Presents reliability and validity analyses for samples of sixth- and eighth-grade students for newly constructed scales measuring adolescent alcohol use and its risk factors. Results demonstrate that young adolescents can give reliable and valid responses to self-report measures previously used with older adolescents. (JPS)

Expert judgments of prompt difficulty in essay tests were examined to discover whether they could be used at the item-writing stage of test development. Findings show that "expert judges" share considerable agreement about prompt difficulty and prompt task type, but they cannot predict which prompts will result in high or low scores for…

The reliability and validity of a newly constructed instrument, the Breast Self-Examination Proficiency Rating Instrument, was tested with 84 instructed and 80 uninstructed nursing students. Results support beginning reliability and preliminary validity when the instrument is used in a controlled setting. (SLD)

Covariance modeling techniques were used to test the assumption of group invariance of a computer anxiety scale by comparing results from potentially different populations: 258 college students and 320 law enforcement officers. Results support the idea that the validity of the computer anxiety construct can be generalized to different groups.…

The Effective School Function Inventory was constructed to operationalize the major constructs of efficient school operation. An analysis with 124 teachers identified 4 meaningful factors: (1) supportive collegial interaction; (2) cooperative facilitation of goal attainment in learning/sharing; (3) morally oriented leadership; and (4)…

Describes development of an instrument, the Client Attachment to Therapist Scale (CATS). CATS factors correlated in expected directions with survey measures of object relations, client-rated working alliance, social self-efficacy, and adult attachment. Cluster analysis revealed four types of client attachment. Discusses implications of attachment…

Discusses the importance of assessing camp staff attitudes, the nature of attitudes, and how attitudes are formed. Recommends Likert scales as effective in measuring the direction and strength of an attitude, identifying the object of an attitude, and detecting how an attitude was formed. Provides guidelines for developing a Likert scale and…

Describes the development of the Science Laboratory Environment Inventory (SLEI) instrument for assessing perceptions of the psychosocial environment in science laboratory classrooms, and reports validation information for samples of senior high school students from six different countries. The SLEI assesses five dimensions of the actual and…

Concerns about norm-referenced achievement tests involve (1) the purposes of the tests (comparability of results); (2) the content of the tests; (3) psychometric screening of test items; (4) the form of tests items; (5) the interpretation of summary scores; and (6) the construct validity of the tests. Offers guidelines for use of norm-referenced…

The dichotomous Rasch model was applied to verbal subtest scores on the Intelligence Structure Test Battery for 905 12- to 15-year-old secondary school students in the Netherlands. Results suggest that, if any factor is used to increase difficulty of items, that factor should be used on all items. (SLD)

Reports development of a battery of scales measuring four dimensions of adolescent leisure experience: boredom, awareness, anxiety, and challenge. Analysis confirmed the internal consistency reliability of a shortened version. Test-retest reliability was established over 12 months. Correlations with theoretically related measures suggested initial…

A new method for evaluating the content representation of a test is illustrated. Item similarity ratings were obtained from three content domain experts to assess whether ratings corresponded to item groupings specified in the test blueprint. Multidimensional scaling and cluster analysis provided substantial information about the test's content…

A 14-item instrument, the Dentist Satisfaction Survey-14, a form of a previously validated instrument, is described. Use with 522 dentists, and 29 in a follow-up, indicates that the short form is a parsimonious tool for general evaluation of dentists' job satisfaction. (SLD)

A format is suggested for testing using free association techniques. In this system, students are given key words or phrases and asked to relate as much relevant information as they can. Scoring techniques, strengths, and weaknesses of such open-ended approaches are discussed, along with possible suggestions for implementation. (PB)

A testlet is an integrated group of test items presented as a unit. The concept of testlet differential item functioning (testlet DIF) is defined, and a statistical method is presented to detect testlet DIF. Data from a testlet-based experimental version of the Scholastic Aptitude Test illustrate the methodology. (SLD)