Tests of measurement invariance are essential to determining whether individual scores or group averages are comparable across populations. While international comparisons of mean IQ scores are common, tests of measurement invariance for intelligence test batteries (necessary for comparisons to be empirically supported) are rare. In this study,…

Intelligence tests are used in a variety of settings such as schools, clinics, and courts to assess the intellectual capacity of individuals of all ages. Intelligence tests are used to make high-stakes decisions such as special education placement, employment, eligibility for social security services, and determination of the death penalty.…

Previous studies have demonstrated evidence of latent skill continuity even in tests intentionally designed for measurement of binary skills. In addition, the assumption of binary skills when continuity is present has been shown to potentially create a lack of invariance in item and latent ability parameters that may undermine applications. In…

Appropriate interpretation of assessment data requires an appreciation that tools are subject to measurement error. School psychologists recognize, at least on an intellectual level, that measures are imperfect--that test scores and other quantitative measures (e.g., rating scales, systematic behavioral observations) are best estimates of…

Intelligence tests and adaptive behavior scales measure vital aspects of human functioning. Assessment of each is a required component in the diagnosis or identification of intellectual disability. The present study investigated the population correlation between intelligence and adaptive behavior using psychometric meta-analysis. The main…

This study examined the exchangeability of total scores (i.e., intelligent quotients [IQs]) from three brief intelligence tests. Tests were administered to 36 children with intellectual giftedness, scored live by one set of primary examiners and later scored by a secondary examiner. For each student, six IQs were calculated, and all 216 values…

The Reynolds Intellectual Assessment Scales (RIAS) measures general intelligence and its two main components, verbal and nonverbal intelligence, each comprising of two subtests. The RIAS has been recently standardized in Denmark, Germany, Switzerland, and Spain. Using the standardization samples of the U.S. (n = 2,438), Danish (n = 983), German (n…

Multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) is widely used in educational research to compare means on multiple dependent variables across groups. Researchers faced with the problem of missing data often use multiple imputation of values in place of the missing observations. This study compares the performance of 2 methods for combining p values in…

A total of 52 Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children, Fourth Edition (WISC-IV) protocols, administered by graduate students were examined to obtain data on the type and frequency of examiner errors, the impact of errors on resultant test scores as well as improvement rate over the course of two years in training. Findings were consistent with…

The researchers examined how speech-language pathologists (SLPs) in a small northern California school district assessed Spanish speaking English learning (EL) Latino children suspected of language impairments. Specifically we sought to (1) determine whether SLPs adhered to federal, state, and professional guidelines during initial assessments and…

A total of 19 graduate students enrolled in a graduate course conducted 6 consecutive administrations of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children, 4th edition (WISC-IV, Canadian version). Test protocols were examined to obtain data describing the frequency of examiner errors, including administration and scoring errors. Results identified 511…

The present investigation explored the stability of scores on the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-IV (WISC-IV) over approximately a three-year period. Previous research has suggested that some children with Learning Disabilities (LD) do not demonstrate long-term stability of intelligence. Legally, school districts are no longer required…

Classical test theory assumes that ability level has no effect on measurement error. Newer test theories, however, argue that the precision of a measurement instrument changes as a function of the examinee's true score. Research has shown that administration errors are common in the Wechsler scales and that subtests requiring subjective scoring…

IQ test scores should be corrected for high stakes decisions that employ these assessments, including capital offense cases. If scores are not corrected, then diagnostic standards must change with each generation. Arguments against corrections, based on standards of practice, information present and absent in test manuals, and related issues,…

The aim of this paper is to demonstrate the dramatic consequences the application of cut-off points can have in the practice of identifying gifted individuals. The paradoxical attenuation effect describes the frequent situation in which measurements of the gifts and talents individuals possess are lower than their true values. However, in…