Scientific Foundations of Clinical Assessment

Scientific Foundations of Clinical Assessment is a user-friendly overview of the most important principles and concepts of clinical assessment. It provides readers with a science-based framework for interpreting assessment research and making good assessment decisions, such as selecting the best instruments and measures and interpreting the obtained assessment data. Written in a direct and highly readable fashion, with plenty of clinical examples that illustrate the relevance of psychometric principles and assessment research, this text is one every professional and graduate student needs to read. Numerous elements are used consistently throughout the book to facilitate understanding and retention, such as: •text boxes that provide extended presentations of the application of principles and research•end-of-chapter summaries that review key issues covered, and•additional recommended sources for each chapter. A detailed glossary that defines key measurement and assessment concepts is also included, making this book an invaluable reference and supplementary text for anyone who does clinical assessment in the health and mental health domains.

Preface. Introduction to the Scientific Foundations of Clinical Assessment. Reliability. Validity. Applying Psychometric Evidence to Clinical Decisions. Clinical Utility and Decision-making. Understanding Patterns Among Measures Through Factor Analysis. The Conditional Nature of Psychometric Evidence. How to Evaluate Commonly Used Statistical Methods in Clinical Assessment Research. Using Multiple Sources of Data in Clinical Assessment.

Stephen N. Haynes, PhD, is a professor in the department of psychology at the University of Hawaii. Gregory T. Smith, PhD, is a Professor of Psychology and Director of Clinical Training at the University of Kentucky. John Hunsley, PhD, is a Professor of Psychology and Director of the Clinical Psychology Program at the University of Ottawa in Ontario, Canada.