Assessing an Individual's Competence, Behavior, and Mental Health

Assessing an Individual's Competence, Behavior, and Mental Health

History of Psychological Assessment
Theresa Schlafer
Measurements and Statistics/525
April 10, 2010
Michelle McGuire, Psy.D, LCPC, LCADC

History of Psychological Assessment
Psychological assessment is used for assessing an individual’s competence, behavior, and mental health. Many assessment techniques created over a hundred years ago are an influential part of today’s psychological assessment techniques. A famous technique known as Wundt’s Laboratory is an influential part of psychological assessments. Outlined within this paper are the historic roots of Wundt’s Laboratory and the significance of the technique on modern psychology. Finally discussed is an assessment of the impact the technique had on modern day psychology. Wundt pioneered one of the most famous and influential moves in psychology though the assessment of the biological and physiological aspects of psychology.

Wilhelm Maximilian Wundt is an influential character in modern psychological assessments. Wundt pioneered Wundt’s laboratory in 1879, the first psychological laboratory. The purpose of the psychological laboratory was to study experimental psychology. Wundt’s technique spread from Germany to the Americas very quickly becoming the first of its kind in psychological assessment. The approach finally took the study of psychology away from the philosophy of psychology and added more emphasis on the physiological aspects of psychology. Wundt took the study of psychology to an organic level studying reactions and mental activity over theory and ideas once perceived as psychology “Wundt concentrated his investigations upon sensation and perception” (Kim, 2006, p.1).
Wundt’s approach was quickly recognized as a science and helped form Psychological laboratories. The University of Leipzig in Germany provided Wundt space to perform psychological labs on individuals assessing mental activity, awareness, perception, and reactions. Psychology during this point in the late 1800s became an...

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