Assumptions of Psychological Testing

The manner in which psychological tests are administered is referred to as psychological testing. The tests are intended to be an objective and consistent measure of a sample of behavior. The sample of behavior is simply the ability of an individual to perform on tasks prescribed in advance. According to the American Psychological Association, about twenty thousand new psychological tests are developed annually. However, with such many tools available, the psychologists must have clear understanding of the theory and reason of testing in any situation. The testing theory is actually different as the psychological theories of personality intelligence and research shows that in the testing process, a psychologist makes about twelve assumptions. The assumptions are aimed at creating psychological tests, establishing their theoretical framework, and determining how the interpreted result will be employed in a given setting. In addition, the assumptions of psychological testing give an excellent facilitator for analysis of the complex issues identified during testing and measuring (Cohen & Swerdlik, 2002). The following are the different assumptions psychologists use in psychological testing.