The type of client typically referred for this type of testing is a child or young adult who is displaying difficulty in school or work. Understanding the underlying cause of these difficulties is tricky due to the vastness and complexity of the brain-behavior interaction. However, achievement, aptitude, and intellectual functioning testing can help accelerate understanding of these difficulties and delineate a path of action for the child, the parents, and teachers.

In fact, sometimes the single most helpful event in a child or young adult’s academic life is the accurate understanding of the underlying causes of their learning difficulties. For example, a “lazy child” can be better understood as an intellectually gifted child who is bored. A “slow learner” can be better understood as a bright child with a focal learning disability in reading, math, or written expression. A child who “doesn’t like reading” can be better understood as dyslexic. A child with “Attention Deficit Disorder” can be better understood as a child who is anxious that their parents are going to divorce. Where indicated, achievement and intellectual functioning testing is supplemented by other forms of diagnostic testing (i.e. personality testing) to rule-out other emotional or psychological issues that are impacting a child or young adults’ ability to learn and achieve. In summary, these types of testing help clarify complex and often misunderstood situations, and help direct appropriate psychological and school interventions.

Individualized Education Plan (IEPs)

Schools are required to evaluate children who are not progressing academically, the results of which lead to the development of an IEP. An IEP allocates school resources to a child and measures how effective those applied resources are in helping a child’s academic or behavioral progress.  Unfortunately, these evaluations are often significantly delayed, which can result in a three, six, or even twelve month delay in implementation.

To avoid this delay, many parents opt for a private evaluation so that their children are not “losing” six months or a year of their educational life. While we receive referrals from schools, pediatricians, and Children’s Hospital (CCDD) who are backlogged with these evaluation questions, we also handle direct referrals from interested parents.

504 PLANS

Similar to IEPs, 504 Plans are used by schools to determine interventions or accommodations needed to help maximize a child’s school functioning. As with the development of an IEP, 504 Plans are also based on evaluation results. However, with 504 Plans, most school intellectual and achievement measures are based on group administered tests. For children with school problems, these tests often serve more as measures of test-taking behavior than the as measures of a intended problem, and tend to misdiagnose children who do not take the test seriously or do well in group testing situations. Educational testing individually administered by a psychologist can dramatically reduce these effects and therefore reduce potential errors in the interpretation of results, ultimately leading to better diagnosis and treatment recommendations.

Educational Consulting / Boarding Schools

At times, parents have exhausted local educational options or have otherwise determined their child will prosper in a boarding school placement.  Current intellectual, achievement, and/or psychological testing are required by most boarding schools.  This private testing helps identify a child’s strengths and weaknesses for best academic planning.  Likewise, therapeutic boarding schools will require current academic and emotional evaluation for placement and planning determinations.

The type of client typically referred for this type of testing is a child or adult who has a neurodevelopmental disorder (i.e. autism spectrum disorders, speech and language disorders, cerebral palsy) or who has a history of multiple concussions, traumatic brain injury, stroke, seizure disorder, or other "events" which have changed their base developmental patterns. Individuals exhibiting signs of Alzheimer’s or other forms of dementia are also appropriate candidates for neuropsychological testing. Understanding differences in level of functioning between pre- and post-"event" can be critical to accurately diagnosing the patient, indicating prognosis, developing treatment options, including family involvement, and overall, facilitating the best outcome for the patient.

Although there are cases in which an individual would be directly referred for personality testing, personality testing is typically recommended as part of ongoing individual, couples, or family therapy to help facilitate a diagnosis and highlight personality traits that may help or hinder a client in therapy. For example, personality testing can help clarify a diagnosis of Bipolar Disorder versus Depression with Psychotic Features, or could help couples understand ways that their personality dynamics interact with the other’s to create cohesion and conflict. In addition, personality testing can be helpful in identifying occupational interests and career counseling more broadly.

There are two basic types of personality tests; objective tests, which are typically self-report measures of symptomatology; and projective tests, which use more covert ways of assessing personality, the most popular of which is the Rorschach Inkblot Test. Many personality assessments have both a child and adult version of the test to ensure the test is measuring age-appropriate personality traits.

Finally, we offer other forms of diagnostic testing aimed at specific referral questions. These may include shorter questionnaires, such as the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), which specifically measures the progression of depressive symptoms over time, or the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales, which measure deficits in adaptive functioning across a range of ages.

• Beck Depression Inventory – II
• Beery Test of Visual Motor Integration
• Bender Gestalt Test
• Boston Diagnostic Aphasia Screening Test
• Brown ADD Scales
• California Verbal Learning Test – Adult Version
• California Verbal Learning Test – Children’s Version
• Children's Thematic Apperception Test
• Cognistat Neuro-Behavioral Cognitive Screening Exam
• Conners' Parent Rating Scales
• Conners’ Teacher Rating Scales
• Dementia Rating Scale
• Halstead-Reitan Neuropsychological Test Battery
  • Strength of Grip Test
  • Name Writing Test
  • Category Test
  • Tactual Performance Test
  • Seashore Rhythm Test
  • Speech-Sounds Perception Test
  • Finger-Tapping Test
  • Trail Making Test
  • Tactile Form Recognition Test
  • Sensory-Perception Test
  • Reitan-Indiana Aphasia Screening Test
• Halstead-Reitan Neuropsychological Test Battery for Older Children
  • Strength of Grip Test
  • Name Writing Test
  • Category Test
  • Tactual Performance Test
  • Seashore Rhythm Test
  • Speech-Sounds Perception Test
  • Finger-Tapping Test
  • Trail Making Test
  • Sensory Perception Test
• Halstead-Reitan Neuropsychological Examination for Young Children 
  • Category Test
  • Matching Pictures Test
  • Progressive Figures Test
  • Color-Form Test
  • Tactual Performance Test
  • Marching Test
  • Finger Oscillation Test
  • Sensory Perceptual Examination
  • Tactile Finger Recognition
  • Finger-Tip Symbol Writing
  • Tactual Form Recognition
• Hooper Visual Organization Test
• Millon Adolescent Personality Inventory
• Millon Behavioral Health Inventory
• Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory – Adolescent
• Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory – II
• Nelson-Denny Reading Test
• Paced Auditory Serial Addition Test
• Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure Drawing Test
• Strength of Grip Test
• Stroop Color and Word Test
• Symptom Checklist 90-R
• Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales.
• Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale – III
• Wechsler Individual Achievement Test – II
• Wechsler Individual, Wechsler Preschool, and Primary Scale of Intelligence – Revised
• Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children – IV
• Wechsler Memory Scale – Revised
• Wide Range Achievement Test – III
• Zung Depression Inventory