An Australian study of 110 mother-infant dyads and 85 mother-toddler dyads in which the mothers were mentally ill evaluated the effectiveness of the Mother and Child Risk Observation (MACRO). Results found that MACRO offers a convenient framework for assessing risk and interpreting the impact of maternal mental illness upon children. (Author/CR)

Investigates potential problems with training native speaker interlocutors to carry out a series of oral interactions with a candidate for overseas employment with the Australian government. Findings reveal the effects of interlocutor variables and audiotape quality on ratings. Evaluates the overall feasibility of the procedure and examines…

A study of 943 personal narratives of students with deafness evaluated the effectiveness of the Six-Trait Analytical Scale in assessing student's writing. The scale was found to be reliable and valid in evaluating written narratives of students with and without hearing losses and is recommended as a valuable diagnostic instrument and instructional…

Examined whether features of preschool children's mutual friendships were associated with prosocial and aggressive behavior. Teacher reports of friendship features showed moderate interrater reliability and were associated with teacher reports of aggression and prosocial behavior, and with peer reports of acceptance and rejection. Friendship…

Increasingly neuropsychologists are under pressure, particularly in child custody and personal injury litigation, to justify the validity of the tests upon which their assessments are based. Reviews research on the validity of clinical opinions based on tests and concludes that test scores must be used in conjunction with life history and current…

Characteristics of the range of intensities yielding maximum word recognition scores and of the threshold for monosyllabic words were investigated in 110 elderly subjects with mild-to-moderate sensorineural hearing loss, using Auditec W-22 word recognition function. The range decreased as the magnitude of hearing loss increased. (Author/JDD)

Reviews four decades of research on test interpretation. No clear evidence favors one interpretation modality over another, though clients seem to prefer individual interpretations. Also examines client and counselor variables that alone and in interaction may affect test interpretations. Discusses issues that merit attention by both researchers…

Examined reliability and validity of Perceived Quality of Academic Life (PQAL) instrument with data collected from 218 midwestern commuter college students. Extended existing research by studying PQAL scores as predictors of intent to remain in college. Findings showed that the PQAL was reliable, valid, and predictive of future intent to obtain a…

The Residential Checklist portion of the Adaptive Functioning Index was evaluated with 218 individuals with mental retardation in a large Australian residential facility, and found to be both valid and reliable for rating the intellectual and behavioral functioning of individuals, despite some inconsistency in the more subjectively rated measures.…

The Computer Anxiety Scale was tested for invariance over the grouping conditions of males/females and graduate/undergraduate status. Subjects included 187 undergraduates and 188 graduates; analyses were conducted on 136 males and 236 females. Results indicate that the construct of computer anxiety appears to be multidimensional with highly…

Examines the structure, validity, and reliability of Guglielmino's self-directed learning readiness scale. Reviews related literature and refutes Guglielmino's thesis. Reports data derived from an administration of the scale that reveal problems in wording and show that the scale measures a homogeneous construct not associated with readiness for…

The study compared results of rating "Draw a Person" drawings of 250 deaf Israeli children aged 7-15 with those of 54 American deaf children of the same ages and 100 hearing Israeli children. Implications of the findings concerning instrument reliability, emotional development in deaf children, and cross-cultural aspects are considered.…

Evaluation of a checklist by teachers to rate 60 secondary level learning-disabled and nondisabled students for mainstream competencies found no overall mean group differences and no inter-rater reliability, though ratings on work habits did predict course grades for all three groups (fully mainstreamed, partially mainstreamed, and nondisabled).…

Aspects of the new Employee Polygraph Protection Act are discussed, including exemptions, prohibited devices, limitations, exceptions, injury and access requirements, reasonable suspicion, drug industry investigations, procedural requirements, disclosure, basis for discharge, enforcement and remedies, and preemption and existing state laws. (MSE)

Examined the accuracy and validity of self-reports and their effect on tests of attitude-behavior relationships. Self-reports were reasonably accurate, but they produced results different from actual behavior in attitude-behavior tests. Concludes that self-reports and actual behavior should be measured, tested, and modeled separately. (Author/LS)