How does a neuropsychological evaluation differ from a psychoeducational, neurological, and/or psychological evaluation?

A neurological evaluation generally assesses and individual’s basic mental, motor and sensory functions to determine abnormal functioning in these areas, including gross deficits in cognitive functioning. A psychological evaluation provides in depth analysis of an individual’s social-emotional and personality functioning for diagnostic clarification and to inform treatment. A psychoeducational evaluation is generally an assessment of cognitive and educational skills focused on measuring ability and achievement discrepancies to diagnose specific learning deficits requiring academic remediation (such as special education services) and academic accommodations. Unlike these evaluations, a neuropsychological assessment provides a comprehensive and detailed overview of an individual’s neurocognitive and emotional functioning using in depth and standardized tests. Results are not only compared to normative guidelines of individuals in your age group, but also to your own performance in other areas to determine relative strengths and weaknesses for diagnostic and treatment planning/remediation purposes. A neuropsychological evaluation uses information from neuroscience research into brain/behavior relationships to answer questions about the processes underlying your thoughts, feelings, and behaviors in order to provide targeted interventions and treatment.