Testing

College Board’s Curriculum Model Testing and Individual Differences

Good Activities!

Functions and Characteristics of Psychological Testing

Functions

Assessing knowledge, skills and performance

Identify levels of ability (job selection, school placement, career guidance and such)

Measure personality traits and characteristics

Individual Differences Sir Francis Galton

(1822-1911)

Father of Differential Psychology

Developed the statistical construct of correlation and used normal distribution to explain the hereditary bases of characteristics such as intelligence

Characteristics

Standardization

How would you define this term?

Characteristics

Standardization

How would you define this term?

Uniform procedures established to assure that the test is administered and scored in a consistent manner.

Examples?

Characteristics

Norms

How would you explain this?

Characteristics

Norms

How would you explain this?

Score as it relates to a larger number who are similar to those for whom the test is designed

Characteristics

What is reliability?

How would you explain this?

Characteristics

What is reliability?

How would you explain this?

Refers to the consistency with which a test yields a similar score on repetition

Examples

Test-retest

Split-half reliability

Inter-rater Reliability

Characteristics

Validity

What makes a test valid?

Characteristics

Validity refers to the extent to which a test measures what it is supposed to

Validity

What makes a test valid?

Types of validity

Face validity

Content validity

Construct validity

Predictive validity

Concurrent validity

Assessment of Intelligence

(a quick review) It is difficult to devise a valid measure of a construct about which there is no agreed upon definition

Assessment of Intelligence

Theories of Intelligence

Charles Spearman

L. L. Thurstone

Howard Gardner

J. P. Guilford

Robert Sternberg

History of IQ Tests

Alfred Binet Lewis Terman

History of IQ Tests

David Wechsler

Wechsler Intelligence Scale

Individual Tests

Stanford - Binet

Wechsler Intelligence Scales

WAIS

WISC-R

WPPSI

Normed with mean of 100 and SD of 15

Group Tests

SAT

PSAT

CLEP

AP Exams

Aptitude vs.. Achievement Tests

Assessment of Personality The chosen assessment depends

on the personality theory chosen

There are three major approaches to personality assessment

objective (self-reports)

projective

behavioral assessments

Objective tests Objective Tests:

Most frequently used assessment

Standard written format

Select from provided choices

Also called self-report (assume you know yourself better than anyone else)

Examples?

Problems with objective tests?

ExamplesMinnesota

Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI)

Zuckerman Sensation Seeking Scale

Many others

Objective (Self Reports)

Strengths Weaknesses

Objective (Self Reports)

Strengths

Easily administered

Can be interpreted fairly quickly

Weaknesses

People may lie

Overuse-used for inappropriate purposes like hiring

Projective Tests Projective Tests:

Free response format

Relatively unstructured stimuli which can be perceived in many ways

Theoretically, the individual “projects” personality onto task

Examples?

Problems with projective tests?

Inkblots

(Hermann)Rorschach

Inkblots The examiner

observes a variety of things such as

How the cards are held,

How long it takes to respond,

When the test is administered

Inkblots

Major elements for interpretation

Location

Determinants

Content

Popularity

Other contributors (Wayne) Holtzman Inkblot Test

(John) Exner Scoring System

Thematic Apperception Tests

Test developed by Henry Murray and Christina Morgan is the most widely used projective test

Called TAT

TAT Test taker is

required to make up stories about a series of ambiguous pictures on cards

Cards (pictures) are different for males, females and children

Stories are analyzed for topics, recurring themes and Murray’s “needs”

TAT

TAT

TAT

TAT

Strengths/Weaknesses

Strengths

Have generated a wide variety of research on clinical syndromes

“Faking” is less of a problem than with self reports

Test lack rigor

Tests do not yield objective scores

Behavioral Assessments

Involves techniques such as naturalistic observation and situational testing

Is favored by some psychologists because they have good face validity

On to College Board’s Curriculum Model

Testing and Individual Differences