Ethical Decisions in Psychological Assessment

Abstract

Abstract Ethical dilemmas frequently occur in the course of psychological assessment. Having an ethical decision-making framework to guide psychologists’ actions when they experience these situations as well as being aware of their acculturation to their personal values and morals and the profession’s ethics code can help psychologists make more thoughtful and nuanced ethical decisions. This chapter takes a positive ethics perspective, with the goal of doing the best for clients and others with whom psychologists have a professional relationship. Therapeutic Assessment is consistent with the positive ethics perspective by maximizing clients’ participation in the assessment process. Ethical decisions regarding feedback, multicultural assessment, informed consent, confidentiality, test selection, and assessment supervision are discussed, as well as the emerging areas of teleassessment and presurgical psychological screening. Vignettes throughout the chapter bring these issues to life.