Test Score Interpretation

Question 1

A student receives a score of 85 on a test that has a mean of 75 and standard deviation of 5. What is the z-score equivalent of the student’s score?
A. +1.0
B. +2.0
C. +2.5
D. +10

Answer 1

Answer B is correct. You could have calculated the z-score to identify the correct answer to this question using the following formula: z = (X –M/SD) = (85 – 75)/5 = 10/5 = +2.0. Alternatively, you could have noticed that the student’s score is two standard deviations above the mean, which means that his/her z-score is +2.0.

Question 2

The percentile rank distribution is:
A. normal regardless of the shape of the raw score distribution.
B. normal only when the raw score distribution is normal.
C. rectangular regardless of the shape of the raw score distribution.
D. the same as the distribution of raw scores.

Answer 2

Answer C is correct. A percentile rank distribution is always rectangular (flat) regardless of the shape of the distribution of raw scores.

Question 3

An expectancy table is useful for interpreting an examinee’s score in terms of:
A. likely criterion performance.
B. a confidence interval.
C. mastery of test content.
D. norms.

Answer 3

Answer A is correct. Expectancy tables provide information on an examinee’s expected score on a criterion based on his/her obtained predictor (test) score

Question 4

Using __________ to select job applicants takes into account the fact that tests used to make selection decisions are not always entirely reliable.
A. the top-down method
B. banding
C. expectancy tables
D. ranking

Answer 4

Answer B is correct. The use of banding is based on the assumption that small differences in test scores are often due to the unreliability of the test. Note that ranking (answer D) is also known as the top-down method (answer A).

Question 5

In a normal distribution, a T-score of 60 is equivalent to a percentile rank of:
A. 16.
B. 50.
C. 84.
D. 98.

Answer 5

Answer C is correct. A T-score of 60 is one standard deviation above the mean and, in a normal distribution, a score that’s one standard deviation above the mean is equivalent to a percentile rank of 84.

Question 6

A z-score of 0 is equivalent to a T-score of _____ and a stanine of _____.
A. 10; 5
B. 100; 10
C. 50; 10
D. 50; 5

Answer 6

Answer D is correct. A z-score of 0, a T-score of 50, and a stanine of 5 are all equivalent to the mean score obtained by the norm group.