Content and Construct Validity Flashcards
The results of a factor analysis indicate that the factor loading for Test A and Factor I is .70. This means that:
A. 70% of variability in Test A scores is explained by the factor analysis.
B. 49% of variability in Test A scores is explained by the factor analysis.
C. 70% of variability in Test A scores is explained by Factor I.
D. 49% of variability in Test A scores is explained by Factor I.
Answer D is correct. A factor loading indicates the correlation between a test and an identified factor. It can be squared to determine the amount of variability in test scores that’s explained by the identified factor: .70 squared is .49 (49%).
A factor analysis yields three factors, and one of the tests included in the analysis has factor loadings of .60, .30, and .10 on Factors I, II, and III, respectively. Assuming that the rotation was orthogonal, the communality for Test A is:
A. .91.
B. .54.
C. .46.
D. .09.
Answer C is correct. When factors are orthogonal (uncorrelated), you can add the squared factor loadings to determine a test’s communality: .60 squared is .36, .30 squared is .09, and .10 squared is .01; .36 plus .09 plus .01 is .46.
In the context of factor analysis, “orthogonal” means:
A. correlated.
B. uncorrelated.
C. statistically significant.
D. statistically insignificant.
Answer B is correct. In factor analysis, factors that are uncorrelated are referred to as orthogonal while factors that are correlated are referred to as oblique.
When using the multitrait-multimethod matrix, a large ____________ coefficient provides evidence of a test’s convergent validity.
A. heterotrait-heteromethod
B. heterotrait-monomethod
C. monotrait-heteromethod
D. monotrait-monomethod
Answer C is correct. The monotrait-heteromethod coefficient indicates the correlation between the test that’s being validated and a measure of the same trait (monotrait) using a different method (heteromethod). It provides evidence of the test’s convergent validity when it’s large.
To ensure that job applicants believe that questions in a job selection test are relevant to job performance so they do their best when answering them, the test developer will want to make sure the test has adequate ________ validity.
A. content
B. face
C. convergent
D. divergent
Answer B is correct. Face validity refers to the extent to which test items “look valid” to examinees. It’s not an actual type of test validity but is often important for ensuring that examinees are motivated to do their best when answering test items. (Because adequate content validity does not necessarily guarantee adequate face validity, answer B is better than answer A.)
A test has __________ validity when it has low correlations with measures of unrelated characteristics.
A. discriminant
B. concurrent
C. convergent
D. differential
Answer A is correct. For the exam, you want to know that discriminant validity is another name for divergent validity and that a test has discriminant (divergent) validity when scores on the test have low correlations with scores on measures of unrelated traits.
