Achievement Test

Context of testing

Designed to measure previous learning. 

In comparison to an aptitude test, an achievement test assesses knowledge and skills that you already posses. 

Achievement tests rely heavily on content validation procedures.

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Aptitude Test

Context of testing 

designed to measure an individual’s potential for learning a specific skill.

In comparison to an achievement test, an aptitude test assesses an individual’s ability to potentially acquire certain knowledge and skills. 

Aptitude tests rely heavily on predictive criterion validation procedures.

Ex:

Assessment Interview

context of testing in counseling

initial interview in which the counselor is gathering information about the patient and beginning to form a conceptualization of their case and their particular problems.

structured or unstructured

Structured interviews are generally more reliable and valid, but lack the freedom of unstructured interviews to pursue a topic of interest or an instinct the interviewer has.

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Construct

context of applied measurement techniques,

a characteristic that varies between individuals but is not directly observable.

cannot be precisely measured

A construct is a hypothetical phenomenon that is difficult to define because it is not objective.

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Criterion-referenced Scoring/tests

context of testing

test-taker is asked to demonstrate a specific skill or ability

The results of these tests are compared to a well-defined mastery criterion and are not compared to norms (i.e., to other individuals who’ve taken the test). 

In contrast to norm-referenced tests.

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Criterion-related Validity

context of testing

type of validity

test or measure assessed according to extent to which it corresponds with a particular criterion or standard

There are two types of criterion-related validity: concurrent and predictive  

Concurrent validity is how well the test correlates currently with another measure or criterion.

Predictive validity is how well the test predicts future performance in relation to some criterion measure.

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Cross-validation

context of testing

process of evaluating test or regression equation for sample other than one used in original studies

allows the researcher to determine if test is valid by using a different sample than initial test sample and seeing if similar results are found

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Norm-referenced Scoring/tests

context of testing

tests in which each test-takers’ results are compared to norms

Norms are not standards, but rather are what a typical performance or result on a test looks like, based on a sample of results.

Tests should be normed on a sample that is reflective of the population that will be tested.

In contrast to criterion-referenced tests.

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Objective Tests

context of testing

unbiased, structured tests

each item has unambiguous stimuli and answers are scored quantitatively

Objective tests do not have a subjective element and therefore are not influenced by rater variables.

These have clearly stated questions and answers.

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Projective Tests

context of testing

test-taker asked to provide a spontaneous response to ambiguous stimuli, rather than choosing an answer from provided response options.

Theory behind these tests is that the test-taker will project their personality structure and unconscious conflicts onto their responses.

Most projective tests do not withstand a vigorous examination of their psychometric properties.

Ex: (Rorschach Test)

Reliability (Types of)

research design

extent to which a test or measure yields consistent results, or extent to which a measurement is free of measurement error.

first characteristic of psychometric soundness.

Test-retest reliability provides a reliability coefficient for the correlation between one person’s scores on one measure taken two separate times.

Parallel-forms reliability is measured with two separate, but equivalent forms of a test that are developed and the scores of them are correlated.

Split-half reliability (or internal consistency) is when one test is split in half and then the two halves are correlated with each other.

Inter-rater reliability is the correlation between different raters’ scorings.

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Standard Deviation

context of measurement techniques

average amount that scores differ from the mean score of a distribution

highly useful measure of the variability of a set of scores

found by taking the square root of the variance, which is the average squared deviation around the mean.

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Standard Scores

context of statistics and testing

scores which have been standardized to have a fixed mean and standard deviation, and to which raw scores can be converted for comparison and evaluation.

Conversion to standard scores allows for more objective comparison and accurate interpretation of scores.

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Test Bias

context of testing

difference in test scores attributed to demographic variables such as age, sex, and race 

important source of error to be aware of and recognize.

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Validity (Types of)

research design

measure of how well a particular measure fulfills the function for which it is being used

three primary types of validity: content, criterion-related, and construct.

Content validity refers to how well a measure encompasses the full domain of what it is trying to measure.

Criterion-related validity refers to the extent to which test corresponds with a particular criterion against which it is compared.

Construct validity is the degree to which the test actually measures the construct or trait that it claims it measures.

There are two forms of construct validity: divergent & convergent.

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Variance

statistics

measure of variability

average squared deviation around the mean

squared bc sum of deviations around mean would always equal zero

widely referenced and useful measure for statistical analysis

*not useful as a descriptive statistic*

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