02| Neuropsychology for Non-Neuropsychologists – an Overview of the Field

This week’s episode is meant for non-neuropsychologists, but neuropsychologists and trainees might enjoy hearing how we introduce the field.  We introduce and talk about what neuropsychology is and what neuropsychologists do.

A pdf of the transcript for this episode is available here.

Topics Covered

  • A very brief history of the field
  • Clinical neuropsychology compared to research neuropsychology
  • Pediatric neuropsychology compared to adult neuropsychology
  • The training required to become a neuropsychologist
  • Similarities and differences between neuropsychology and related fields
  • Conditions for which patients see clinical neuropsychologists and how neuropsychologists can help them
  • Settings where neuropsychologists work
  • The nuts and bolts of a neuropsychological evaluation – from a patient’s perspective and from a neuropsychologist’s perspective
  • How to find a neuropsychologist for yourself or a family member
Episodes

4 Comments

  1. This is good, enjoyed listening. One gentle suggestion – the mention of psychometrists, who in most clinics, actually do the cognitive testing would be worthwhile. We are trained and supervised my neuropsychologists to collect the cognitive test data which then aids the neuropsychologist in making a diagnosis, much like a x-ray technician is used to capture the scans a radiologist uses to diagnose. Psychometrists are a huge part of the evaluation process.
    Thanks!

    1. Thanks for the comment, Julie! You’re absolutely right…psychometrists play a major role in many neuropsychological settings and we failed to mention that in the episode. We were trying to reduce the number of comparisons between disciplines because it was already a lot for the lay audience to keep straight, but we should have thrown in a quick comment about psychometrists. We’ll try to do a full episode on psychometry in the near future.
      Best,
      ~John

      1. OMG, I am just NOW seeing this post. Many thanks for your response, John. Hey, when you do the episode on psychometrists let me know if you’d like any input. I’ve tested for over 20 years, am certified, a member and former board member of NAP, and have a passion for advancing the profession. Would love to help, if you need anything!
        Thanks!
        Julie

  2. Great podcast, a very nice introduction to the clinical side of Neuropsych. This was my first time hearing NavNeuro and I’ll be listening to more.

Comments are closed.