What are Neuropsychological vs Psychological Tests?
Understanding the differences between neuropsychological testing (colorado springs) vs psychological testing can help clarify which type of evaluation is most appropriate for your needs. While both types of assessments explore aspects of mental functioning, they focus on different domains and serve different diagnostic purposes. The sections below explain what each evaluation involves, what they diagnose, and how they can guide treatment planning, legal decisions, and medical care.
What Does Psychological Testing Diagnose?
Psychological testing is designed to assess for the presence of mental health disorders and personality disorders. These disorders can include (but are not limited to) major depressive disorder, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, somatic symptom disorder, conversion disorder, substance use disorders, borderline personality disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, oppositional defiant disorder, conduct disorder, intermittent explosive disorder, or any other mental health disorder referenced in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th Edition (DSM-5). This is the diagnostic guide psychologists use to assess and diagnose mental disorders.
A psychological evaluation can support treatment planning, legal proceedings, and medical care. In order to participate in effective treatment, it is essential to identify the correct presenting concern or diagnosis. If a provider does not have an accurate understanding of the diagnosis, the treatment plan may not be as targeted or effective as it could be if the diagnosis were clarified. This can lead to extended time in treatment, frustration with providers, and dissatisfaction with the treatment process. Understanding the full diagnostic picture can provide greater clarity when a treatment provider develops a plan and collaborates with the individual to address symptoms.
There are also situations in which a lawyer may recommend a psychological evaluation. This can occur during custody proceedings, a criminal trial, applications for disability insurance, or court-ordered evaluations. We can provide evaluations for many of these situations, although insurance typically does not cover evaluations required by the legal system. In addition, medical providers may request a psychological evaluation to better understand psychological factors contributing to a medical presentation. Many providers seek diagnostic clarity before proceeding with certain medical treatment decisions.
What Does a Psychological and Neuropsychological Evaluation Consist of?
Psychological and neuropsychological evaluations 
Psychological and neuropsychological evaluations often include a clinical interview, an intelligence test, questionnaires that assess personality traits, and measures used to screen for various mental health diagnoses. The clinical interview is essential for collecting background information about the individual. Without a thorough understanding of a person’s history—past and present—it is possible to misinterpret test results or overlook important contextual factors that affect performance. An intelligence test is also often administered. While cognitive ability is not directly tied to mental health diagnoses, it is useful for understanding how symptoms may be impacting cognitive functioning. For example, depression and anxiety can negatively affect processing speed and working memory. Identifying these impacts can help us better tailor treatment recommendations to match the individual’s specific needs. Additional diagnostic and personality-based measures are included to better understand the mental health symptoms and traits that influence daily functioning.
Psychological evaluations are designed to gather information related to mental health disorders and potential personality disorders, and neuropsychological evaluations may also include these components. Because of this focus, report summaries often emphasize symptoms and traits that reflect psychological concerns rather than describing every positive personality quality. We want to emphasize that personality is multifaceted, complex, and far more richly developed than any assessment can fully capture. Some personality tools may measure strengths or positive traits (for example, instruments similar to the Myers-Briggs), but the primary purpose of psychological evaluation is typically to diagnose or rule out mental health disorders. Psychological evaluations may last anywhere from four to five hours. Due to the length of the evaluation and the sensitive material that may be discussed, we recommend taking breaks during testing and informing the examiner if you need to pause or take time to manage stress.
What Does Neuropsychological Testing Diagnose?
A neuropsychological evaluation is an assessment of how the brain functions in various domains. Because the term combines “neuro” and “psychology,” it reflects that both neurocognitive functioning and psychological or mental health factors are assessed during the evaluation. A common question we receive is whether instrumentation is placed on the head or body to measure internal processes. Unlike imaging tests completed at a neurologist or medical office—where equipment may be used to measure or capture internal brain activity—our testing process does not require any instrumentation.
Neuropsychological testing primarily includes an interview along with a series of performance-based tests and questionnaires. Most measures involve paper-and-pencil tasks, with some requiring verbal responses to confirm answers. When people ask what they should bring to a psychological evaluation, the most important thing to bring is your brain—everything else needed for testing will be provided.
Mental health and cognitive testing can generally be divided into three parts: the interview, psychological testing, and neurocognitive testing. The interview involves the examiner asking questions about symptoms and gathering relevant background information. The psychological portion of testing can determine the presence of personality disorders and/or mental health disorders. Although this is an important component of neuropsychological testing, some individuals are initially unsure why mental health concerns are evaluated. Mental health symptoms matter because many psychological conditions can impair cognitive functioning and may even mimic neurological or medical conditions. Identifying whether these disorders are present helps clarify what may be influencing performance and what impact symptoms may be having on cognitive functioning. Neurocognitive testing then evaluates how the brain functions in areas such as attention, memory, visual-spatial reasoning, learning, executive functioning, language, processing speed, and fine motor skills. This portion makes up the majority of the evaluation and can be tiring for many individuals.
The purpose of a neurocognitive evaluation is to determine how well the brain is functioning across these abilities. This differs from imaging tests performed by a neurologist, where a provider may take a picture of the brain to identify structural abnormalities. Instead, neuropsychological testing focuses on how the brain performs when completing different tasks and problem-solving demands.
A neuropsychological evaluation may be recommended if you are trying to determine your level of functioning after a brain injury such as traumatic brain injury, stroke, concussion, or vascular injury. Many people seek testing to understand whether their cognitive functioning has changed following an event. Others pursue evaluation to assess neuropsychological functioning for additional purposes, such as determining the presence of an intellectual disability, evaluating adaptive functioning and decision-making capacity related to financial or medical issues, or measuring cognitive functioning to establish eligibility for certain services.
In addition, neuropsychological testing can help guide medical or mental health treatment planning, inform ongoing care initiated by a neurologist or medical provider, or determine whether cognitive decline has occurred due to dementia or another neurocognitive disorder that often emerges later in life. Lastly, neuropsychological evaluations are extensive and generally take six to eight hours to complete, and sometimes longer depending on the individual.
