According to item response theory (IRT), examinee ability estimation is independent of the particular set of test items administered from a calibrated pool. Although the most popular application of this feature of IRT is computerized adaptive (CA) testing, a recently proposed alternative is self-adapted (SA) testing, in which examinees choose the…

Computerized adaptive testing (CAT) has become increasingly common in large-scale testing programs. This paper considers relevant practical issues that are likely to be faced by the developers and managers of a CAT program. The first cluster of issues is that of item pool development and maintenance. It includes such considerations as item pool…

Performance of 156 undergraduate and 48 graduate students on a self-adapted test (SFAT)--students choose the difficulty level of their test items--was compared with performance on a computer-adapted test (CAT). Those taking the SFAT obtained higher ability scores and reported lower posttest state anxiety than did CAT takers. (SLD)

Research on the major computerized adaptive testing (CAT) strategies is reviewed, and some findings are reported that examine effects of examinee demographic and psychological characteristics on CAT strategies. In fixed branching strategies, all examinees respond to a common routing test, the score of which is used to assign examinees to a…