Individual assessments have a wide array of purposes and benefits.They answer questions you have about yourself and address aspects of oneself that feel puzzling or mysterious.
Perhaps you’re stuck in a pattern of behavior that you know no longer serves you, but you just can’t seem to break out of it.
Or, maybe you want to learn more about yourself in certain contexts, such as what you’re like as a parent or romantic partner.
Assessments can be helpful independently or as an adjunct to individual or group therapy.
Additionally, individual assessments can be used to diagnose certain mental health conditions in order to provide clarity on treatment planning.
Diagnoses we assess for:
Anxiety & OCD
Bipolar disorder
Depression
Dissociative disorders
PTSD
Personality disorders
Schizophrenia and other psychotic disorders
Sexual dysfunction
Questions you might hope to answer:
“Why do I keep falling for the same types of partners, even though they aren’t right for me?”
“Why can’t I get close to people?”
“How can I be the best parent possible for my children?”
“Do I have bipolar disorder or some other mood disorder?”
FAQs
What is a psychological assessment?
A psychological assessment is a handful of sessions (usually in the 2-8 range) that combine interviewing, psychological testing, and a feedback session to discuss the results.
What kind of person gets an individual assessment?
Most individuals who come to us looking for an individual assessment want to better understand who they are in a certain context, (e.g. “How will I be as a parent?”, “What will I be like as a spouse?”), how their personality/psychology works (“How do I process emotions?”, “What’s my problem-solving style?”, “Am I depressed?”), and/or how they function in relationships (“Why do I get overwhelmed when my partner says they’re stressed?”).
Why should I consider getting an individual assessment?
Similar to therapy, we’d argue that most people can benefit from an individual assessment in pursuit of learning more about themselves and becoming the best version of themselves. We all have parts of ourselves we know better than others, and an individual assessment can help create insight and awareness about the parts of you that feel unknown, confusing, or mysterious.
My therapist wants me to do testing. Will you talk with them? Do they get the results?
We deeply value professional consultation and collaboration and are always happy to consult with therapists about the results of testing. After our feedback session, we send your feedback PowerPoint to you through our secure client portal and you are welcome to share the report with your therapist. We are also able to meet with you and your therapist if you decide that would be helpful.
What’s so special about these psychological tests?
You can think about psychological tests as similar to medical tests (such as X-rays or bloodwork). Just as medical tests can show something going on physically in your body that you may or may not know about or feel symptoms of, psychological tests can show aspects of a person’s psychology, emotions, thought processes, problem-solving style, or relationship functioning more clearly. Psychological tests have developed from decades of research and empirical evidence, making them robust in reliability and validity. Only doctoral level psychologists have the specialized training to administer psychological tests.
Should I only do testing, or should my partner and I both do it?
It depends. In most situations where a couple wants to improve their relationship, having both partners do testing can give a lot more information than just one partner doing testing. However, there are some situations where it makes more sense for only one partner to do testing. For example, if one partner thinks they might have ADHD, we can assess that partner for ADHD.
My therapist wants me to do testing. Will you talk with them? Do they get the results?
We deeply value professional consultation and collaboration and are always happy to consult with therapists about the results of testing. After our feedback session, we send your feedback PowerPoint to you through our secure client portal and you are welcome to share the report with your therapist. We are also able to meet with you and your therapist if you decide that would be helpful.
Can you do personality testing for public service job applicants (police, security, firearms certification, etc.)?
Yes, for Pennsylvania and New Jersey.
How does payment work?
After your free consultation with one of our assessors, you will receive a quote for the entire assessment. For any service hours (either face-to-face hours with an assessor, or hours the assessor is spending scoring and analyzing test results), fees are charged the day before the service hour occurs. Material costs are charged on the first day of testing along with the service hours for that day. In this way, the fee for an assessment is charged in spread-out portions over the course of a few weeks.
Does every person you assess get the same tests?
No! Our assessments are custom made for every couple or individual getting assessed. Which tests are chosen depends on what the couple or client are hoping to find out from the assessment.
How do you give me the results of testing? Do I get a report?
You will get the results of the testing in a 1-hour feedback session with your assessor. During this hour, your assessor will talk through the results and also present a feedback powerpoint, which you will get a PDF of after the session. We do not provide written reports because we’ve found that they’re not an effective way of delivering feedback to clients. However, if a written report is needed for a certain circumstance, we are open to discussing this further and providing one if appropriate.
Take our quiz to see if this assessment is right for you:
PCT clinicians who specialize in individual psychological assessments
If you’re someone who likes the research, the evidence, and knowing why something works, you’re not alone. There can be something remarkably encouraging about having information that’s backed by science. At the very least, it gives us a clearer direction and a starting point for what comes next.
That’s exactly why we’re passionate about couples assessments here at PCT.
