LEGAL AND ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS Flashcards
QUESTION #22 START
LEGAL AND ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS
The Concerns of the Public
The Concerns of the Profession
The Rights of Testtakers
Concerns of the Public
Legislation
Litigation
Rules governing citizens’ behavior stem from legislatures and interpretations of existing law in the form of decisions handed down by courts.
court-mediated resolution of legal matters of a civil, criminal or
administrative nature
Litigation
Concerns of the Profession
Test-user qualifications
Testing people with disabilities
Computerized test administration, scoring, and interpretation
Guidelines with respect to certain populations
the report defined three levels of tests in terms of the degree to which the test’s use required knowledge of testing and psychology
Test-user qualifications
Tests or aids that can adequately be administered, scored, and interpreted with the aid of the manual and a general orientation to the kind of institution or organization in which one is working
(achievement or proficiency tests)
Level A
Tests or aids that require some technical knowledge of test construction and use and of supporting psychological and educational fields such as statistics, individual differences, psychology of adjustment, personnel psychology, and guidance
(aptitude tests and adjustment inventories applicable to normal populations).
Level B
Tests and aids that require substantial understanding of testing and supporting psychological fields together with supervised experience in the use of these devices
(projective tests, individual mental tests).
Level C
standards for educational test developers in four areas
- developing/selecting tests
- interpreting scores
- striving for fairness
- informing testtakers.
Challenges analogous to those concerning testtakers from linguistic and cultural minorities
- transforming the test into a form that can be
taken by the testtaker - transforming the responses of the testtaker so that they are scorable,
- meaningfully interpreting the test data.
Testing people with disabilities
Computer-assisted psychological assessment (CAPA) has become more the norm
the relative simplicity, convenience, and range of potential testing activities
issues:
- Access to test administration, scoring, and interpretation software
- Comparability of pencil-and-paper and computerized versions of tests.
- value of computerized test interpretations
- Unprofessional, unregulated “psychological testing” online.
Computerized test administration, scoring, and interpretation
published special guidelines for professionals who have occasion to
assess, treat, conduct research with, or otherwise consult with members of certain populations.
to assist professionals in providing informed and
developmentally appropriate services.
Guidelines with respect to certain populations
Rights of Testtakers
ight of informed consent
right to be informed of test findings
right to privacy and confidentiality
right to the least stigmatizing label
right to know why they are being evaluated,
how the test data will be used, and what (if any) information will be released to whom.
right of informed consent
disclosure of the information needed for consent in a language the test-taker
can understand.
components:
- Being able to evidence a choice as to whether one wants to participate
- demonstrating a factual understanding of the issues
- being able to reason about the facts of a study,
treatment, or whatever it is to which consent is sought
- appreciating the nature of the
situation
informed consent
tell test-takers as little as possible about the nature of their performance on a particular test or test battery. In no case would they
disclose diagnostic conclusions that could arouse anxiety or precipitate a crisis.
entitled to know what
recommendations are being made as a consequence of the test data.
inform the test taker (parent or legal representative or both) of the purpose of the test, the meaning of the score relative to those of other test-takers, and the possible limitations and margins of error of the test.
right to be informed of test findings
concept of the privacy right
right to privacy and confidentiality
recognizes the freedom of the individual to pick and choose for himself the time, circumstances, and particularly the extent to which he wishes to share or withhold from others his attitudes, beliefs, behavior,
and opinions
privacy right
information that is protected by law from disclosure in a legal proceeding.
privileged information
distinguished from privilege
concerns matters of communication outside the courtroom, the privilege protects clients from disclosure in judicial proceedings
Confidentiality
should always be assigned when reporting test results.
“was a professional report made by a public servant in good faith, representing his best judgment.”
right to the least stigmatizing label
Legal and ethical considerations with regard to assessment are a matter of concern to the public at large
Psychology, tests, and public policy
Legal and Ethical Considerations
rules that individuals must obey for the good of society as a whole—or rules thought to be for the good of society as a whole.
Laws
a body of principles of right, proper, or good conduct.
ethics
