Path analysis, a technique related to multiple regression analysis is used for ascribing causal relationships among variables. Path analysis involves the construction of explicitly formulated causal models and makes the reasoning explicit in the form of path diagrams and structural equations. Regression analysis is then used to construct path…

This collection focuses on research topics in physical education and athletics and includes the following papers: Methodological Problems in the Assessment of Personality from the Psychoanalytic, Behavioral and Cognitive Positions; Some Factors Affecting the Performance of Women in Sports and Activity; Multivariate Considerations in Children's…

This document, product of a review of eighty-one final performance and evaluation reports of elementary and secondary career education projects to identify needed improvements in career education program evaluation, has four parts. Part I, a critique of common evaluation practices, covers overall evaluation designs, reporting, questionnaires and…

The RMC Research Corporation evaluation model C1--the special regression model (SRM)--was evaluated through a series of computer simulations and compared with an alternative model, the norm referenced model (NRM). Using local data and national norm data to determine reasonable values for sample size and pretest posttest correlation parameters, the…

Longitudinal measures of change are the most important kinds of estimates being produced from the National Longitudinal Study of the High School Class of 1972 (NLS). Several topics are presented in this report, most of which build on previous variance components analyses. The major areas covered are effects of stratification and clustering,…

Accurate estimation of variance components used in generalizability theory is essential for the theory to be viewed as an efficacious mechanism for studying the reliability and validity of a measurement procedure. This paper explores two alternatives for dealing with the apparent instability of small sample size used in determining the accuracy of…

There is some confusion in discriminating basic educational research (which explores the why's and how's of learning) from applied research (which seeks to test the implications of basic research results) because some investigations are conceived without a clear purpose. Thus, it is not uncommon for researchers to suggest implications that…

"Student Powered" research, defined as a comprehensive reliance on or involvement of students as research staff members in all or most phases of a serious research effort, is discussed. It is suggested that there are several conditions necessary for student powered mail survey questionnaire research projects to be initiated, that there…

The five essays that compose this report criticize, from federal, state, and local perspectives, current methods of evaluating government-sponsored education programs. A major recurring theme is that experimental design methods, most commonly used by the Department of Education, do not provide adequate information for policy-makers' needs. The…

This paper explores the concept of educational psychology as a "linking science" between (1) theory and research in psychology and learning and (2) the educational arena of the schools. A linking science is defined as a special structure that intervenes between scientific theory and practical application. The author's first major point is that a…

Attitude and opinion research requires considerable planning, careful design of survey procedures and sampling techniques, and practical ways of collecting, analyzing, and reporting results. The following suggestions are based on the extensive public opinion research conducted by the University of Alabama. (1) Decide what specific problem is to be…

The measurement of change in quasi-experimental educational research was discussed. Problems related to measuring change exist to varying degrees in all research designs; these issues are less troublesome in experimental studies because the investigator can manipulate the interest variables and observe their effects on other variables. Measuring…

The evaluation design, which prescribes when and from whom to gather data, is described as significant because it can lend credibility to evaluation results. The objectives of this booklet are to aid the evaluator in: choosing a design; putting it into operation; and analyzing and reporting the data. Examples include both formative and summative…

An author of the 1966 USOE report titled "Equality of Educational Opportunity" discusses some of the criticisms leveled against the study. The most serious charge is that the study attempted to do too much. By analyzing resource inputs and levels of achievement and by trying to analyze the effects of various inputs on achievement, the…

A method of studying the responses of adolescents to literature was devised and utilized in analyzing the reactions of 52 ninth- and 10th-grade students to four short stories. Each story was divided into six sections and the students' verbal responses were recorded after reading each section. The resulting data indicated that, of the seven…