Item response theory (IRT) is currently the dominant methodological paradigm in educational and psychological measurement. IRT models are based on assumptions about the relationship between latent traits and observed responses, so the accuracy of the methodology depends heavily on the reasonableness of these assumptions. This dissertation consists…

Diagnostic classification models (DCMs) are psychometric models that can be used to estimate the presence or absence of psychological traits, or proficiency on fine-grained skills. Critical to the use of any psychometric model in practice, including DCMs, is an evaluation of model fit. Traditionally, DCMs have been estimated with maximum…

School psychologists typically conduct psychological and psychoeducational assessments, provide prevention and intervention services, and consult and collaborate with allied professionals (e.g., teachers, physicians, psychiatrists, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, social workers, and nurses) and parents toward better understanding and…

The Stirling Children's Well-being Scale (SCWBS) was developed by the Stirling Council Educational Psychology Service (UK) as a holistic, positively worded measure of emotional and psychological well-being in children aged eight to 15 years. Drawing on current theories of well-being and Positive Psychology, the aim was to provide a means of…

This paper describes the process for creating and validating an assessment test that measures the effectiveness of instruction by probing how well that instruction causes students in a class to think like experts about specific areas of science. The design principles and process are laid out and it is shown how these align with professional…

The proper use of psychological tests requires that the measurement instruments have adequate psychometric properties, such as reliability and validity, and that the professionals who use the instruments have the necessary expertise. In this article, we present the first review of tests published in Spain, carried out with an assessment model…

The widespread application of personal computers to educational and psychological testing has substantially increased the number of test administration methodologies available to testing programs. Many of these mediums are referred to by their acronyms, such as CAT, CBT, CCT, and LOFT. The similarities between the acronyms and the methods…

The paper gives an overview of multidimensional adaptive testing (MAT) and evaluates its applicability in educational and psychological testing. The approach of Segall (1996) is described as a general framework for MAT. The main advantage of MAT is its capability to increase measurement efficiency. In simulation studies conceptualizing situations…

"Diagnostic classification models" (DCM) are frequently promoted by psychometricians as important modelling alternatives for analyzing response data in situations where multivariate classifications of respondents are made on the basis of multiple postulated latent skills. In this review paper, a definitional boundary of the space of DCM…

Accurate identification of young children at risk for mental health problems is a key step in establishing early childhood preventive intervention programs. Without psychometrically valid identification procedures, children in need of early intervention may not be identified and may not receive appropriate care. This article provides a review of…

Discusses various methods and procedures for assessing depression in clients. Reviews eight clinician rating and client self-report measures of depression on the basis of their psychometric properties and applied pragmatic utility. (Author)

With the proliferation of computers in test delivery today, adaptive testing has become quite popular, especially when examinees must be classified into two categories (passfail, master nonmaster). Several well-established organisations have provided standards and guidelines for the design and evaluation of educational and psychological testing.…

The measurement of psychological states requires an entirely different technology from the classical personality inventory assessments of psychological traits. Differences in the requirements of state v trait measurement are discussed. Problems of naming, labelling, describing, defining, and interpretation are discussed in relation to…

This paper outlines a model of psychometric needs assessment developed by the author and discusses how the model, which is designed to profile key abilities and weaknesses, could be applied to the needs assessment, counseling, and training of middle and senior executives. A pilot study on 130 middle management executives is examined in conjunction…

The purpose of this study was to develop a psychometric evaluation technique which could be used to efficiently assess individual features of addiction treatment subjects which bear upon success of treatment. Previous administration of personality measures in two addiction treatment programs had revealed that successful and unsuccessful treatment…