INFORMED

CONSENT
Ethical Issues in Psychological testing

Presented by:
Florence Anne Molabola
Fritz Jenil Lopez
Researchers are bound by a code of ethics that
includes the following protections for subjects:
1.Protected from physical or psychological harm (including loss of
dignity, loss of autonomy, and loss of self-esteem)
2.Protection of privacy and confidentiality
3.Protection against unjustifiable deception
4.The subject must give voluntary informed consent to participate in
research. Guardians must give consent for minors to participate. In
addition to guardian consent, minors over age 7 (the age may vary)
must also give their consent to participate.
What is an Informed Consent?

Informed consent includes an explanation of

the nature and purpose of the assessment,
fees, involvement of third parties, and limits
of confidentiality and sufficient opportunity
for the clients/patient to ask questions and
receive answers.
◦Consent must be in written rather than oral form. The
written form should specify:
◦ (1) the general purpose of the testing,
◦ (2) the specific reason it is being undertaken in the
present case, and
◦(3) the general type of instruments to be administered.
ØElements of Informed Consent Agreements
–Must be presented in a clear and understandable manner
–It should inform the participants what rights they have in the
process, particularly the right to review of material and the right
to withdraw from the process
–Reason for the test administration.
–Tests and evaluations procedures to be used.
–How assessment scores will be used.
–Who will have access to the results.
–Present rights of test taker e.g. to refuse.
ØWe gather informed consent prior to the
assessment of our clients excepts for the following
instances:
◦ When it is mandated by the law
◦ It is implied because testing is conducted as a routine
like educational, institutional, or organizational activity
◦ The purpose of testing is to evaluate decisional capacity
 Exceptions to Informed Consent
Several exceptions to the requirement for informed consent include:

◦(1) the person is incapacitated.

◦(2) life-threatening emergencies with
inadequate time to obtain consent.
◦(3) voluntary waived consent.
Children and Informed Consent
Children (typically under 17) cannot
provide informed consent. As such,
parents must permit treatments or
interventions. In this case, it not termed
"informed consent" but "informed
permission."
ØCONS:
◦One gray area with respect to the testtaker’s right of fully
informed consent before testing involves research and
experimental situations wherein the examiner’s complete
disclosure of all facts pertinent to the testing (including
the experimenter’s hypothesis and so forth) might
irrevocably contaminate the test data.
Why is Informed Consent important?
◦Gaining informed consent not only ensures that the
client understands the nature and the process of the
services being provided, but also the psychologist’s
policies on confidentiality, payment and practice. It is
the building block of creating a trusting and
collaborative process. In regard to psychological
evaluations, gaining informed consent ensures that the
client understands the evaluation process.
REFERENCES:
◦ https://www.slideshare.net/spagball/ethical-issues-in-assessment
◦ Psychological Testing and Assessment: An Introduction to Tests and Measurement 7th Edition Cohen−Swerdlik
◦ https://researchbasics.education.uconn.edu/ethics-and-informed-consent/#
◦ https://nationalpsychologist.com/2017/09/ethics-for-psychologists-the-importance-of-informed-consent-for-
psychological-services/104035.html