Psychological Evaluations

Psychological evaluations can help clarify the WHY of an individual’s behavior. For settings to include schools, juvenile justice, social services, mental health, and others, it is particularly important to understand the individual’s strengths and needs in relation to others within his/her environment. In the case of parental capacity evaluations, threat risk assessments, and psychosexual evaluations the questions to be answered involve the interaction between the individual’s psychological functioning and his/her risk to themselves and others. PSYchoDynamics will provide a comprehensive report to include relevant recommendations based on a thorough review of collateral information, a clinical interview and mental status examination, a psychosocial history, administered standardized psychological testing, and (in some cases) an assessment of risk.

All PSYchoDynamics psychological evaluations, parental capacity evaluations, threat risk assessments, and psychosexual assessments will also include a Well Care assessment. From this approach, PSYchoDynamics assessments can assist referring agencies in developing relevant and meaningful treatment plans specific to the “real life” concerns of their clients. In so doing, applied interventions are likely to be more effective, with more client and family engagement, improved responsivity, and quicker and more long-term relapse prevention and benefit to the client and the community. Altogether PSYchoDynamics assessments provide the WHY and HOW in meeting the complex needs of individuals and families in a way that is cost effective and beneficial to the client and his/her larger community.

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WHAT TO EXPECT FROM THE ASSESSMENT

Reason For Referral

PSYCHOLOGICAL EVALUATON

To have an assessment of an individual’s level of functioning to include personality, trauma, and estimated IQ.

THREAT RISK ASSESSMENT

Client is presenting in the school setting with some level of threatening behavior.

PSYCHOSEXUAL EVALUATION

Adjudicated or non-adjudicated youth 13 to 17 years of age who are presenting with sexually abusive behaviors in which:

  • the other person was not consenting (or was unable to consent), or
  • the behavior would be defined as illegal in the jurisdiction in which it occurred.
    • This may include hands off offenses such as peeping, indecent exposure or “sexting”.

PARENTAL CAPACITY EVALUATION

There are questions about the parents’ ability to provide for the child(ren)’s welfare.

Referral questions to be answered

PSYCHOLOGICAL EVALUATION

  1. To understand possible underlying reasons for an individual’s current behavioral, social, or emotional difficulties.
  2. To diagnosis identified mental health issues.
  3. If there is a question of a learning disability, intellectual disability or a neurodevelopmental disorder, additional cognitive and/or achievement testing is available upon request.
  4. To identify an individual’s current needs and strengths for the purpose of treatment planning, placement, and/or case management.

THREAT RISK ASSESSMENT

  1. What are the personality traits and behaviors, and factors within the social environment, home, and/or school that may be contributing to the threatening behavior?
  2. What is the youth’s motivation, intention, ability and means to carry out a threat of violence?
  3. What interventions are recommended in order to address the underlying issues that led to the specific threat?

PSYCHOSEXUAL EVALUATION

Considers the youth’s Risk, Needs and Responsivity:

  1. What is the individual’s estimated risk to repeat his or her sexually abusive behaviors?
  2. What are the criminogenic or dynamic factors contributing to the individual’s risk?
  3. What is the individual’s amenability to treatment?
  4. What are the individual’s strengths and needs that impact his/her ability to benefit from treatment?
  5. What factors within the individual, his family, support system, and community are supporting or mitigating his/her risk?
  6. What is the level of treatment and supervision that will be most beneficial to the individual and to the community?

PARENTAL CAPACITY EVALUATION

  1. What are the parents’ strengths and limitations in being a “good enough” parent to the specific child(ren)?
  2. What developmental needs (emotional, physical, behavioral, social, cognitive, and cultural) of the child(ren) are most supported or most vulnerable in relation to the parent’s apparent resources?
  3. What is the parent’s amenability and motivation to change?
  4. What is recommended for the parent in order to encourage the child(ren)’s healthy development?

Referral questions that cannot be answered

PSYCHOLOGICAL EVALUATION

  1. Was the individual abused or not?
  2. What is the individual’s predicted future?

THREAT RISK ASSESSMENT

What is the individual’s risk for violence overall?

PSYCHOSEXUAL EVALUATION

  1. Is the client guilty or innocent?
  2. Is the individual a sex offender or not?

PARENTAL CAPACITY EVALUATION

Should the parent keep or lose custody of the child(ren)?

Assessment + ConsulTeams

  • Psychological Evaluation
  • Parental Capacity Evaluation
  • Psychosexual Evaluation
  • Threat Risk Assessment
  • Well Care + ConsulTeams

The goal of the ConsulTeam is to move a case from “stuck” to an engaged family moving toward collaborative and effective solutions.  This is a process of weekly team meetings for a period of 1 month (or longer depending on the referred needs of the case) that will provide clinical support and will facilitate the providers and case manager in effectively navigating the needs of children and families who have proven to be especially intensive and/or complex.