Item response theory (IRT) is based on the assumption that a direct relationship exists between an examinee's total performance on a set of items and the difficulty of each item on the test. The Rasch model represents this relationship mathematically on an equal interval scale. This paper argues that IRT, under the required conditions, provides…

A discussion of the differences between the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), an American test battery, and the Cambridge English Examinations (Cambridge), a British battery, focuses on the different approaches to language test development embodied in the tests as the source of difficulty in translating between them for individual…

The Listener Preference Profile (LPP) was designed to identify habitual listening responses. Items for the LPP were generated from listening behaviors identified from a systematic review of the listening literature and modified based on administration to several pilot groups. Results of factor analyses identified four clusters (people-, content-,…

Motivational and cognitive aspects of children's reports of an event to which they were the only "witness" and the prime "suspect" were examined. Subjects were 67 children of 3 to 10 years of age. After a test and play session to assess the children's receptive vocabulary and their understanding of the term "believe,"…

The reliability of the Students' Views of an Ideal Student Questionnaire was studied. The questionnaire consists of 26 characteristics of a quality student. The subjects were 88 volunteers (33 males and 55 females), enrolled in various classes at a state university, who responded to the questionnaire twice within 10 days. Subjects included 35…

This study examined mothers' conceptualizations of their relationships with their children in relation to the quality of their attachment with them. In a brief interview, 58 mothers were asked about their satisfaction with their relationship with their child and with a non-attachment topic (division of household chores). Mother-child attachment…

The concept of the "voice" as developed by Robert W, Firestone (1984 and later) has been hypothesized as an essential mechanism in self-destructive behavior in general and suicide in particular. This study applies the theory of the voice to the development of the Firestone Voice Scale for Self-Destructive Behavior (FVSSDB). The FVSSDB…

The purpose of this paper is to examine the nature of discrepancy score phenomena of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), as related to internal consistency and construct validity of the instrument. Data were collected from 140 university research managers. The data suggest internal consistency problems: only 37.3 percent of the subjects…

A study examined educational adjustment (the personal and environmental compatibility with an educational program) and its relationship to several variables to which it is believed to be related. These variables included measures of satisfaction and satisfactoriness, several aptitude measures, and a series of demographic variables obtained from…

Four professional observers watched videotapes of the behavior of ex-mental patients (N=20 each). Their recordings showed that the observers were sensitive to any atypical behavior on the part of patients with whom they were familiar. They were equally objective in their observation of behavior of unfamiliar patients. (SE)

The study compared differences and similarities between WISC and WISC-R scores for 48 ten- and thirteen-year-old educable mentally retarded students, who were matched according to sex and race. Results suggest that many children classified as "Borderline" or slightly above the WISC will be classified as "Mentally Deficient" by…

This study examined the relationship between the General Aptitude Test Battery (GATB) and class performance of eleventh- and twelfth-grade high school students enrolled in the Current River Area Vocational School, Doniphan, Missouri. Results of the project should help in counseling prospective trainees toward trade or shop areas and tentative…

This paper criticizes the Future Events Test and conclusions drawn from it on the grounds that the test contains sex-biased items and that locus of control scales have shown no reliable sex differences. (GO)

This study assessed the nature of the conceptual schemas used by elementary school students in observing the behavior of peers. The results indicate that elementary school students use a comprehensive, understandable conceptual schema, discrepant from the schema used by teachers, but reliable. (JMB)

Fifty-six children between the ages of two years four months and four years ten months were given tests relating to the acquisition of both 'specific' and 'generic' concepts. (Author)