The three types (generalized, unweighted, and weighted) of least squares methods, proposed by Ogasawara, for estimating item response theory (IRT) linking coefficients under dichotomous models are extended to the graded response model. A simulation study was conducted to confirm the accuracy of the extended formulas, and a real data study was…

The relationship between complexity and usefulness can be captured by a U-shaped curve. This comment explores that relationship. Complexity may be useful for one of the main aims of developmental psychology (causal inference) but not for another (description of developmental phenomena). Currently, developmentalists conduct complex analyses that…

Tetrad IV is a program designed for the specification of causal models. It is specifically designed to search for causal relations, but also offers the possibility to estimate the parameters of a structural equation model. It offers a remarkable graphical user interface, which facilitates building, evaluating, and searching for causal models. The…

In the last decades there has been an increasing interest in nonlinear latent variable models. Since the seminal paper of Kenny and Judd, several methods have been proposed for dealing with these kinds of models. This article introduces an alternative approach. The methodology involves fitting some third-order moments in addition to the means and…

This article uses meta-analyses published in "Psychological Bulletin" from 1995 to 2005 to describe meta-analyses in psychology, including examination of statistical power, Type I errors resulting from multiple comparisons, and model choice. Retrospective power estimates indicated that univariate categorical and continuous moderators, individual…

This brief considers the problem of using value-added scores to compare teachers who work in different schools. The author focuses on whether such comparisons can be regarded as fair, or, in statistical language, "unbiased." An unbiased measure does not systematically favor teachers because of the backgrounds of the students they are…

This dissertation comprises three papers that propose, discuss, and illustrate models to make improved inferences about research questions regarding student achievement in education. Addressing the types of questions common in educational research today requires three different "extensions" to traditional educational assessment: (1)…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the "g" loadings and specific effects of the core and diagnostic composite scores from the Differential Abilities Scales, Second Edition (DAS-II; Elliott, 2007a). Scores from a subset of the DAS-II standardization sample for ages 3:6 to 17:11 were submitted to principal factor analysis. Four…

Identifying English language learners (ELLs) with learning disabilities has become very important in education settings so that appropriate educational services can be provided to this group of students. Linguistic diversity may increase the measurement error and reduce the reliability of assessments. This article discusses the issues with…

A psychometric analysis of 2 interview-based measures of cognitive deficits was conducted: the 21-item Clinical Global Impression of Cognition in Schizophrenia (CGI-CogS; Ventura et al., 2008), and the 20-item Schizophrenia Cognition Rating Scale (SCoRS; Keefe et al., 2006), which were administered on 2 occasions to a sample of people with…

Equating of tests composed of both discrete and passage-based items using the nonequivalent groups with anchor test (NEAT) design is popular in practice. This study investigated the impact of discrete anchor items and passage-based anchor items on observed score equating via simulation. Results suggested that an anchor with a larger proportion of…

This paper investigates how bias reduction was affected when different degrees of measurement error were systematically introduced into the measures constituting the final estimated propensity score (PS), the PS only for the set of effective covariates and the PS only for the ineffective ones. Since there was already some error in the Shadish et…

If a person were to ask an educator to identify the two most important attributes of an education test, the response most certainly would be "validity and reliability." These two tightly wedded concepts have become icons in the field of education assessment. As far as validity is concerned, the term doesn't refer to the accuracy of a test. Rather,…

This "What Works Clearinghouse Procedures and Standards Handbook (Version 3.0)" provides a detailed description of the standards and procedures of the What Works Clearinghouse (WWC). The remaining chapters of this Handbook are organized to take the reader through the basic steps that the WWC uses to develop a review protocol, identify…

Researchers in career and technical education often ignore more effective ways of reporting and treating missing data and instead implement traditional, but ineffective, missing data methods (Gemici, Rojewski, & Lee, 2012). The recent methodological, and even the non-methodological, literature has increasingly emphasized the importance of…