Maybe you’re about to undergo a court-ordered psychological evaluation. You might be nervous or stressed out about the process. Furthermore, you may not know what to expect, and you want to ensure that you’re prepared.
It’s normal to feel a bit worried about a court-ordered psychological evaluation. You may feel like this evaluation means you’re automatically going to face legal troubles, which is a misconception. Perhaps you’re not personally facing an evaluation, but you have a family member who is about to go through this process, and you want to educate yourself on what comes next. Here is a comprehensive overview of the court-ordered psychological evaluation process.
The Intake Process
A court-ordered evaluation begins with an intake process. The psychologist will walk you through the steps of the evaluation, and you’ll fill out an intake form. This form will ask questions about your biological and psychological health, as well as your social environment and relationships. For example, you’ll include information about your health history, genetic factors, previous mental health diagnoses and treatments, emotional issues and symptoms of mental health conditions, your family history, relationships, education, and employment history.
This is just a sampling of the information you’ll be asked about on the intake form. These details are intended to paint a comprehensive picture of your physical health, psychological wellbeing, and how your relationships might affect your mental health.
Clinical Interviews
Throughout your evaluation, you’ll engage in several clinical interviews with your psychologist. They will ask wide-ranging questions about your personal history and the current state of your mental health. You’ll also receive questions about any issues relevant to the legal matter at hand, regarding your decision-making process or childcare abilities.
The psychologist will assess your mental health with the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) criteria and note any diagnoses as necessary. Finally, they’ll integrate the details they’ve gathered to form a big-picture perspective that will inform their recommendations to the court.
Examples of Psychological Testing
Depending on your specific circumstances and symptoms, you might have to go through several psychological tests as part of your evaluation process. These tests will depend on the relevance to your symptoms and situation. Not everyone undergoes the same tests.
Which kinds of tests could your evaluation include? Psychologists will commonly administer IG assessments, personality tests, and diagnostic tools for different mental health conditions. They might also neuropsychological tests if they suspect a cognitive impairment or brain injury. Other tests can include projective tests, behavioral evaluations, and risk assessment tools. These are not tests that you have to study for in any way. They are simply frameworks for evaluating your mental and physical wellbeing.
Collateral Information
Psychologists can turn to lots of other sources of information for your evaluation. These resources give context to your assessments. They might review legal documents, past medical and psychiatric records, educational records, or relevant information from your workplace, like performance evaluations or disciplinary records.
Additionally, they can interview other people who know you well, like family members or close friends, and they can collaborate with other professionals who are working on your case. Sometimes, a psychologist may review your social media or online activity, or look to child services reports if child welfare is a concern.
Confidentiality
It’s important to keep in mind that the results of court-ordered psychological evaluations are not confidential. This is because the psychologist is required to submit their results to the court. When you begin the process, the psychologist will review the limits of confidentiality with you.
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Are you worried about an upcoming court-ordered psychological evaluation? Contact our therapy practice to find out how we can help you prepare, or how we can support you afterward.