Interactive Assessment as a Research Tool

Abstract

Dynamic/interactive approaches to psychological assessment make it possible to get information that would not be available from the use of other assessment methods. This utility rests on the concept of induced change as a research tactic, that is, inferring the nature of phenomena by deliberately and calculatedly changing them and then assessing the effects of those changes on criterion variables. Studies are reviewed showing how interactive assessment yielded new knowledge in the domains of psychopathology; neuropsychology; learning disabilities; intelligence testing in normally developing, deaf, and immigrant children; and evaluation of educational programs. Some ways in which interactive assessment procedures need improvement are discussed, principally with respect to their measurement characteristics.