There has been increased interest in assessing the quality and usefulness of short versions of the Raven's Progressive Matrices. A recent proposal, composed of the last twelve matrices of the Standard Progressive Matrices (SPM-LS), has been depicted as a valid measure of "g." Nonetheless, the results provided in the initial validation…

The measurement error in principal components extracted from a set of fallible measures is discussed and evaluated. It is shown that as long as one or more measures in a given set of observed variables contains error of measurement, so also does any principal component obtained from the set. The error variance in any principal component is shown…

There is significant controversy over what counts as evidence in the evaluation of social interventions. It is increasingly common to use methodological criteria to rank evidence types in a hierarchy, with Randomised Controlled Trials (RCTs) at or near the highest level. Because of numerous challenges to a hierarchical approach, this article…

There are usually limited user evaluation of resources on a recommender system, which caused an extremely sparse user rating matrix, and this greatly reduce the accuracy of personalized recommendation, especially for new users or new items. This paper presents a recommendation method based on rating prediction using causal association rules.…

Alternative high schools serve some of the most vulnerable students and their programs present a significant challenge to evaluate. Determining the impact of an alternative high school that serves mostly at-risk students presented a significant research problem. Few studies exist that dig deeper into the characteristics and strategies of…

Most model fit analyses in cognitive diagnosis assume that a Q matrix is correct after it has been constructed, without verifying its appropriateness. Consequently, any model misfit attributable to the Q matrix cannot be addressed and remedied. To address this concern, this paper proposes an empirically based method of validating a Q matrix used…

A rapid method for hierarchically clustering the n objects of a matrix which portrays the interrelation of every object to every other object, where n equals any number up to 1,000 and even larger, is developed and discussed. Results compare favorably with those from other excellent methods. (Author/BJG)

The convergent and discriminant validity of common measures of three faculty competence attributes (teaching, research, and service) were investigated using multitrait-multimethod (MTMM) matrix analysis. Three different measures for each component were collected on 57 college professors. Results distinguished the three hypothesized components, but…

Three attributes of faculty competence--teaching, research, and service--were each measured by three different instruments--department chair evaluation, self-evaluation, and one other measure (student evaluations, number of publications, or number of committees). The data were analyzed through a multitrait-multimethod matrix (MTMMM) to ascertain…

The construct validity of 14 measures used in college faculty personnel decisions was evaluated through a multitrait-multimethod matrix for data from 89 faculty members in 7 departments. The three-pronged model of teaching, research, and service was not validated. Exploratory factor analysis identified five or six behavior domains for evaluation.…

Tabular procedures for analyzing open-ended responses were used to study a school district's educational reform program. Responses of a rural Arizona Career Ladder (CL) school district's teachers and administrators to three pairs of open-ended questions contained in the 1989 Perception Assessment Scale survey comprised the data base for the…