On The Danger Of Psychometrics Tests

twenty fifth Nov 2014 | Comments Off on On the Danger of Psychometrics Tests On the Danger of Psychometrics Tests Psychologists are very keen to place individuals into boxes. We like to label individuals â€" schizophrenic, depressed, anxious. For occupational psychologists we like ENFP, conscientious, emotionally intelligent. Of course, principally these labels are innocent and will even be helpful if they've good reliability and validity. However, after we use labels corresponding to these we should be mindful that we are making a actuality as a lot as describing one. And, particularly within the field of career determination making, I assume there’s a hazard when pondering of ourselves as being a sure method that we are reinforcing ideas which scale back psychological flexibility. By extension, this reduces our capacity to note and benefit from opportunities to change. Freedman and Combs (1996) write: “Speaking isn’t neutral or passive. Every time we converse, we bring forth a actuality. Each time we share phrases we give legitimacy to the distinctions that these words bring forth.” An yone who’s seen the TfL advert will know we are inclined to see issues that confirm what we search. In career determination making we are likely to believe behaviours or judgments which verify our present views of ourselves. And we imagine psychometric exams that are in any case only modified variations of what we've told ourselves within the first place. That’s why even excellent psychometric tests (and there are lots of very bad ones) must be held flippantly. The unquestioned use of labels and categories can consolidate issues that the client is experiencing and reify something which perhaps did not exist â€" or half existed within the messy, ambiguous actuality of being a human. Do I contradict myself? Very well, I contradict myself. I am large. I contain multitudes. Walt Whitman Career Change, Career Management, Executive Coaching, Getting Unstuck teaching, Psychometric assessment Tags: Decision making, Flexible pondering: using ACT in career change, Step 2: Identifying deci sion standards, Step four: Evaluating options and selecting a path, Strengths « Imperfectly Perfect... What is Experiential Avoidance... »