Methods and Sources of Assessment Information 4

Question 1

What is observation?

Answer 1

The process of monitoring the actions of others in a particular context and recording what an individual actually does.

It is a way of seeing what a person actually does in situations, rather than simply making inferences about behavior based on information from interviews or test results.

Question 2

Where observation is used?

Answer 2

in counseling, education, career and employment settings.

Question 3

How behavioral observation can be beneficial?

Answer 3

Provide professionals with information about an individual’s functioning, such as emotional responses, social interactions, motor skills (i.e., body movements), and job performance, to name just a few

Useful for identifying an immediate behavior, what happened just before it, and what happens afterwards (e.g. disruptive behavior in class; an adult who wants to change their eating pattern)

Question 4

How long is an observation?

Answer 4

Observations can be a one-shot affair or consist of several samplings over a longer time span.

Question 5

Who make observation?

Answer 5

Depending on the context and the age of the client, observations can be made and recorded by professionals, significant others, any other person acquainted with the client, or the actual client.

Question 6

What are Examples of observation?

Answer 6

• A school counselor observes a child interacting with his classmates on the school playground to evaluate his social skills.
• A family therapist views a videotape of parents and children playing together to assess parenting skills.
• An adult who wants to change his eating patterns records his thoughts and feelings prior to feeling an urge to overeat.
• While administering a structured clinical interview, a counselor observes and notes the client’s disposition, conversational skills, and overall mood.

Question 7

What are the types of observations?

Answer 7

• Formal & Informal
• Direct and Indirect
• Natural and Contrived
• Unobtrusive/Non-participant and Participant

Question 8

What is Formal & Informal observations?

Answer 8

Counselors may use formal assessment instruments (e.g., standardized rating scales), computer observation software, or informal strategies (e.g., raw notes) to conduct observations.

Question 9

What is a Formal observation? What does it requires?

Answer 9

a highly structured process in which the observer decides ahead of time who will be observed, what behavior will be observed, when and where the observation will take place, and how the behavior will be recorded.

Requires:

• trained observers
• sophisticated procedures for recording, analyzing, and interpreting data.
• use of standardized instruments for recording data, such as published rating scales. However, in recent years a large number of software applications have been developed to assist in the observation process.

Question 10

What is a inFormal observation? How it is used? give example.

Answer 10

is much less structured and occurs whenever professionals make notes of a client’s behavior.

They may take rough notes of any behavior they observe, which is usually not predetermined, and write a more elaborate summary after the observation.

For example, during an interview, a counselor may notice that the client appears sluggish in movement, doesn’t make eye contact, and has slowed speech. These behaviors are often indicative of an individual with depressive symptoms. By recording these observations and considering them with information obtained from the interview and other assessment data, the counselor can determine if the client is indeed depressed.

Question 11

What does Informal observation provides?

Answer 11

Rich data for understanding an individual’s problem, it is not sufficient by itself for diagnosing a problem or determining an effective intervention plan.

Question 12

What is Direct and Indirect observations?

Answer 12

Direct

• Direct observation is a firsthand account of actual behavior as it occurs.
• observations of behavior are not filtered through the perceptions of some informant—the individual’s behaviors are observed directly

Indirect
- professionals using indirect observation rely on reported observations of behaviors by others who have direct contact with the individual.

Question 13

What does the observer do in direct observing?

Answer 13

use a checklist or other instrument to record the presence and frequency of specific behaviors

the observer can simply watch and record as much as possible of whatever appears to be useful or important.

Question 14

What Direct observing is used for?

Answer 14

• tracking target behaviors

- identify a pattern of certain events or stimuli that consistently precede the behavior’s occurrence.

Question 15

What is Natural and Contrived observations?

Answer 15

it is Where it takes place. it can be Natural or Contrived

Question 16

What is a Natural observations setting? Give example

Answer 16

o Observations that take place in naturally occurring settings, such as an individual’s work or school,
o For example, a school-based mental health counselor may use naturalistic observations to assess a child’s behaviors (such as leaving his seat) in a classroom, or a child who fights during recess would be observed at school during recess

Question 17

What is a Contrived observations setting? Give example

Answer 17

Observations that occur in a laboratory or other contrived setting (also known as analogue assessment).

This type of observation aims to evaluate behavior in a theoretical situation that is developed to mimic a real-life (natural) situation (artificial) Settings (situation that is developed to mimic real life, e.g. simulated work environment)

For example, a researcher may observe an individual performing a particular task in a simulated work environment.

Question 18

What is Unobtrusive/Non-participant and Participant observations?

Answer 18

Unobtrusive/Non-Participant

• Observations are said to be unobtrusive when there is no interaction between the observer and those being observed, and when the individual’s behavior is not affected by the observation itself.
• Observers can monitor an individual unobtrusively through the use of a one-way mirror or video recording.
• For example, a clinical supervisor may use video recordings to observe a counselor-trainee’s counseling skills. In contrast,

Participant

• the observer both watching and interacting with the individual as part of the observational situation.
• Participant observation is commonly used in qualitative research studies
• enables researchers to provide more detailed and accurate information about the people they are studying.

