Ethical issues in psychological assessment in school settings

It is especially important for psychologists providing assessment and testing services in schools to be able to recognize and negotiate the ethical challenges specific to academic settings. In this article I address ethical issues in the areas of informed consent, nondiscriminatory assessment, projective personality assessment, and computerized psychological testing. One of the most frequent ethical issues that confronts psychologists in the schools is the process of parental consent and involvement. Psychologists are also obligated to select nonbiased test instruments and use them in a way that is not racially or culturally biased. There are several factors to consider when using projective testing in a school setting, and the use of computerized psychological assessment measures raises significant ethical issues. Although concrete solutions are not always available for these complex situations, a basis for ethical decision making is presented.