Dr. Raja David spent his infancy in a residential treatment center--seriously! Today we learn from Dr. David about Therapeutic Assessment or TA, which is totally different from the usual psychological testing and diagnosis methods you learn in graduate school (AKA Your IQ is X, your diagnosis is Y, and we recommend CBT; mk, thanks, bye.)

TA offers a much appreciated humanistic, experiential perspective. It's a process for helping people figure out what's going on in their lives, and "hand[ing[ that info back to them in a digestible way", so that "insight is LIVED, not just cognitively grasped".

It just so happens that this approach to evaluating humans is evidence-based, too. It's a win-win for everyone, really, and we hope you'll appreciate the shift in perspective, even if you're in a setting where committing to a full TA model is hard.

Bio:
Dr. Raja David is the founder and owner of the Minnesota Center for Collaborative/Therapeutic Assessment, where he conducts Therapeutic Assessments with adolescents and adults. He is a former assistant professor and has taught doctoral level courses and professional workshops, and co-wrote what is essentially the adult TA manual. He consults with others about TA and conducting psychological assessments, and is a member of the Therapeutic Assessment Institute board of directors.

Honorable Mentions:
Dr. David's private practice web site: https://www.mnccta.com/
What is TA? (from Dr. David's site): https://www.mnccta.com/therapeutic-assessment
Therapeutic Assessment Institute (TAI; includes trainings for professionals): https://therapeuticassessment.com/
Society for Personality Assessment (SPA): https://www.personality.org/

Welcome to The Psychologists Podcast, where we talk about all things psychology through a very personal lens.

Gill Strait PhD and Julia Strait PhD are both Licensed Psychologists (TX) and Licensed Specialists in School Psychology (LSSPs, TX). They are alumni of The University of South Carolina School Psychology Doctoral Program (Go Gamecocks).

Gill is a teacher, researcher, and supervisor at a university graduate psychology training program.

Julia is owner and therapist at Ocean Therapy in Houston, TX, offering telehealth therapy to young adults in their 20s and 30s who are struggling with anxiety. Check it out here: https://www.oceantherapy.net/