Assessment Services

Pre-Employment Psychological Evaluations, Fitness-for-Duty Evaluations, & Specialty Evaluations.

Thin Line Psychology is your Qualified Assessment Partner

Assessments related to police and public safety are considered “high-risk” assessments. These are not basic clinical assessments which most licensed psychologists are qualified to conduct. Rather, they are field specific, employment evaluations which are subject to Federal and State regulations such as the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

​We consider ourselves to be Risk Managers. We do not simply give tests and make rote decisions. We fully understand every test that we give and what the literature says about that test as it relates to success or lack thereof in police and public safety positions. We understand the law as it relates to employment practices. We are familiar with relevant legal findings related to these types of evaluations. In short, we use our knowledge and expertise to help the hiring agency minimize their exposure related to these high-risk evaluations.


Pre-Employment Psychological Evaluations

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Post-Conditional Offer Evaluations

Once a conditional offer has been made, the examiner is allowed to ask questions related to conditions that are protected under ADA and EEOC regulations, thus post-conditional offer psychological evaluations may be “medical” in nature and may produce evidence of a disqualifying mental health condition. Candidates will be asked to complete various instruments related to their ability to complete training and perform essential job-related functions. These tests will also help identify potential psychiatric conditions which may interfere with job functioning. A thorough, semi-structured, face-to-face interview is also included in these evaluations.

Once a conditional offer has been made, the examiner is allowed to ask questions related to conditions that are protected under ADA and EEOC regulations, thus post-conditional offer psychological evaluations may be “medical” in nature and may produce evidence of a disqualifying mental health condition. Candidates will be asked to complete various instruments related to their ability to complete training and perform essential job-related functions. These tests will also help identify potential psychiatric conditions which may interfere with job functioning. A thorough, semi-structured, face-to-face interview is also included in these evaluations.

Bifurcated Pre-Employment Psychological Evaluation Model

The Bifurcated evaluation model is a combination of pre and post-conditional offer evaluations. Applicants are evaluated at the pre-conditional offer stage to identify those with the best likelihood for success in the field by examining non-medical, personality characteristics and traits. Those who pass the initial pre-offer evaluation are then moved to through the next stages of the hiring process and, if appropriate, given conditional offers, placed on a hiring list, etc. Once their name comes up on a hiring list and/or after a conditional offer is given, a post-conditional offer evaluation is conducted to assess for medical risk factors which are not able to be assessed until this point in the process according to ADA and EEOC regulations. This process allows the examiner to assist the department in screening applicants early in the process as well as at the final stage of the process. This reduces the number of costly background investigations required and decreases the likelihood that candidates will not pass the post-offer evaluation.

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The Bifurcated evaluation model is a combination of pre and post-conditional offer evaluations. Applicants are evaluated at the pre-conditional offer stage to identify those with the best likelihood for success in the field by examining non-medical, personality characteristics and traits. Those who pass the initial pre-offer evaluation are then moved to through the next stages of the hiring process and, if appropriate, given conditional offers, placed on a hiring list, etc. Once their name comes up on a hiring list and/or after a conditional offer is given, a post-conditional offer evaluation is conducted to assess for medical risk factors which are not able to be assessed until this point in the process according to ADA and EEOC regulations. This process allows the examiner to assist the department in screening applicants early in the process as well as at the final stage of the process. This reduces the number of costly background investigations required and decreases the likelihood that candidates will not pass the post-offer evaluation.

Fitness-for-Duty Evaluations

Fitness-For-Duty evaluations are utilized to ensure that an employee is able to work and fully perform their assigned duties and responsibilities without interruption or interference from a mental health condition or suspected mental health condition.

​In performing these evaluations, our providers adhere to the guidelines for Fitness For Duty evaluations released by the International Association of Chiefs of Police.

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Fitness-For-Duty evaluations are utilized to ensure that an employee is able to work and fully perform their assigned duties and responsibilities without interruption or interference from a mental health condition or suspected mental health condition.

​In performing these evaluations, our providers adhere to the guidelines for Fitness For Duty evaluations released by the International Association of Chiefs of Police.

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Leadership Evaluations

Typical promotion evaluations, as they’ve often been done in Wisconsin, are problematic, especially when evaluating internal candidates who are current employees.  The questions always arise, “What happens if there is a concern?  What does that mean about their current position?”  These are difficult questions, especially from a legal perspective.  A mandated medical evaluation of a current employee is fitness for duty evaluation.  Whether you call it a promotion evaluation does not matter to the courts; it is a mandatory medical evaluation which is no different than a fitness evaluation.  Thus, by doing these “they way they’ve always been done” can become complicated because you have likely sent your candidate(s) for fitness for duty evaluations without defensible reasons to do so.

Dr. Childs created our firm’s Leadership Evaluation process approximately 10 years ago to avoid these complex issues.  Our leadership evaluations are non-medical in nature and consist of an interview and testing to help the department better understand the candidate’s strengths and weaknesses as they relate to the new position or assignment for which they are being considered based on normal, non-medical personality factors.  Our leadership evaluations include components designed to assess factors such as emotional intelligence, management style, problem-solving abilities, and leadership potential amongst others.

This process has been extremely well received over the years, in part due to its user-friendly nature.  Because the process is non-medical, departments can choose to have multiple candidates evaluated and then use the evaluation results to help inform their final decision.  Unlike pre-employment psychological evaluations, leadership evaluation reports are purposefully written in a way that they can be shared with the candidates so that they can learn their strengths and weaknesses, according to their test results, and can begin to work to improve their leadership potential creating an emphasis on leadership development within an agency.

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Leadership Evaluations

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Typical promotion evaluations, as they’ve often been done in Wisconsin, are problematic, especially when evaluating internal candidates who are current employees.  The questions always arise, “What happens if there is a concern?  What does that mean about their current position?”  These are difficult questions, especially from a legal perspective.  A mandated medical evaluation of a current employee is fitness for duty evaluation.  Whether you call it a promotion evaluation does not matter to the courts; it is a mandatory medical evaluation which is no different than a fitness evaluation.  Thus, by doing these “they way they’ve always been done” can become complicated because you have likely sent your candidate(s) for fitness for duty evaluations without defensible reasons to do so.

Dr. Childs created our firm’s Leadership Evaluation process approximately 10 years ago to avoid these complex issues.  Our leadership evaluations are non-medical in nature and consist of an interview and testing to help the department better understand the candidate’s strengths and weaknesses as they relate to the new position or assignment for which they are being considered based on normal, non-medical personality factors.  Our leadership evaluations include components designed to assess factors such as emotional intelligence, management style, problem-solving abilities, and leadership potential amongst others.

This process has been extremely well received over the years, in part due to its user-friendly nature.  Because the process is non-medical, departments can choose to have multiple candidates evaluated and then use the evaluation results to help inform their final decision.  Unlike pre-employment psychological evaluations, leadership evaluation reports are purposefully written in a way that they can be shared with the candidates so that they can learn their strengths and weaknesses, according to their test results, and can begin to work to improve their leadership potential creating an emphasis on leadership development within an agency.

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Specialty Assignment Evaluations

Specialty assignment evaluations can be conducted for various positions that require psychological stability as well as a specific skill set or temperament including SWAT (operators, negotiators, and tactical medics), K9 Officers, School Resource/Liaison Officers, ICAC investigators, and Undercover positions.

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Contact us to discover how Thin Line Psychology can partner with your agency to serve your team.

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