This dissertation develops and applies sophisticated Item Response Theory (IRT) methods to address fundamental measurement challenges in cognitive testing, focusing on the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB) data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY). The first chapter implements a confirmatory multidimensional IRT…

The National Longitudinal surveys (NLS) of Labor Market Behavior have been conducted by the Center for Human Resource Research at Ohio State University and supported by the Department of Labor since l966. In this paper, data from the fifth and newest NLS cohort, a national cohort of 12,686 youth who were aged 14-21 in 1979, are discussed.…

This paper examines the effect of teenagers' outlooks--specified as their locus of control--on educational attainment and labor market outcomes. I replicate the study of Coleman and DeLeire (2003) and test the predictions of their theoretical model using a different data set--National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY). The findings fail to…

In this guide, transition is defined as the period of time when adolescents are moving into adulthood. This guide is designed to (a) help youth and the adults who work with them understand the role of assessment in transition and (b) describe ways to collect and use data that will lead to informed choices based on accurate assessment of each…

A multivariate modeling approach was developed to assess the impact of changes in aptitude requirement minimums on U.S. Air Force technical training outcomes. Initially, interviews were conducted with technical training personnel to identify significant student inputs, course content, and training outcome variables. Measures of these variables…