This paper describes and evaluates the use of decision theory as a tool for classifying examinees based on their item response patterns. Decision theory, developed by A. Wald (1947) and now widely used in engineering, agriculture, and computing, provides a simple model for the analysis of categorical data. Measurement decision theory requires only…

The nontechnical ability to identify or match argumentative structure is considered by many to be an important reasoning skill. Instruments that have questions designed to measure this skill include major standardized tests for graduate school admission, for example, the Law School Admission Test (LSAT), the Graduate Record Examination (GRE), and…

This document presents a released mathematics test, Form E, from the Nevada High School Proficiency Tests. The first section contains 31 word problems for which students must select the correct answer. The second part of the test contains 29 more test items. Directions, a sheet of formulas to use in calculating answers, and an answer key are…

Two standard setting methods, the Angoff method and the Rasch model based Item Map approach, were compared for setting a standard for a high-stakes medical licensure examination, the last examination of a three-examination series of a national medical licensing examination. The standard setting committee consisted of 23 physicians who were…

Under item response theory (IRT), obtaining a common proficiency scale is required in many applications. Four IRT linking methods, including the mean/mean, mean/sigma, Haebara, and Stocking-Lord methods, have been developed and widely used to estimate linking coefficients (slope and intercept) for a linear transformation from one scale to…

Bounds for the multiple correlation of common factors with the items which comprise those factors are developed. It is then shown that under broad, but not completely general, conditions, the circumstances under which an infinite item domain does or does not perfectly determine selected subsets of its common factors. (Author/JKS)

An approach is described for the characterization of test questions in terms of the information in a passage relevant to answering them and the nature of the relationship of this information to the questions. The approach offers several advantages over previous algorithms for the production of test items. (Author/GDC)

Three-item orderings and two levels of knowledge of ordering were used to study differences in test results, student's perception of the test's fairness and difficulty, and student's estimation of test performance. No significant order effect was found. (Author/GK)

A test theory model based on the Thurstone judgmental model is described. By restricting various parameters of the model, 3 Rasch models, 2 pseudo-Rasch models, 3 two-parameter models, and a Weber's Law model are derived. (Author/CTM)

Four statistics are proposed for the detection of local dependence (LD) among items analyzed using item response theory. Simulation results show that, under the locally dependent condition, the X-squared and G-squared indexes appear to be sensitive in detecting LD or multidimensionality among items. (SLD)

A computer simulation study was conducted to determine the feasibility of using logistic regression procedures to detect differential item functioning (DIF) in polytomous items. Results indicate that logistic regression is powerful in detecting most forms of DIF, although it requires large amounts of data manipulation and careful interpretation.…

Attempted to illuminate practical limitations on the Rasch model by focusing on the recovery of the density scale through five simulation trials. Results show that when error distributions are insufficient, the results may be ordinal at best, and when error distributions are nonsymmetrical, the positions of items may be biased with respect to the…

Presented nonparametric tests for testing the validity of polytomous unidimensional ordinal probabilistic polytomous item response theory models along with procedures for testing the comonotonicity of two item sets and for item selection. Describes advantages of the new approach. (SLD)

Any item response theory (IRT) researcher or practitioner will find something of interest in this book, which covers a broad range of topics in essays by well-known researchers. Chapters are organized into sections devoted to parametric and nonparametric IRT topics. (SLD)

Studied the Work Satisfaction subscale of the Job Descriptive Index (JDI) to determine the difference between measuring work stress and measuring work satisfaction. Results from samples of 1,623 and 314 adults provide evidence supporting the removal of some contaminating items from the JDI. (SLD)