Emotional and Psychological Disabilities

Emotional or psychological difficulties can develop at any stage in a child’s or adolescent’s life. These difficulties usually manifest in problems a young person is experiencing in relationships with family members, persons in authority (e.g., teachers) or peers. Emotional turmoil in a young person often takes its toll on academic and social development. Grades may drop unexpectedly. A child may begin to isolate. An adolescent may talk of dropping out of school. Young people experiencing emotional or psychological difficulties often feel like they can’t talk to anyone about their problems. Symptoms of emotional or psychological disabilities include recurrent feelings of anxiety or depression, experiencing frequent somatic problems, social problems or thought problems, and engaging in rule-breaking or aggressive behaviors.

Tests to assess for emotional and psychological disabilities in children or adolescents include the following:

Achenbach Rating Forms (Youth Self-Report, Child Behavior Checklist, Teacher Report Form).

Thematic Apperception Test.

Roberts Apperception Test for Children.

Millon Pre-Adolescent or Millon Adolescent Clinical Inventory.

Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-Adolescent.

Sentence Completion Test.

Rorschach Inkblot Test.

Trauma Symptom Checklist for Children