In his focus article, "Rethinking Traditional Methods of Survey Validation," published in this issue of "Measurement: Interdisciplinary Research and Perspectives," Andrew Maul wrote that it is commonly believed that self-report, survey-based instruments can be used to measure a wide range of psychological attributes, such as…

We used metastudy and metasynthesis techniques to conduct a discursive review of 101 recent publications on the topic of adult functional literacy (FL). Our purpose was to understand the ideologies shaping current definitions and conceptualizations of FL, as well as how and why FL is researched and assessed as it is. Using discursive review…

The ever-increasing internationalization of study programs and global mobility of students call for greater transparency of and valid information on the knowledge and skills students acquire over the course of their studies. Several theoretical and methodological challenges arise from the immense diversity of degree courses, study programs, and…

This article presents a content analysis of the 2013 School Leadership Program (SLP) grants. SLP projects provide a unique opportunity for participants in the field to explore innovative leadership preparation and development and their impact on program participants, schools, school districts, and students. The article begins with an overview of…

Engagement is one of the most widely misused and overgeneralized constructs found in the educational, learning, instructional, and psychological sciences. The articles in this special issue represent a wide range of traditions and highlight several key conceptual, theoretical, methodological, and analytical issues related to defining and measuring…

The scientific study of creativity has proven a difficult undertaking. Researchers have employed a diversity of definitions and measurement methods. As a result, creativity research is underrepresented in the literature and the findings of different studies often prove difficult to draw into a coherent body of understanding. A heuristic framework…

Numerous methods are available to assess physical activity (PA) but systematic observation (SO) excels in being able to provide contextually rich data on the setting in which the activity occurs. As SO is particularly useful for determining how activity is influenced by the immediate physical and social environments, its use is becoming more…

The Evidence-based Literacy Support-"Literacy Octopus" Trial tested a range of dissemination interventions and resources, all of which aimed to engage schools in using evidence-based materials to improve teaching and learning in Key Stage 2 literacy. Four delivery partners provided interventions. These included light-touch,…

Sound evaluation planning requires numerous decisions about how constructs in a program theory will be translated into measures and instruments that produce evaluation data. This article, the first in a dialogue exchange, examines how decisions about measurement are (and should be) made, especially in the context of small-scale local program…

This article provides information for Extension professionals on the correct analysis of Likert data. The analyses of Likert-type and Likert scale data require unique data analysis procedures, and as a result, misuses and/or mistakes often occur. This article discusses the differences between Likert-type and Likert scale data and provides…

Consistent with the dictum, "the personal is political," feminist scholars have maintained that gender equity in security, access to education, economic opportunity, and property ownership are central to women's well-being. Empirical research evaluating this thesis can include nation-level indicators of gender equity, such as the United Nation…

The Journal of Agricultural Education (JAE) requires authors to follow the guidelines stated in the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association [APA] (2009) in preparing research manuscripts, and to utilize accepted research and statistical methods in conducting quantitative research studies. The APA recommends the reporting of…

Purpose: The main aim of this paper is to develop guidelines on the critical issues to consider in research design in an action research (AR) environment for SME network capability development. Design/methodology/approach: The issues in research design for AR studies are developed from the authors' experience in running learning sets but, in…

Background: Return on investment (ROI) is one of the most popular evaluation metrics. ROI analysis (when applied correctly) is a powerful tool of evaluating existing information systems and making informed decisions on the acquisitions. However, practical use of the ROI is complicated by a number of uncertainties and controversies. The article…

Good evaluation requires that evaluation efforts themselves be evaluated. Many things can and often do go wrong in evaluation work. Accordingly, it is necessary to check evaluations for problems such as bias, technical error, administrative difficulties, and misuse. Such checks are needed both to improve ongoing evaluation activities and to assess…