Just like MRI or X-rays are helpful in the medical field, psychological assessments are beneficial in the field of mental health. A psychological assessment can add a lot of inputs to help the person/client.
Firstly, it can give reliable and valid impressions that can be included by the mental health practitioner to support a diagnosis, rather depending solely on personal observation.
Secondly, at times a psychological assessment can convey a quick result making it easy for the professionals to start with an approach to deal with the problem. It saves time and finance for the patient/client.
Thirdly, a psychological assessment can help the practitioner to monitor the efficacy of the treatment once the treatment has begun. At times, it can help in changing or modifying the course of action, keeping the best benefits for the patient or client in concern.
However, common people have a lot of notion about psychological assessment in general and thus whenever they are suggested for an evaluation, they become conscious or worried. However, these notions can be simply addressed to the professional and can be clarified instantly.
One must note that any psychological assessment is not designed to label individual. It rather helps in making interpretations or impression based on the responses given by the patient or client. This adds more clarity to a diagnosis, made by the practitioner. To label someone with any mental health issue has a different and well-defined format and are used carefully by the professionals. Just a psychological assessment can not convey that.
Also, one should rely on professionals to get assessed based on psychological testing or assessments rather depending on online tests.
Hence always be open and positive for psychological assessments whenever it has been recommended to you.