Violations of item unidimensionality on language tests produced distorted estimates of person ability, and violations of person unidimensionality produced distorted estimates of item difficulty. The Bejar Method was sensitive to such distortions. (Author)

It has been proposed that the Objective Measure of Ego Identity Status and its scoring criteria should be adjusted to utilize a half standard deviation cutoff. Evidence is provided to support the claim that less stringent criteria will lead to higher numbers classified while arriving at the same research results. This proposal is considered and,…

Determining the optimal number of choices on a multiple-choice test is explored analytically from an information theory perspective. The analysis revealed that, in general, three choices seem optimal. This finding is in agreement with previous statistical and psychometric research. (SLD)

The construction and validation of an environmental attitudes and knowledge scale designed for children is described. The scale fills a need for a research instrument with sound psychometric properties that can be used in a variety of research settings and that will allow comparisons of results across studies. (LZ)

Psychometric properties of a laboratory paradigm for measuring stealing, property destruction, and cheating were explored, and the viability of the construct of covert antisocial behavior was studied in 98 children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder and 78 comparisons. Psychometric and ethical issues in assessment of covert behavior are…

Two studies are reported that examined translation from second language to first language as a testing procedure. Results suggest that the widespread rejection of translation as a language testing procedure by teachers and testers is probably not warranted on psychometric grounds, but that it should be used with extreme care. (10 references)…

Examined psychometric properties of four clinical treatment planning simulations (CTPS) developed by interdisciplinary mental health experts to examine clinical judgment in treatment planning processes of practitioners. Found that scoring reliability was high and simulations demonstrated adequate content, discriminant, and predictive validity.…

The psychometric characteristics of the Job Descriptive Index and other inventories of job satisfaction are examined across a sample of validation studies. The construct validity of these inventories is modest, but this problem can be corrected through proper application of structural equation models. (SLD)

The hypothesis that a task that increases in complexity (increasing its correlation with a central measure of intelligence) does so by increasing its dimensionality by tapping individual differences or another variable was supported by findings from 46 adults aged 20-70 years performing a mental counting task. (SLD)

Comments on Walker's article in this issue. Argues that Walker's study demonstrates the reliability of the Gesell Developmental Assessment (GDA) but leaves unresolved several key questions about the GDA's validity. (GLR)

Previous person-fit research is extended through explication of an unexplored model for generating aberrant response patterns. The proposed model is then implemented to investigate the influence of test properties on the aberrancy detection power of a person-fit statistic. Difficulties of aberrancy detection are discussed. (SLD)

This paper uses the concepts of decision reliability and validity to analyze three alternative psychoeducational assessment strategies: multiple gating, template matching, and time-series methods. It argues that relatively little knowledge is gained through analysis of individual scales and assessment technologies without considering the…

Presents a critique of the social and political contexts in which the idea of construct validation developed. It outlines rhetorical, empirical, and philosophical dimensions of the concept and offers an alternative viewpoint for the conceptualization of construct validation. (SLD)

This collection of diverse conference papers discusses work in the traditions of factor analysis, ordinal psychometrics, structural equations, and some special purpose models for the analysis of change. It is a useful source, but does little to link the psychometric framework to general developments in statistics and other disciplines. (SLD)

The Classroom Environment Scale, revised for use in special education classrooms, was administered to students in 79 special education classrooms in 16 residential and day treatment schools. Psychometric analyses showed that seven of the nine aspects of the classroom found in the original scale were reliably reported in special education…