POSITION PAPER 4 - SITI FATIMAH NOR BT SAAD ISMAN (0729206)

“Since most of the assessment instruments in the market were made based on American culture, Muslim counselors should not use standardized assessment instruments at all”. Discuss.

The assessment instruments is most likely to be used to evaluate or assess someone performance and achievement. The teacher usually used the assessment to determine the student’s ability and knowledge for learning outcomes. The counselors also use assessment to assess their client in order to know their client’s personality, thinking and ability. Assessment instruments are create to be used in the appraisal and evaluation process of counseling. Some instruments are designed to measure change and outcomes, and other instruments are used for specific purposes. Additionally, clients who have received counseling services for prolonged periods may be reassessed to measure progress or identify incremental changes. There are many assessment instruments that can be use by the counselor today and its help the counselor to evaluate the client. For example, 16 Personality Factors (16PF), Anger Disorders Scale (ADS), Minnesota Multiaxial Personality Inventory - II (MMPI-2), Myers-Briggs Type Inventory (MBTI), NEO Personality Inventory - Revised (NEO-PI-R) and others. I am totally disagree that the Muslim counselors should not use standardized assessment instruments at all since most of the assessment instruments in the market were made based on American culture because the instruments are useful to the counselors and help the counselors to know who their clients really are.

The assessment instruments that based on American culture is not only be used by the non-Muslim counselors but also it can be use by the Muslim counselors too. It is depends on the clients which assessment instruments is suitable for them. If all the assessment is based on Muslim culture, only the Muslim counselor can use the assessment and the assessment can only be apply to the Muslim clients. If this thing happens, how the counselors want to assess the non-Muslim clients? What should they use to assess? This kind of question will arise if we use only one type of assessment. The clients are comes from different religions and cultures, so the counselor must use the right way to approach them.

Since all the assessment instruments were based on American culture, not all of the assessment cannot be use by Muslim counselors. As we know, all the instruments are made by the non-Muslim people and because of this the instruments based on American culture. The Muslim counselors may have the optional whether they want to used it or not. By the way, the Muslim counselor may use the Islamic way to assess their client and this is the additional to the assessment that already exist. However, there are some Muslim counselors that think that they should not use the assessment instruments that based on American culture because the majority of the clients are Muslims. The content of the instruments are not suitable for their clients. The counselors assume that the clients will be easily assessing based on Islamic culture. This may be true for them but in other situation, may be it needs the assessment that based on American culture. As the counselors, we should use any instrument that is best and suitable for our clients.

As for me as a Muslim, I will use all the assessment instruments which I think it suitable to apply to my client. The thinking of Muslim counselors should not use the standardized instruments at all must not arise because the counselors must be professional in giving their services to the client. The counselors also should use any material or instruments to make the clients feel better in the counseling session. This is important to the counselors because of to avoid the wrong approach to the clients which may give the bad assumption to the counselors itself.