Contact Me for a FREE
20-Minute Consultation:
(413) 200-0669
sarahlukens@valleytherapyassessment.com
PSYCHOLOGICAL ASSESSMENT
I conduct comprehensive and in-depth psychological evaluations. Good evaluations provide more than just a diagnosis: the final report will consist of a thoughtfully written narrative describing your unique psychological, cognitive, and/or neuropsychological functioning, as well as detailed, individual recommendations. A good report is a useful report!
Psychological evaluations are often useful in clarifying diagnoses and providing insight into specific problems. Generally, they are used to answer a specific question. These questions vary tremendously, with examples ranging from “Do I have a learning disability?” to “Why do I get so angry at the people I care about?” to “How should parenting responsibilities be handled in this family?” to “Why isn’t therapy helping my depression?” Psychological evaluations not only to clarify what a person is struggling with diagnostically, but also through providing a detailed description of their psychological and cognitive functioning, meaning how they see themselves, the world, relationships, and how their brain works. They may include testing related to personality, cognitive abilities, academic abilities, neurological functioning, and various clinical syndromes. I am also trained to conduct neuropsychological evaluations, which are useful when a person has had a head injury and wants more information about their brain functioning.
Every case is different, so when an evaluation is requested I provide a free consultation where we will discuss your concerns and goals for the evaluation, including if the evaluation is needed to apply for disability, accommodations in school, obtain stimulant medications, direct treatment, or for a legal proceeding. After this consultation, I will be able to share if the evaluation you need is within my scope of practice, and provide recommendations for the type and extent of assessment you will need. If I can conduct the evaluation, I will also be able to set a fee for the evaluation.
Please contact me to discuss your specific situation and needs, and to determine if a psychological evaluation could be helpful.
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NOTE: I conduct evaluations for adolescents (age 13+) and adults.
Unfortunately, at this time I cannot able to accommodate testing needs for younger children.
Some of the evaluations I most
commonly conduct include:
Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)
ADHD is a neurological disorder which involves dysfunction in the pre-frontal lobe (aka “executive dysfunction”). In ADHD, the pre-frontal cortex underperforms, which make it more difficult for the person to intentionally direct and sustain attention and inhibit behavior. A thorough assessment of ADHD therefore requires a neuropsychological evaluation (because it needs to evaluated nuanced dynamics of brain functioning).
ADHD, Culture, and Gender
ADHD is a neuropsychological disorder, meaning that it occurs across cultures and genders. HOWEVER, the presentation and specific symptoms of ADHD are often different based on cultural variables and gender. For example, male-identifying persons are more likely to be diagnosed with ADHD because their presentation tends to be more hyperactive and disruptive, where female-identifying persons tend to exhibit more inattentive symptoms which are easier to miss. This is thought to be due to epigenetics, meaning the impact of environment on genetics.
Different social histories, including different ways that society shapes us given our race, gender, appearance, and culture (among other variables) impacts how our brains function, including how ADHD symptoms are expressed. These differences can make understanding and diagnosing ADHD especially complex. A psychological evaluation allows for an “x-ray” of brain functioning, which can then be understood and discussed in the context of your learning history, values, strengths, and unique characteristics.
Did you know? ​
Relative OVERperformance of the pre-frontal cortex can cause many of the same symptoms as ADHD, such as feeling like your thoughts are racing and it is hard to focus, anxiety around under-performance, and task-avoidance. However, because the cause is the opposite of ADHD, effective treatments will be very different and typical ADHD treatments can actually make symptoms worse! This is one reason a comprehensive evaluation can be useful if you are struggling with ADHD-like, and especially if you have not responded well to initial treatment.
LEARNING DISABILITIES
Everyone has a constellation of strengths and weaknesses. Sometimes, some areas of learning and are significantly worse than others. This might include a person who struggles to learn to read, or can’t make sense of mathematics, or who doesn’t retain information learned when a teacher in lecturing. When this happens, and initial attempts to address the issue have not worked, the person may have a learning disability.
The general shape of the learning disability is often easy to identity (e.g. “math is hard”). Testing is helpful in teasing out the nuance of what, specifically, the barrier to learning is so that interventions and accommodations can be targeted and useful. ​
​The purpose of accommodations is not to give someone a “free ride” or suggest that they do not need to work to improve areas of weakness; rather, thoughtful accommodations facilitate a person achieving at a level they are capable of by removing barriers.
AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDER
Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is considered a neurodevelopmental disorder, meaning that the person is born with Autism. It is currently estimated that 1-2% of people worldwide have ASD. There are 2 main criteria for ASD: disruptions or deficits in social communication (e.g., nonverbal communication, making and understanding relationships, initiating and responding to emotional aspects of human interaction) and restrictive, repetitive patterns in behavior, such fixed interests, inflexible routines, repetitive movement or speech, and/or sensitivity to sensory input. ASD is a spectrum, meaning that symptoms can occur in more or less severe forms; further, there are people who have some qualities of ASD but do not meet diagnostic criteria. ASD is a widely known diagnosis. If you believe that you or your child might have ASD, it is important to keep in mind that there are many other disorders which have come commonalities with ASD, including social communication disorders, ADHD, trauma, and anxiety. Because there are many other diagnoses which have symptoms and behaviors in common with ASD, a thoughtful evaluation can be extremely helpful in ensuring that you or your child is accurately understanding the cause of any difficulties and in directing appropriate treatment.
Did you know? ​
In the past, mental health professionals differentiated between Asperger’s Syndrome and Autism, with Asperger’s being more mild and Autism being more severe, but both disorders consisting of similar symptoms. As our knowledge about Asperger’s and Austim increased, it became apparent that these were two disorders which occurred along a spectrum; hence the diagnostic label “Autism Spectrum Disorder.” Congruent with our understanding of ASD as a spectrum, a diagnosis of ASD includes the severity level (which ranges from 1 to 3).
PSYCHODIAGNOSTIC EVALUATIONS
Sometimes, it is unclear what is happening “under the hood” psychologically. You, your therapist, family members, friends, or teachers may notice that something feels wrong. You may be struggling to live the life you want, but the reason for your struggle is unclear. Or, you may think that you might have bipolar disorder, or Autism, or a personality disorder, but aren’t sure. In these situations, psychological testing can help provide clarity. This may include a psychological diagnosis, but will also involve describing your unique ways of seeing the world and relating to yourself. When someone is especially struck, or when treatment providers need additional information, psychodiagnostic evaluations can be invaluable in clarifying the problem and providing nuanced, individualized recommendations.
FORENSIC EVALUATIONS & EXPERT TESTIMONY
Forensic evaluations are evaluations done within the legal system. For more information about the types of forensic evaluation I conduct, please click here.
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Parental Capacity and Social Services
I have specialized in doing psychological evaluations, interactional evaluations, and parental capacity evaluations for families involved with social services since 2018, including providing expert testimony in Dependency and Neglect cases.
