Professional qualifications for administering psychological assessments in school counseling

Question 1: Qualifications Because of the ethical implications of psychological tests and assessments, their use is often restricted. As Naugle (2009) points out, only “qualified professionals” are eligible to purchase psychological tests and assessments distributed by major publishing companies like Western Psychological Services and Multi-Health Systems. Professional organizations like the American Psychological Association and American Counseling Association supports the standards publishing companies use to determine whether the assessments will be administered and interpreted ethically. In many cases, tests are only available to psychologists and not to counselors. Yet in spite of attempts to restrict access to psychological tests, standards used to determine professional qualifications varies enough to be considered inconsistent and even irrelevant for achieving the goals of maintaining ethical standards in counseling (Naugle, 2009). Moreover, many counselors also decry some of the overly stringent standards of measuring professional acumen, noting that some publishers unnecessarily restrict test and assessment access only to licensed psychologists. Omitting counselors would prevent their clients from having access to a wider range of services and interventions. Also, counselors possess sufficient qualifications and competencies in terms of level of education, training, and experience necessary to administer and score the instruments accurately and ethically (Naugle, 2009). As Naugle (2009) also points out, each state will have its own set of rules and regulations guiding the counseling profession that ensures professionalism and competency. It is up to each school counselor to review their own state laws, and to work within the boundaries of their ethical and legal obligations. I intend to practice as a school counselor in the State of Florida, which offers its own certification program and methods. Generally, Florida has been a state that does restrict school counselors, limiting their practice domain to only some types of tests and assessments. In addition to outlining the core educational requirements for certification in the state, Florida’s Department of Education also mandates the passing of specific tests like the Professional Education and Florida General Knowledge tests to receive full license and credentials. Yet a Florida license to practice as a school counselor does not necessarily allow me to administer all the tests that might be useful for students. Receiving full license to work as a school counselor in the state of Florida will allow me to administer and score some, but not all tests. For example, I will be able to work with assessments and appraisals in general but not specific tests including cognitive, aptitude, and achievement tests (Florida Department of Education, 2010; Naugle, 2009). As Naugle (2009) points out, some tests (like Level A tests) require no specific training or competencies to acquire or administer, and Level B tests can be offered to anyone like me, who possesses a Masters degree in either psychology or education plus the requisite licensing. Yet Level C tests are those that require a doctorate in psychology in order to purchase and administer. If I want to work with the full range of psychological tests and assessments, I would need to pursue a career as a psychologist. Level Q tests require an additional set of qualifications that are specific to the use of that instrument (Naugle, 2009). These regulations are in place to prevent the misuse and misinterpretation of the tests, but should not impede the counselor’s ability to advocate on behalf of all students. Underserved students especially need access to more, not fewer, assessments. Question 2: The BDI-II The Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II) offers counselors access to a streamlined and relatively quick self-assessment that clients can use. The new version of the BDI is designed to align best with the updated standards for assessment in the latest version of the DSM. Revised definitions of clinical depression and other mood disorders have inspired the new version of the BDI-II, to better offer insight into client self-reported behavior and cognitive states. Both Arbisi (2001) and Farmer (2001) provide a generally favorable overview and critical assessment of the efficacy and validity of the BDI-II. The BDI-II’s core strengths are its ease of administration, its symptomology, and its theoretical alignment with the DSM. However, most attempts to assess the validity of the instrument have been conducted on limited population samples. For instance, Farmer (2001) points out that the BDI-II has been tested on relatively monolithic population groups with little attention paid to geographic, ethnic, and socioeconomic diversity. The lack of insight into how the BDI-II will be relevant to a broader population group makes the assessment far less reliable. As a self-report instrument, the BDI-II also lacks internal rigor. Counselors should therefore keep in mind these weaknesses when using the BDI-II and should not rely exclusively on the outcomes of this test when working with clients. The BDI-II may offer some insight into some clients, but should be combined with other methods of assessment in order to fulfill the ethical obligations of the counselor to the client. Section A9 of the American School Counselor Association (ASCA) (2010) ethical standards addresses evaluation, assessment, and interpretation. The ASCA defers to recent professional standards, suggesting that school counselors only use those measures that fall within their practice rubric. Counselors should keep in mind their motivations and biases when administering tests and of course, counselors are obliged to maintain client confidentiality. When administering tests like the BDI-II, the counselor also needs to take into account age, language competency, and cultural factors that might impact the veracity of results, achieving the equivalent of informed consent for all students. In other words, the counselor needs to explain what the test is, what it is designed to measure, and how the outcomes may be used to students in language they and their parents will understand (ASCA, 2010, A.9.d). Most importantly in light of what Arbisi (2001) and Farmer (2001) caution about the limitations of the BDI-II, the ASCA (2010) claims counselors need to “use caution when utilizing assessment techniques, making evaluations and interpreting the performance of populations not represented in the norm group on which an instrument is standardized,” (A.9.f). Counselors need to use this instrument judiciously, given the BDI-II has only bee reliably tested on specific population groups. Different individuals will exhibit different symptoms of depression, and those differences may be related to culture and other variables that the BDI-II does not take into account due to its inherent biases and having not yet been thoroughly tested on diverse population samples. School counselors will be working with diverse student populations and have a responsibility to provide support and services to all students equally. Counselors do need to use assessments, to best assess the needs of individual students or of the school as a whole, and also to help pair students with the resources available to them. Yet the appropriate assessments must be used, and their results interpreted in culturally sensitive ways. Issues like race, class, and gender all need to be taken into account when administering psychological tests and assessments and when interpreting results. Counselors can help reduce achievement and opportunity gaps by remaining vigilant and sensitive to the needs of diverse populations.