Question 19

What are the Methods of Recording Observations?

Answer 19

• Event Recording (formal observation)
• Duration Recording (formal observation)
• Time Sampling (formal observation)
• Rating Scales (formal observation)
• Anecdotal Record (informal observation)

Question 20

What is Event Recording (formal observation)?
What is it best for?
Give an example

Answer 20

(also called frequency recording) is the simplest of the observation data collection methods.

Number of times a behavior has occurred.

Best suited to recording occurrences of low-rate behaviors, which are behaviors that have a definite beginning and ending and do not often occur

e.g.
Observing how many time a student left his or her seat using a tick sheet

Question 21

What is Duration Recording (formal observation)?
When it is used?
What is it best for? 
What does it require?
Give examples

Answer 21

Observing how long a behavior occurs.The length of time of a behavior from beginning to end is tracked.

Used when it is more important to know how long a behavior occurs rather than the frequency of the behavior.

It is most applicable for recording sustained behaviors that have a clear beginning and a clear ending; it is not recommended for behaviors that occur at a very high rate.

Duration recording usually requires a watch or clock so a precise measurement of the behavior can be recorded.

Crying, temper tantrums, and thumb sucking

Question 22

What is Time Sampling (formal observation)?
What are other term for it?
When it is more accurate?
What is interval length?

Answer 22

Divides observation periods into specific time intervals; then, behaviors are simply coded as being either present or absent during each time interval.

Time sampling (some-times referred to as interval recording, interval sampling, or interval time sampling)

Time sampling is more accurate to behaviors that occur too frequently to obtain accurate counts, or they have no clear beginning or ending, which prevents effective event and duration recording. Unlike vent and duration recording, behavior doesn’t occur in a one period time.

Interval length varies depending on the frequency of the behavior, the amount of time allowed for the observation, and the skill of the observer in monitoring and recording behavior

Question 23

What is Rating Scales (formal observation)?
What is it used for?
What are the material?

Answer 23

an efficient means of collecting information about a variety of behaviors, from general functioning to such specific behaviors as social skills, aggressive behavior, anxiety, and hyperactivity, to name a few.

Used to describe the frequency and quality of a specific behavior
They can be used repeatedly and across settings, and they can be completed by various sources (e.g., the client, teachers, parents, counselors).

Rating scales often appear as preprinted sheets on which the observer rates each behavior to indicate either its quality or how often the behavior occurred.

Question 24

What is Anecdotal Record (informal observation)?
What does it observe?
What is it consist of

Answer 24

Brief and descriptive narrative of an individual’s behavior that is recorded after the behavior occurs

An anecdotal record may be a running account of what an individual says and does during a particular period of time, or it may be a single record of a significant incident (e.g., critical incident report).

• As a method of informal observation, anecdotal records may consist of notes written on index cards or in a log, which are more fully elaborated upon and summarized after the observation.
• Should include names (individual and observer), date, hour, setting of observation, the anecdote and respective reflection.

Question 25

What is the suggested procedural for recording behavior anecdotes?

Answer 25

o Focus on a single specific incident.
o Be brief but complete.
o Objectively describe specific behaviors using examples.
o Use phrases rather than sentences.
o List the behaviors in the sequence in which they occurred.
o Include direct quotations whenever possible and significant.
o Record both positive and negative statements.
o Write the anecdote immediately after the observation occurs

Question 26

What is Self-Monitoring?

Answer 26

A systematic observation and recording of one’s own behavior that is often used in counseling as an assessment or an intervention

Question 27

What is it used for?

Answer 27

Used to track the frequency, antecedents, and consequences of a problematic behavior (e.g. anger)

Question 28

Self-monitoring may involve the use of?

Answer 28

o	Autobiographies
o	Diaries
o	Journals
o	Letters
o	Stories
o	Poems

Question 29

How Self-monitoring can help?

Answer 29

• Simply gaining awareness about one’s patterns of behaving can affect the frequency with which behaviors occur.

Question 30

Self-monitoring requires individuals to?

Answer 30

o (a) to be aware that they are engaging in the behavior

o (b) to have a timely and efficient means of logging behavior occurrences.

Question 31

How Self-monitoring is used?

Answer 31

Behaviors can be recorded using frequency marks, check-lists, or other means. To help with recording behaviors in a timely fashion, various devices are available, such as golf wrist score counters and digital timers/alarms.

Question 32

What are Collateral Sources?

Answer 32

• Collateral sources of information include any third party individual who provides information about an individual being assessed
• Typically, the primary source of information is the individual who is being evaluated—but not always. Sometimes, a wellspring of information can come from people who know the individual best. Any third party who provides information is considered a collateral source

Question 33

How Collateral information is gathered?

Answer 33

Collateral information is often gathered through interviews and records.
Collateral information may offset the bias of self-reports.