The Trouble With Learning Personality Assessment

It is my contention that for students to use the formal aspects of testing, to use their intuitions, affective, and cognitive capacities to the fullest, personal defenses and resistances must be recognized, confronted, and worked through. Just as student therapists are encouraged to undergo psychotherapy in order to aid in their development as therapists, students may need help getting beyond personal biases and fears to be free to use their total psyche in the inferencemaking process. This process of working through resistances may be the most challenging aspect of learning and teaching assessment skills. Therefore, this chapter explores some of the conflicts in learning assessment-from a student’s perspective.