The epistemological status of factors--that is, components, common factors, and image factors--is briefly discussed. Implications for the number of factors problem of varying views of factor analysis and the particular factor analytic model employed are noted, and the rationales underlying the best known decision rules regarding the correct number…

A generalization of the Rasch model is employed to quantify statements on a scale in the Thurstone tradition, as well as to measure a person's attitudes in the Likert tradition. An illustration of the technique is provided. (JKS)

Tests the hypothesis that individuals are more likely to view their own behavior as caused by the situation and the behavior of others as caused by underlying personality dispositions. Subjects were 100 undergraduate students. (MP)

Principal components analysis is generalized to the case where any of the variables under consideration can be nominal, ordinal or interval. Hotelling's original formulation is seen to be a special case of this generalization. (JKS)

A simple roof is presented: that the squared multiple correlation of a variable with the remaining variables in the set of variables is a lower bound to the communality of that variable. (Author/JKS)

Various psychometric characteristics of the Marlowe-Crowne and Edwards Social Desirability scales were assessed in a sample of 108 male and 189 female undergraduates. Results suggest that males and females show different means and similar internal consistency reliability and intercorrelation on the two scales. (TJH)

The use of semiparametric models may require incorporating additional functions which do not vary across distributions and may require expressing the models in terms of the joint distribution of response class and response time. (Author/LMO)

On the occasion of Psychometrika's fiftieth anniversary, the past twenty-five years' developments in mental test theory are reviewed. Psychometrika articles treating topics in test theory are listed in a bibliography. (Author/LMO)

Administered three Wechsler adult intelligence scales to 72 undergraduates and tested the quality of means, variances, and covariances, utilizing subtest scale scores and IQs. Results indicated that the three scales were not parallel. Generally, the subtest scaled scores exhibited less similarity across the three scales than the IQ estimates.…

This article provides unbiased estimates of the proportion of items in an item domain that an examinee would answer correctly if every item were attempted, when a closed sequential testing procedure is used. (Author)

Uses principles of latent trait theory to derive conditions under which mean differences between groups on an observed variable are in fact indicative of mean differences on an underlying construct. Pays particular attention to the logistic curve as a model for describing the relation between the observed variable and the construct. (Author/CB)

Various person reliability coefficients, including within- and between-occasion consistency measures, were investigated using the test and retest responses of 123 undergraduates on the Basic Personality Inventory (BPI). Results indicate person reliability may be a multidimensional concept, and that certain item consistency measures are confounded…

Examined the P scale of the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire in three samples of normal Canadian and Japanese students who obtained either very high or very low means on the P scale. Psychometric problems were identified in the sample with a low P mean. Recommended that the scale be renamed. (JAC)

In preparation for a conference on learning and individual differences, the invited authors prepared chapters, which were distributed in draft form. Presentations were followed by discussions, which were recorded, and then edited for this volume, so that the discussion transcript follows each paper. The chapters in part 1, General Background and…

The purpose of this paper is to highlight some psychometric cautions that should be observed when seeking to develop short form versions of tests. Several points are made: (1) score reliability is impacted directly by the characteristics of the sample and testing conditions; (2) sampling error has a direct influence on reliability and factor…