Unit 4 Flashcards
any distinguishable, relatively enduring way in
which one individual varies from another
trait
The trait term an observer applies, as well as the
strength or magnitude of the trait presumed to be
present, is based on observing a
sample of behavior
also distinguish one person from another but
are relatively less enduring
states
a psychological trait exists only as a -
construct
We can infer the existence of psychological traits from -
overt behavior
Whether a trait manifests itself in observable behavior,
and to what degree it manifests, is presumed to
depend not only on the strength of the trait in the
individual but also on the
nature of the situation
The test score is presumed to represent the strength
of the targeted ability or trait or state and is frequently
based on
cumulative scoring
Refers to a long-standing assumption that factors
other than what a test attempts to measure will
influence performance on the test
error
The component of a test score attributable to
sources other than the trait or ability measured
error variance
Potential sources of error variance:
(1) Assessees and assessors
(2) Measuring instruments
(3) Random, or just a matter of chance
What error?
present in all test takers because they will all experience it
systematic error
What error?
may be environmental, only a few test takers will experience it
random error
What error?
instruments used have an error or inaccurate (e.g. weighing scale ^^)
instrumental error
What error?
when different procedures are used to answer the same questions provides slightly different answers
procedural error
characteristics of a psychological test
objectivity
standardization
reliability
validity
utility
what characteristic of a test is this?
a degree to which equally competent scores obtain the same results
objectivity
what characteristic of a test is this?
a test is made uniform or set to adhere to a specific standard
involve administering & scoring in the same way for everyone that takes the test
standardization
what characteristic of a test is this?
how accurate the test is, and if it measures what it intends to measure
validiy
what characteristic of a test is this?
usefulness of a particular test
utility
what characteristic of a test is this?
how reliable the test is, especially if you administer it multiple times
reliability
A method of evaluation and a way of deriving
meaning from test scores by evaluating an
individual testtaker’s score and comparing it to
scores of a group of testtakers
Norm-referenced testing and assessment
Yield information on a testtaker’s standing or
ranking relative to some comparison group of
testtakers
Norm-referenced testing and assessment
refer to behavior that is usual,
average, normal, standard, expected, or typical
norm
Psychometric context: the test performance data
of a particular group of testtakers that are
designed for use as a reference when evaluating
or interpreting individual test scores
norms
Group of people whose performance on a
particular test is analyzed for reference in
evaluating the performance of individual
testtakers
normative sample
Refer to the process of deriving norms
May be modified to describe a particular type of norm derivation
norming
controversial practice of
norming on the basis of race or ethnic
background
race norming
Consist of descriptive statistics based on a group
of testtakers in a given period of time rather than
norms obtained by formal sampling methods
User norms / programming norms
A portion of the universe of people deemed to be
representative of the whole population
Sample
The process of selecting the portion of the
universe deemed to be representative of the
whole population
sampling
different subgroups of the population
strata
Arbitrarily select some sample because we
believe it to be representative of the population
Purposive sample / sampling
An expression of the percentage of people whose
score on a test or measure falls below a particular
raw score
percentile
Refers to the distribution of raw scores—more
specifically, to the number of items that were
answered correctly multiplied by 100 and divided
by the total number of items
Percentage correct
age norms also known as
age-equivalent scores
Indicate the average performance of different
samples of testtakers who were at various ages at the
time the test was administered
age norms
Designed to indicate the average test performance of
testtakers in a given school grade
grade norms
Derived from a normative sample that was nationally
representative of the population at the time the
norming study was conducted
national norms
• An equivalency table for scores on the two tests
• Could provide the tool for comparison
• Provide some stability to test scores by anchoring
them to other test scores
National Anchor Norms
Using the –, the equivalency of
scores on different tests is calculated with reference
to corresponding percentile scores
equipercentile method
A normative sample can be segmented by any of the
criteria initially used in selecting subjects for the
sample
subgroup norms
Provide normative information with respect to the
local population’s performance on some test
local norms
An individual’s score is interpreted by comparing it with the scores obtained by others on the same test
Norm-referenced testing & assessment
goal is to yield information on an examinee’s standing or ranking relative to some comparison group of examinees
Norm-referenced testing & assessment
test performance data of a particular group of test takers that are designed for use as a reference when evaluating/interpreting individual test scores
norms
The distribution of scores obtained on the test from a
– is used as the basis for the
calculation of test scores for future administrations of
the test
fixed reference group
o Approach to evaluate the test score in relation to
other scores on the same test
o Area of focus: how an individual performed
relative to other people who took the test
Norm-referenced evaluation
A standard on which a judgement or decision may
be based
criterion
A method of evaluation and a way of deriving
meaning from test scores by evaluating an
individual’s score with reference to a set standard
Criterion-referenced testing and assessment
Individual’s performance is evaluated in terms of the performance of the most nearly comparable standardization group
Within Group Norms
indicates how far along the normal developmental path an individual has progressed
developmental norms
Criterion-referenced testing and assessment also called
domain- or content-referenced
domain sampling
refer to either
(1) a sample of behaviors from all possible behaviors that could conceivably be indicative of a particular construct or
(2) a sample of test items from all possible items that could conceivably be used to measure a particular construct.
