ABSTRACT
To many, the word "assessment" itself may imply a value judgment, or an attempt to place someone along a scale of suitability. The Concise Oxford Dictionary states that, indeed, "to assess" means to estimate the size, quality, or value of something, and that an assessor is someone who estimates the value of property for tax purposes. Considerations of invasiveness may be less fraught when a patient comes in a state of obvious pain and anxiety such that interpretation is needed almost as an emergency procedure, bringing visible relief. This is often not the case, however, in a standard psychotherapy service, as, by the time the appointment arrives, the crisis has often abated and some sort of defence is back in place. On the one hand, people are being asked not to intrude. On the other hand, they might be betraying the patient and colluding with defences by not being invasive enough.
