Research supported in part by National Science Foundation grant no. GB4925, U.S. Public Health Service Grant FR00164 from the Division of Research Facilities and Resources.

Five experienced child and adolescent psychiatrists provided ratings of symptoms and behaviors of typical patients belonging to 18 different diagnostic groups. Ratings were then factor analyzed and revealed consistency of description in 14 of the 18 groups. (Author/JKS)

Studies of preschool indicate that: (1) valid and reliable measures of the environment are possible; (2) environments vary across programs; and (3) there is a relationship between the environment and development of children in those environments. The Early Childhood Environment Rating Scale shows promise for both research and training. (Author/LC)

The Audio Visual Inventory of Interpersonal Competence (AIIC) is designed to measure elementary-aged children's interpersonal competence. Two studies were conducted, with the first to develop the AIIC and the second to establish AIIC reliability, based on 641 elementary-aged children's responses. Results suggest that the AIIC is a reliable…

Examined couples' and observers' perspectives of marital interaction. Nondistressed (N=10) and distressed (N=6) couples and objective observers (N=10) evaluated couples' interactional behaviors. Spouses' ratings of their partners' behavior were not consistent with observers' ratings of partners' behaviors but were consistent with observers'…

Examines Rasmussen's Ego Identity Scale for internal consistency reliability and construct validity. Subjects included 114 primarily White and middle-class seventh- and twelfth-grade students. Implications for identity assessment are drawn. (Author/RH)

Six different approaches to scoring test data, including number right, correction for guessing, and answer-until-correct, were investigated using Monte Carlo techniques. Modes permitting multiple response showed higher internal consistency, but there was little difference among modes for a validity measure. (JKS)

Data indicate that the scales in each of four forms (student perceptions of actual and preferred environments, and teacher perceptions of actual and preferred environments) of the Individualized Classroom Environmental Questionnaire possess internal consistency and discriminant validity. (PN)

Behavioral Expectation Scales (BES) were compared to summated and trait-oriented scales as measures of teaching performance. The psychometric evidence suggests that the summated format is slightly superior. In terms of practicality (ease of use, defensibility, and accuracy), the summated scale is definitely superior. (Author/BW)

Evaluates the consistency of student rating of teaching effectiveness using the 15-item "Teaching Effectiveness Rating Scale" given 115 classes on two separate occasions. Among conclusions the report suggests the scale is a values-loaded process and should be implemented with caution. (AH)

The reliability of simple difference scores is greater than, less than, or equal to that of residualized difference scores, depending on whether the correlation between pretest and posttest scores is greater than, less than, or equal to the ratio of the standard deviations of pretest and posttest scores. (Author)

The phenomenon of "halo" effects in subjective grading was investigated. Two groups of three raters evaluated 20 term papers in introductory psychology. Term paper grades correlated significantly with course grades when information about previous academic performance was made available. When this information was not available, the…

A total of 92 Head Start children responded to the Piers Preschool Pictorial Self-Concept Scale. The relationship between scale scores and age, family structure, or gender was negligible. Responses to several scale items differed significantly when subjects were compared by gender or family structure. (Author/RH)

Comparison of the Goodenough-Harris and McCarthy scoring procedures for 60 kindergarten children's drawings yielded substantial agreement between the two scoring systems. The streamlined McCarthy scoring system should be utilized when large numbers of children are being evaluated with short periods of time. (Author)