The adverse impact of a content-valid job sample test of metal trades skills was compared to that of a well-constructed content-valid written achievement test for the same technical area. The adverse impact of the former was considerably less. Suggests that industrial psychologists should explore more fully the potential of performance testing.…

The Performance Scale of the WISC-R was administered to 59 prelingually deaf children attending a state-supported day school program. The results compare favorably with those found by Wechsler with the standardization sample. (Author)

A study of the correlation between certification test results and ratings of clinical competence for graduate medical students in internal medicine during a six-year period found strong correlations on both individual and general indicators of competence. (MSE)

Concludes that the test has a well-designed reading booklet and a carefully constructed manual, but that it has a narrow applicability. (FL)

Eight of the most common faculty concerns about student evaluations of instruction are discussed: inconsistent student judgments, the perception that only colleagues are qualified to evaluate peers' instruction, student-rating schemes as popularity contests, unreliable and invalid student-rating forms, etc. Research shows that faculty concerns are…

The assessments of faculty performance for the determination of salary increases are analyzed to estimate interrater reliability. Using the independent ratings by six elected members of the faculty, correlations between the ratings were calculated and estimates of the reliability of the composite ratings were generated. (Author/MLW)

Investigated stability of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Revised (WISC-R) intelligence quotient scores of 32 exceptional students over six-year interval. Used 20 learning disabled and 12 mentally disabled students aged 6 to 16. Test-retest findings indicated median reliability value of .74. Discusses implications for clinicians and…

Tested the hypothesis that the vocabulary of a discipline emphasizing concrete phenomena will have fewer synonyms per concept than vocabulary of a discipline emphasizing abstract phenomena. Although concreteness and abstractness of a discipline were found to be contributing factors in terminological consistency, at least one other factor exerts…

Responses to a sample test were simulated for examinees under free-response and multiple-choice formats. Test score sets were correlated with randomly generated sets of unit-normal measures. The extent of superiority of free response tests was sufficiently small so that other considerations might justifiably dictate format choice. (Author/DWH)

Three methods for estimating reliability are studied within the context of nonparametric item response theory. Two were proposed originally by Mokken and a third is developed in this paper. Using a Monte Carlo strategy, these three estimation methods are compared with four "classical" lower bounds to reliability. (Author/JAZ)

Describes the process used to develop two examinations, an achievement test of computer literacy and a computer anxiety index. Highlights include a definition of computer literacy, determination of the validity and reliability of the tests, and a study to evaluate the final versions of the tests. (Author/LRW)

The Self-Report Depression Questionnaire (SRDQ), a measure of depressive symptomatology in persons with mental retardation, was administered to 89 mentally retarded adults living in community-based settings. The SRDQ demonstrated high internal consistency reliability, as well as moderate stability over an 11-week period. Content validity and…

Reliability and validity of "Degrees of Reading Power" test and "Iowa Tests of Basic Skills" reading comprehension and vocabulary tests were compared. Test scores, grades, and assigned reading levels of 191 fifth and sixth graders and 186 sixth and seventh graders in an eastern Iowa school district were used. Reliability and…

Argues that the tests used to measure reading achievement do not reflect recent advances in the understanding of the reading process, and that effective instruction best can be fostered by resolving the discrepancy between what is known and what is measured. (FL)

To control for response bias in student ratings of college teachers, an index of rater error was used that was theoretically independent of actual performance. Partialing out the effects of this extraneous response bias enhanced validity, but partialing out overall effectiveness resulted in reduced convergent and discriminant validities.…