“Is Our Daughter Crazy or Bad?”: A Case Study of Therapeutic Assessment with Children

In this paper we present a new model of intervention with documented efficacy that combines psychological tests and assessment methods with therapeutic techniques to promote change in clients. We will discuss Therapeutic Assessment of Children and their families (TA-C) through the case of a 4-year-old girl, Clara, and her family. Clara’s parents were distressed by her uncontrollable rage outbursts and feared she might be “crazy”. The treatment helped to shift the narrative the parents had about Clara and give new meanings to her behaviors. We describe in detail the steps of the assessment and provide a theoretical discussion of the therapeutic processes involved.