PRÁTICAS E DIFICULDADES EM AVALIAÇÃO PSICOLÓGICA: PERCEPÇÃO DOS PROFISSIONAIS DE PSICOLOGIA

Abstract

This study aimed to assess the perception of psychology professionals about the practice of Psychological Assessment and the difficulties faced in the activity. A total of 388 psychologists aged between 22 and 56 years old (M = 32.41; SD = 7.54) who performed this professional practice in the Brazilian context participated in this study. Participants answered a questionnaire designed for this purpose, analyzed through descriptive and discourse analysis. The results showed that the psychological assessment sessions last an average of 51.9 minutes (SD = 10.59), and that professionals use interview (98.4%) and observation (96.3%) more frequently. ) as the main evaluative resources, the most used type of interview being semi-structured (65.0%). Regarding administered psychological tests, there was a prioritization of projective and expressive personality tests, when compared to those of selfreport, and a greater variability among the neuropsychological tests used and aimed at the assessment of specific skills. Psychologists reported that the target audience most recurrently attended was adults (80.9%), who were assisted by medical referral (59.2%). Regarding the perception of professionals about the practice, there was an association of the word "Lack" with the terms "test", "value", "demand", "difficulty" and "patient", suggesting difficulties associated with the evaluation process itself (such as patients and complex demands) or the difficulty of acquiring psychological tests and low valuation of PA. Likewise, the word “value” was associated with the terms “psychological assessment”, “health” and “public”, which may indicate that the evaluation process is not valued by the public. These results can contribute to the development and reflections in the field of Psychological Assessment