How are Psychological tests helpful?

Psychological assessment — also known as psychological testing — is done to help a psychologist better understand an individual and provide valuable insights into the individual’s behavior, skills, thoughts and personality. Psychological testing commonly includes intelligence testing, personality testing, and skills testing, among other areas.

Psychological assessment is never focused on a single test score or number. Every person has a range of competencies that can be evaluated through a number of methods. A psychologist is there to evaluate the competencies as well as the limitations of the person, and report on them in an objective but helpful manner. A psychological assessment report will not only note weaknesses found in testing, but also the individual’s strengths.

It has often ben said that 'you are what you think'. It is the human mind which enabled the entire race to dominate over the planet over millions of other species. How can this very complex instrument is so difficult to understand? The human mind is capable of extreme highs and lows in terms of every aspect such as emotions, achievement, empathy anger and so forth. One field of study is Psychology which does help us in its understanding. 

What are psychological tests?

Psychological tests are a method to gauge various parameters of an individual’s mind and how it works. There are not one but multiple psychological tests which help with determining various aspects of a person’s mental functioning and capabilities among others. Like medical tests such as X-rays and various types of blood reports help us get a better picture of the condition of your body, similarly, psychological testing helps us a get a better view of a person’s thinking and if at all there are any problems with it. Just a few examples of psychological testing are as follows – 

1. Aptitude testing in children to check for learning disabilities 
2. Testing for skills such as dexterity or flexibility, and reaction time to look for brain damage or dementia
3. Memory tests to look for psychological disorders as well as dementia
4. Testing for anxiety related disorders especially in social conditions, both in children and adults

How are these helpful?
More than pinpointing psychological disorders, these tests are meant to help an individual point out problems and then start on a treatment or therapy to overcome the problems. These tests can help a person in many ways such as – 

1. Identifying problems early on when they are mild, thus making treatment more effective
2. Help them further in studies or their career where certain conditions or problems were becoming an impediment
3. Provide methods to tackle a phobia
4. Sometimes, psychological testing is very helpful in diagnosing serious mental issues such as depression which may force many to take their own lives; thus preventing it
5. Helping to combat physiological problems in cases where no pathological causes are found. In many cases, stress and anxiety lead to other disorders like diabetes, hypertension, gastrointestinal troubles and others. Once the psychological side is treated after correct diagnosis, the physical problems also tend to dissipate. If you wish to discuss about any specific problem, you can consult a psychologist.