My research investigation was done on two assessments that can be used in a counseling field and for counseling purposes. One of the assessments was the Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory, also known as the MCMI. The second assessment was strategies or tools that were put in practice by schools for School-Based Mental Health Counseling centers. These two assessments were of interest to me, primarily the ones used for working with schools in the mental health counseling area and how effective they can be with their students and families. Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory The Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory is an assessment of a true and false questionnaire that is constructed to assess psychiatric patients on twenty clinical scales that are combined in basic personality patterns, pathological personality disorders and clinical symptom syndromes (Millon, 1982). Though this assessment has been used for diagnostic purposes, authors such as McCabe (1984), Morey, Waugh and Blashfield (1985), have considered the MCMI very similar to that of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, from the (DSM-III) from the American Psychiatric Association (1980) and some-what problematic. Widiger, et al. (1985) and Millon (1985) argued that, even though many of the inventory items in the MCMI assessment do not relate to the DSM-III standards for personality disorders, it does not signify that the test is useless in calculating DSM-III diagnoses. A study explored the conjunction validity of four MCMI measures for diagnosing mood disorders: Cycloid, Dysthymic, Hypomania and Psychotic Depression scale. Millon (1969), pointed out that the Cycloid scale was taken into consideration due to its theoretic background in the idea ... ... middle of paper ... ...cords and other assessments made in the past, and many others. Even though there is research done comparing and trying to validate other assessment methods used in counseling settings, it all depends on how and what you use it for and your best critique on it. For me, working with the youth, in a school setting and coming from a Latino background perspective, I like the strategies used in school settings for mental health services, health services and those used in general by teams of dedicated, compromised and hard-working staff members to talk and learn about their own students, to identify them and their potentials and struggles and connecting with their families because there is nothing more valuable and reliable then involving a student’s family whenever there is a mental health issue, an academic issue or a general health issue, either positive or negative.
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders: DSM-IV. Arlington, VA.: American Psychiatric Association, 2007. Print.
There are a variety of ways counselors can use assessment in counseling. According to Whiston counselors use (2017) assessments as a tool used to measure people behavior. Assessments can be informal and formal (Laureate, 2013). One significant part of assessments is to evaluate progress between the client and counselor.
American Psychiatric Association. (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (5th ed.). Arlington, VA: American Psychiatric Publishing.
School Psychologist-Based Personality and Behavior Assessment Scenario According to Camara, Nathan and Puente (2000), the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory, commonly referred to as MMPI, is the most used researched and standardized psychometric for testing for psychopathology and personality among adults. The MMPI-A is the version that was specifically designed to take on a different approach to personality testing that targets adolescents aged between 14 and 18 years (Asendorpf, 2003). Using the approach among adolescents, psychologists can help with differential diagnosis, answer legal questions, formulate treatment plans and participate in therapeutic evaluation (Gass & Odland, 2014). From the perspective of a school psychologist, this paper examines the MMPI-A tool and describes its standard use.
The purpose of this paper is to examine various instruments utilized to provide counselors with the most accurate assessment in family, couple and individual counseling. Nonetheless, this paper will also explore the interventions that are most appropriate for this case study. As it will further bring a better sense of awareness to the techniques used in family assessments.
The MACI consists of a 160-item inventory, provided in the English and Spanish language, with a combination of the 27 subscales. The intention of the inventory is to provide counselors and other healthcare or school professional with information to assist in diagnosis and treatment planning for personality disorders in adolescent (Millon & Davis, 1993). The inventory consists of true or false questions; given that this inventory is shorter compared to other personality assessment, it only takes about 20-30 minutes to complete. Millon’s MACI inventory provides convenient and cost-effective methods for scoring the inventory, which include Q-global web-based scoring, Q-Local software-based scoring, and mail-in scoring. Since the MACI is tailored toward adolescents ranging in ages from 13-19, participants must have a minimum of a sixth grade reading level in order to
Smith, H. B., & Robinson, G. P. (1995). Mental Health Counseling: Past, Present, and Future. Journal of Counseling & Development, 74(2), 158-162
Hood, A.B., & Johnson, R.W. (2007). Assessment in Counseling: A guide to the use of psychological assessment procedures (4th ed.). Alexandria, VA: American Counseling Association.
In order to evaluate the proposed changes the DSM-5, researchers conducted semisturctured diagnostic interviews on 2,150 psychiatric outpatients. The prevalence of personality disorders was approximately 614 individuals, 28.6% when all 10 of the DSM-IV personality disorders were included. When removing the proposed personality disorders 555 individuals, 25.8% were diagnosed with atleast one of the remaining personality disorders. Removal of the pro...
The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM) of mental disorders is a widely used and popular text that lists and describes the various mental disorders and the criteria that resembles each one specifically. These series of manuals have had several major problems since their introduction and the latest edition which has yet to release still faces problems in terms of validity with the scientific community. By use of a diagnostic criterion they fail to incorporate many factors such as social influences, a scientific base, and distinction between the criteria for the different disorders. These are only a few of the problems facing the DSM but they may also be the most significant.
When considering the implementation of a school based counseling group it is important to consider the evidence. The use of data-based practices in such groups requires tha...
Corcoran, J., & Walsh, J. (2008). Mental health in social work: a casebook on diagnosis and strengths-based assessment. Boston, MA: Pearson/Allyn and Bacon.
Kendell, R. and Jablensky, A. (2003), Distinguishing between the validity and utility of psychiatric diagnoses, American Journal of Psychiatry, Vol. 160, No. 1, pp. 4-12.
MMPI-2, is a self-assessment measure of an individual’s mental state. The measure has numerous clinical scales evaluating psychological well-being concerns, such as sorrow, anxiety, and stress. “MMPI-2 is made up of 10 clinical scales, which are a result of answering certain questions on the test in a specific manner: (1) Hypochondriasis; all the items on this scale deal with somatic concerns or with general physical competence… is designed to assess a neurotic concern over bodily functioning…(2) Depression; the primary characteristics of symptomatic depression are poor morale, lack of hope in the future, and a general dissatisfaction with one’s own life situation…(3) Hysteria; identify patients who demonstrated hysterical reactions to stress
...scale is later corrective strategies, for example “Contacted student’s parents” or “referred student to other professional (e.g. school counsellor)”. Internal reliability analyses (Cronbach’salpha) resulted in acceptable (>.7) alpha coefficient scores of reliability for frequency, confidence, and success.