Inspirational stories - 999 Miracles

Inspirational stories - 999 Miracles

How to Get Tested

When someone calls to request my testing services, I talk them out of it as often as I schedule them for an appointment. Why? Because of my business philosophy: my reputation over the long haul is more valuable than making a few dollars today. I want potential clients to avail themselves of any free services that they are eligible for, and to use my services only when I’m confident that they will get the best possible return on their investment.

Here’s some tips about getting the services you need:

Testing for autism and mental retardation: In California, Regional Centers can be contacted for these types of services. They will do intelligence and developmental testing for infants, children, and adults. They provide a wide range of services for eligible clients including training, day programs, and residential services.

Testing for Mensa eligibility: For a low cost, Mensa will provide a test you can take at home and, if you pass this, will provide a proctored test.

Testing for learning disability: Public schools are generally required to test for suspected learning disability when a parent requests this service. Getting the school to respond often requires persistence.

Vocational testing: If you have a physical or mental disability, the Department of Rehabilitation in California, and similar agencies in other states, will provide free testing to assist with vocational guidance.

Psychiatric or psychological treatment: If your goal is to obtain treatment for a psychiatric disorder, start first with your family physician, psychiatrist, psychologist, or other psychotherapist. This professional can do an assessment, determine the treatment you need, and will refer you for psychological testing if it’s needed to help with diagnosis and treatment planning.

Out-of-area testing: I’m flattered when I get requests for testing from persons living far from my office. I’m sometimes asked to provide testing over the phone, over the Internet, or even to mail tests to a potential client. There are a number of legal and ethical reasons why I can’t comply. I need to maintain test security – if the IQ test questions become public, a century of test research goes down the drain. Most tests need to be administered, monitored, and/or timed. And I’m only licensed to provide services to clients who are physically in California. If you are not near Orange County, CA, look for psychologists in my online directory.

With all of the above services available, why book an appointment with me? Any of these reasons:
· You don’t qualify for the services listed above or want a testing service not described above.
· You prefer to avoid the bureaucracy and long waits associated with public agencies
· You want a service that’s more individualized, more thorough, or you have specific needs or interests (such as wanting to be assessed with specific tests).
· You want a second opinion.

Feel free to call me (949.623.9824) if you’re wondering whether psychological testing can benefit you or someone you know, and to talk about your options for getting services.

One of the "FAQs" that I get through e-mail:

Q: "I just failed the psychological exam to become a police officer [or other job requiring psychological screening]. What are they looking for? Can you give me tips to pass it the next time?"

A: "Employment screening is usually based on careful research. There are certain personality characteristics that predict that an individual with be happy and effective at certain jobs. First, consider whether this is the right career for you. A session of career counseling and testing could give valuable insight in this regard. If you're sure that this is what you want to do, consider applying in less competitive areas, or in closely related careers."

"Oh, and to directly answer your question -- it would be unethical for me to give 'tips' to change your score on a psychological exam. Doing so would render the test invalid. That is, it would no longer measure what it is intended to measure."

Here's a phenomenon that's long intrigued me. The page on my website (www.PsychologicalTesting.com) that gets the most visits is not the homepage, not by a longshot. The homepage is the red line above. I get the most hits (hundreds per day) at iqtest.htm, my page about IQ testing, shown by the blue line above. There are far more searches, and apparently there is far more public interest, in IQ tests than in psychological testing in general. I wonder why the fascination? Maybe people see IQ as more important than other traits that tests measure. There are several high IQ societies, but no high extroversion societies.

Welcome to the Psychological Testing BlogSpot

Welcome to the Psychological Testing blog - the blogspot for my website, PsychologicalTesting.com. This is the place to:

• Ask questions about psychological testing (who does it, what can it do, what tests should be give to assess a certain condition, etc.)
• Discuss controversies (Is IQ genetic and does it differ across racial groups? Are inkblot tests valid?)
• Discuss technical issues (what is test validity, standard error, IRT?)

... or to discuss any other issue related to psychological testing. Have fun!