The authors present a generalization of the multiple-group bifactor model that extends the classical bifactor model for categorical outcomes by relaxing the typical assumption of independence of the specific dimensions. In addition to the means and variances of all dimensions, the correlations among the specific dimensions are allowed to differ…

The literature in modern test theory on procedures for identifying items with differential item functioning (DIF) among two groups of persons includes the Mantel-Haenszel (MH) procedure. Generally, it is not recognized explicitly that if there is real DIF in some items which favor one group, then as an artifact of this procedure, artificial DIF…

Discipline-based science concept assessments are powerful tools to measure learners' disciplinary core ideas. Among many such assessments, the Brief Electricity and Magnetism Assessment (BEMA) has been broadly used to gauge student conceptions of key electricity and magnetism (E&M) topics in college-level introductory physics courses.…

Differential item functioning (DIF) may be caused by an interaction of multiple manifest grouping variables or unexplored manifest variables, which cannot be detected by conventional DIF detection methods that are based on a single manifest grouping variable. Such DIF may be detected by a latent approach using the mixture item response theory…

Previous research has demonstrated that differential item functioning (DIF) methods that do not account for multilevel data structure could result in too frequent rejection of the null hypothesis (i.e., no DIF) when the intraclass correlation coefficient (?) of the studied item was the same as the ? of the total score. The current study extended…

Analyzing examinees' responses using cognitive diagnostic models (CDMs) has the advantage of providing diagnostic information. To ensure the validity of the results from these models, differential item functioning (DIF) in CDMs needs to be investigated. In this article, the Wald test is proposed to examine DIF in the context of CDMs. This study…

Differential item functioning (DIF) analysis is important in terms of test fairness. While DIF analyses have mainly been conducted with manifest grouping variables, such as gender or race/ethnicity, it has been recently claimed that not only the grouping variables but also contextual variables pertaining to examinees should be considered in DIF…

We introduce the concept of "differential prediction generalization" in the context of college admissions testing. Specifically, we assess the extent to which predicted first-year college grade point average (GPA) based on high-school grade point average (HSGPA) and SAT scores depends on a student's ethnicity and gender and whether this…

The classification of test-takers into ethnic and racial groups ensures individuals and groups, identified in Title VI and VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the 14th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States, are protected from adverse treatment (Camilli, 2006). The United States Office of Management and Budget (OMB) suggests that…

"Project 211" is one of the most important educational policies in China, which aims at selecting a small number of "key universities" for sustainable development in the 21st century. These selected "key universities" have received substantial funding from the government so they can recruit outstanding faculty and be…

The purpose of the present study was to compare the Type I error rate and power of two model-based procedures, the mean and covariance structure model (MACS) and the item response theory (IRT), and an observed-score based procedure, ordinal logistic regression, for detecting differential item functioning (DIF) in polytomous items. A simulation…

Knowledge about suicide postvention (KSPV) is an important distal outcome in the evaluation of suicide prevention programs that focus on the bereaved. However, most scales are specifically tailored to the evaluation study in question and psychometric properties are often unsatisfactory. Therefore, we developed the KSPV scale. Scale properties were…

The purpose of this article was to present a synthesis of the peer-reviewed differential bundle functioning (DBF) research that has been conducted to date. A total of 16 studies were synthesized according to the following characteristics: tests used and learner groups, organizing principles used for developing bundles, DBF detection methods used,…

In this article, we describe current research findings on assessment accommodations and universal design within the context of emerging interactive digital assessment tasks that employ simulations such as in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). STEM education in many classrooms now includes digitally based activities such as…

This study explains mathematical difficulties of students who immigrated from the Former Soviet Union (FSU) vis-à-vis Israeli students, by identifying the existing bias factors in achievement tests. These factors are irrelevant to the mathematical knowledge being measured, and therefore threaten the test results. The bias factors were identified…