Author: Andrew Gersten, PhD
Publisher: Pearson – 412 pages
Book Review by: Paiso Jamakar

Most of us have taken some sort of assessment test: aptitude test, intelligence test, personality test, or other test. And there are variations of each of these tests. These are means to take stock of ourselves and make decisions as what profession or vocation to pursue, how to improve our mental acuity, what strengths to further build on, and what weaknesses to work on.

But there are those who have mental health issues and behavioral problems: pent-up anger that leads to shootings and killings for example, or suicidal tendencies in others. We have all seen in recent years, and continue to view on television, too many fatal consequences that were the result of people who were troubled, but it was too late to do anything to prevent those tragedies.

So psychological assessment can not only improve people’s lives, but also prevent injuries and deaths. This book is on that important subject of assessment of people’s minds.  It has been written for graduate students, emerging professionals in the “helping” fields (e.g. clinical psychologists) and those that counsel others.

The book is entitled “integrative assessment” because the author Andrew Gersten saw a need out there for texts that provided guidance on interviewing and observing (some informal assessment techniques) on the one hand, and formal, standardized assessment tests based on their proven effectiveness. This book provides both.

Integrative Assessment – A Guide for Counselors presents a comprehensive, multi-dimensional view of assessment and its basic foundations and principles. It looks at the important considerations to take into account in an assessment task, the type of information needed to be gathered, the behavioral problems to look for, the various methods to use, and much else. The extent of its coverage is presented to you below from its Brief Contents:  

  1. Introduction to Psychological Assessment
  2. Ethical and Legal Considerations: Preparing for the Assessment
  3. Interviewing Adults and Youth: Principles, Methods, and Skills
  4. Exploring Presenting Problems, Readiness for Change, and Risks and Resources
  5. Observations, Inferences, and Behavioral Assessment
  6. Psychological Tests and Measurement Concepts
  7. Reliability and Validity
  8. Personality and Interest Measures
  9. Assessing Psychopathology: Mood and Anxiety Disorders
  10. Assessing Children and Adolescents: Self-Report and Adult Perspectives
  11. Comprehensive Risk Assessments: Suicide and Dangerousness to Others
  12. Assessing Substance Use Disorders
  13. Assessment of Intellectual and Cognitive Abilities and Achievement
  14. Assessing the Therapeutic Alliance
  15. Putting It All Together
  16. Appendix A – Sample Assessment Documents
  17. Appendix B – Additional Resources
  18. References
  19. Index

These important features in its chapters add much value this book:

  • Chapter Objectives
  • Overviews
  • Tables with data
  • Practice Suggestions
  • Summary and Conclusions
  • Reflection Questions and Experiential Exercises

This is a well-thought-out, meticulously researched book with strong factual and scientific basis. It is a unique, one-of-a-kind book that makes Andrew Gersten a pioneer in integrating the different means and methods of assessment in the helping professions.

 

Andrew Gersten, PhD is a private practitioner specializing in the assessment and treatment of children with emotional and behavioral disorders. He received his doctorate in clinical psychology in 1987 from the Illinois Institute of Technology. Since his internship training at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center Development Center in 1986, he has provided cognitive and psychological assessments to children – preschool through adolescence.

He has worked in community mental health as a therapist, assessor, and supervisor and has consulted to elementary and middle schools on school climate, behavioral program development, and special education services. In addition, Andy is a teacher, presenter, supervisor, and researcher. He has been teaching in counseling programs for over 19 years.

Andy is currently adjunct faculty at Antioch University New England, where he has been teaching Assessment: Principles and Methods, and Psychopathology: An Ecological Approach since 2008. Prior to Antioch he was an Associate Professor of Counseling at River College, Nashua, New Hampshire, where he taught graduate students in school and mental health counseling and teacher education programs.

He has presented at regional and national counseling and psychology conferences on various topics, including DSM-%, counselor intentionality, school counseling models, and interpersonal problem solving. Andy has coauthored several articles on the effects of shift work on sleep and well-being and counselor intentionality. His current research focus is the development of intentionality in counselor trainees. Andy is a member of the American Counseling Association, Association of Counseling Education and Supervision, the New Hampshire Psychological Association, and the American Psychological Association. His email is [email protected].