Operationalizing Informed Consent in Psychological Assessment: Ethical Issues and Considerations.

Psychologists routinely conduct psychological assessment in a wide range of contexts to inform various referral questions and decision-making processes. The results of psychological assessments can have meaningful real-world consequences on a person's life, and psychologists therefore shoulder an important ethical responsibility to obtain informed consent (with few exceptions). Despite this, the existing professional guidelines established by governing bodies like the American Psychological Association for operationalizing and obtaining informed consent are opaque at best and at points inherently inconsistent. Given this, there is great potential for assessors to differ substantively in the depth, specificity, and quality of information that is provided to patients during this process, which raises important ethical questions. This article reviews the current heterogeneity (and inconsistencies) in informed consent standards and ethical dilemmas to consider when conducting psychological assessment. A review of concepts from the genomics literature that are relevant to these issues is also discussed as a means of informing current practices in psychological assessment contexts. The article concludes with a call for clearer guidance and specific standards for operationalizing informed consent processes within psychological assessment settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]