ABSTRACT

Therapeutic Assessment (Finn, 1996; Finn & Tonsager, 1997, in press) is an assessment model in which psychological testing forms the center of a brief psychotherapeutic intervention with clients. Resting on humanistic and phenomenological principles articulated by Fischer (1985/1994), Dana and Leech (1974), Pruyser (1979), and others, Therapeutic Assessment attempts to engage clients in a collaborative, exploratory process through which they learn about the factors maintaining their existing life problems and try out possible solutions to these problems. The techniques of Therapeutic Assessment can be applied to a wide variety of assessment questions and client populations. Several controlled research studies have demonstrated that clients receive lasting benefit from psychological testing conducted according to the principles of Therapeutic Assessment (Finn & Tonsager, 1992; Newman & Greenway, 1997).