Assessment in Counseling Psychology

Abstract

There is some evidence that the role of psychological assessment in counseling psychology is changing. Relatively little is known about the specific aspects of current training in assessment, however. Training directors of American Psychological Association (APA) approved counseling psychology programs and APA-approved internship sites were surveyed to determine the extent of training in psychological assessment procedures. Results indicated that (a) clinical interview is the most widely used assessment procedure; (b) the role of vocational assessment is changing; (c) different assessment procedures are emphasized in academic and field training; (d) proficiency in different assessment procedures is expected at different points in training; and (e) some differences in the use of assessment procedures exist among internship settings, with counseling centers being the most divergent. Results suggest that to keep training efforts current, those involved in training counseling psychologists need to be aware of assessment skills needed in professional practice settings. Also, the basis for different emphases in academic and field training in this important area should be explored further.