The history of testing and assessment with racial and ethnic minorities has been controversial, with issues ranging from IQ testing and the publication of The Bell Curve to highstakes testing for college and graduate school admissions. To address these issues, the purpose of this CNPAAEMI monograph on Testing and Assessment provides a critical review of the challenges and controversy associated with testing and assessment with racial and ethnic minorities in the United States. The monograph designates a chapter for each major racial and ethnic group, providing a critical review of the issues and recommendations related to testing and assessment for each population. Each chapter will include sections on historical perspectives, contemporary challenges, culture-specific tools and recommendations, future directions, recommended readings, and/or references.
The Cultural Formulation Interview (CFI) is an evidence-based tool is composed of a series of questionnaires that assist clinicians in making person-centered cultural assessments to inform diagnosis and treatment planning. It is divided into 4 domains: (1) Cultural definition of the problem, (2) Cultural perceptions of cause, context, and support (including cultural identity), (3) Cultural factors that affect self-coping and past help seeking, and (4) Cultural factors that affect current help seeking.
The Wright-Constantine Structured Cultural Interview (WCSCI) is a structured interview tool to help evaluate the cultural context, development, and influences on an individual. It was developed around Pamela Hays’ (2001) ADDRESSING framework for understanding cultural identity. The interview is meant to be utilized by trained clinicians (or those under supervision of trained clinicians) in the evaluation of individuals. It is free for use, though it is currently not allowed to be altered or adapted in any way.
Monica Williams and colleagues (2018) developed a semi-structured interview called the University of Connecticut Racial/Ethnic Stress & Trauma Scale (UnRESTS). This measure is offered in both English and Spanish, and provides a more comprehensive assessment of race-based trauma relative to existing measures. Because it is an interview, it can facilitate the conversation between the client and clinician regarding the client’s experiences with racism and help the clinician build rapport with the client. This may be particularly helpful for clinicians who are unsure how or what to ask about racially-charged topics. The format of the UnRESTS is modeled after the DSM-5 Cultural Formulation Interview (APA, 2013).
Assessing Racial Trauma Within a DSM–5 Framework: The UConn Racial/Ethnic Stress and Trauma Survey (Williams et al., 2018). This article aims to provide a theoretical basis for the traumatizing nature of various forms of racism within the 5th edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders’ framework for PTSD. It provides a review of the literature and existing measures for the assessment of racial trauma and introduces the UConn Racial/Ethnic Stress & Trauma Survey (UnRESTS), a clinician-administered interview. The UnRESTS is useful to clinicians as an aid to uncovering racial trauma, developing a culturally informed case conceptualization, and including experiences of racism in the diagnosis of PTSD when warranted.
Includes a table that summarizes the instruments available to measure acculturation and ethnic identity. Counselors can use acculturation scales to help match patients to providers, to make treatment plans, and to identify the role of identity in behavioral health presentations.
Latina/o/x/e Families and Youth: A Compendium of Assessment Tools
Family Measures
Caregiver-Child Relationship Measures
Risk Behavior Measures
Assessment Tools translated in multiple Asian languages
Measures on strengths, anxiety, depression, trauma