Assessment in Counseling According to Whiston (2013) the counseling process encompasses four steps: 1) assessing the client; 2) conceptualizing and defining the clients’ problem; 3) selecting and implementing effective treatment and 4) evaluating the counseling. Assessment is essential to counseling practice; it provides the counselor with information to understand the client. This paper will explain the use of and importance of assessments in counseling. Additionally it will explain and provide examples of how the writer will use formal and informal assessments in practice.
Roles and Importance of assessments in counseling The role of assessments in counseling practice is pivotal according to Wall (2004). Formal and informal assessments affect treatment planning, monitoring, and evaluating the counseling progress (Whiston, 2013). Furthermore, counselors use assessments for more than simply making a diagnosis and stopping there; assessments have a role in the course of treatment; providing information for initial and ongoing evaluation; and helping counselors monitor their own effectiveness Wall (2004). Therefore, assessments are useful, in offering objective information that potentially leads the client on a road of self-discovery and self-reflection, which according to Whiston (2013) is valuable in maintaining psychological health.
Formal Assessments

Using formal assessments in the early counseling process will help the counselor determine the need of the client. In addition, assessments provide concrete, measurable and objective information about a client. Clients present a multitude of concerns during the initial interaction in counseling process and the information gathered during the assessment phrase will drive how the process proceeds. For instance, if a client enters a therapeutic relationship and their presenting concern is