Psychological Evaluations and Testing
At Arkansas Families First, LLC
Psychological testing offers an objective assessment of symptoms, traits, and characteristics, in comparison to others of the same age group. We utilize psychological evaluation to assist with career and employment planning, assessing readiness and adjustment for parenting prior to adoption, and for assessing mental health, development and academic functioning.
Some individuals seeking or currently in treatment need psychological testing, to better understand the source of their struggles and to guide treatment planning. After testing, the results are provided in a written report to families and primary care providers. The report paves the way for academic accommodations and informs the treatment process. We frequently receive the following types of psychological testing referrals:
- Diagnostic Clarification – To assist in accurately identifying diagnoses and effective treatment planning.
- Learning Disabilities – Assesses academic achievement, placement, and strengths and weakness, including the presence of giftedness or learning disorders.
- Attention Deficit Disorder – Assessment of attention and other executive functioning skills associated with ADHD. The evaluation also rules out other diagnoses often misdiagnosed as ADHD.
- Autism Spectrum Disorders – Assesses communication, socialization and behavioral characteristics associated with Autism Spectrum Disorder, as well as other developmental and associated problems.
- Developmental Delays – Assessment for delays in cognitive, academic, communication, daily living skills, socialization, emotion and behavioral functioning.
- Sexuality & Risk Evaluations – Assessment of sexuality related treatment needs and risk for recidivism in cases of problematic sexual behavior.
- Intellectual and Adaptive Functioning – Assessment of intellectual and day-to-day functioning.
- Personality Testing – Assessment of traits, characteristics, and personality profiles as they relate to behavior.
Parenting & Adoption Evaluations
Pre-Adoption Evaluations – Evaluation of parent psychological adjustment, parenting styles and beliefs as they relate to parenting an adopted child.
Many domestic and international adoption agencies require a pre-adoption psychological evaluation for prospective parents. A pre-adoption evaluation provides an overview of each parent’s psychosocial functioning, parenting attitudes and expectations, and marital stability.
Requirements for pre-adoption psychological evaluations vary by agency and country. Most often, these evaluations involve a clinical interview with a Licensed Psychologist (each parent individually, and the couple together) including psychosocial history, as well as objective measures of personality, parenting beliefs and style, mental health status, and other measures specifically requested by the referring agency.
Career and Occupational Testing:
Many youth struggle to figure out “what do with their lives,” for these teens, one of our Career Discovery Program services may help them make decisions about what to do after high school, what college to attend, what career field suits them best, or what major to choose in college. These packages offer:
Career Testing: Individual or group administered career testing with detailed, individualized results. Results apply one’s personality type, career interests and occupational skills to discover suitable college majors and career fields.
