Brown, Stephanie J. (2021) Evaluation of the Personality Assessment Inventory and its Relation to Other Clinical Measures in Medicolegal and Community Mental Health Settings. Honours thesis, University of Southern Queensland. (Unpublished)
Abstract
In assessing the extent of psychological distress or disturbance experienced by a client, clinicians often administer a battery of psychological tests developed for this purpose. In order for this process to be effective, it is critically important that appropriate tests and measures be selected. The present research examines the utility of psychosocial assessments in terms of effectiveness, efficiency, and appropriateness in assessing psychosocial functioning. Spectrum psychosocial measures like the Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI) are utilised to investigate the scope of underlying clinical difficulties experienced by the individual to identify the most salient areas of concern. However, while the PAI is effective in differentiating between different clinical domains, it cannot provide all of the required details to form a diagnosis (e.g., the severity of the symptoms it identifies). In order to obtain this information, clinicians must turn to other tests that were developed explicitly to indicate how severe the symptoms are or a more detailed picture of the pertinent condition. The present research examines archival data derived from assessments conducted in community mental health and medicolegal settings. The relationship between specific scale elevations on the PAI and supplementary tests assessing depression, anxiety, trauma, pain, and anger will be examined in an effort to determine the relationship between the PAI and these other measures. In this way, the effectiveness and appropriateness of this hierarchical approach to test administration and interpretation will be evaluated and provide a greater understanding of the specific roles these types of measures play in a comprehensive psychosocial assessment.
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| Item Type: | Thesis (Non-Research) (Honours) |
|---|---|
| Item Status: | Live Archive |
| Additional Information: | Current UniSQ staff and students can request access to this thesis. Please email research.repository@unisq.edu.au with a subject line of SEAR thesis request and provide: Name of the thesis requested and Your name and UniSQ email address |
| Faculty/School / Institute/Centre: | Historic - Faculty of Health, Engineering and Sciences - School of Psychology and Counselling (1 Jan 2015 - 31 Dec 2021) |
| Supervisors: | Adina Piovesana; Graeme Senior |
| Qualification: | Bachelor of Psychology (Honours) |
| Date Deposited: | 22 Jul 2025 01:28 |
| Last Modified: | 22 Jul 2025 01:28 |
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | psychosocial assessment ; PAI ; hierarchical approach ; clinical measures |
| Fields of Research (2008): | 17 Psychology and Cognitive Sciences > 1799 Other Psychology and Cognitive Sciences > 179999 Psychology and Cognitive Sciences not elsewhere classified |
| Fields of Research (2020): | 52 PSYCHOLOGY > 5299 Other psychology > 529999 Other psychology not elsewhere classified |
| URI: | https://sear.unisq.edu.au/id/eprint/52184 |
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