Three community for the following reasons…
Additional Notes
- Regardless of your final opinion, decision, or recommendation, you must adequately support it! All the reasons you give should combine elements of your psychological impressions with specific aspects of the referral question. In other words, you should provide evidence justifying your recommendation.
- The reasons you provide for your recommendation should summarize material presented in the body of your Psychological Report Assignment paper, and should NOT contain new interpretations.
Refer to theAssessment Psychological Report: Diagnostic Report Example document to see examples of how each section must be completed and how the Psychological Report Assignment must be formatted for final submission. Contact your instructor if you have any questions.
