The GRE Board established the Research Program to investigate ways to improve the GRE and its overall operation. Approximately 30 projects have been undertaken and funded by the GRE Board; perhaps a third of these have been completed. These projects can be divided into three groups: (1) those dealing with product or process or marketing…

There are many potential sources of test bias besides that of the particular item content within the test. The other potential sources, designated here as program and utilization must also be encompassed in any thorough and effective program to increase the accuracy of assessment for members of ethnic minorities. As usual, the research findings…

The feasibility of using item response theory (IRT) as a psychometric model for the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) Aptitude Test was addressed by assessing the reasonableness of the assumptions of item response theory for GRE item types and examinee populations. Items from four forms and four administrations of the GRE Aptitude Test were…

The incremental validity of the analytical measure of the revised Graduate Record Examination (GRE) General Test, for predicting first-year graduate grade-point average (GPA), was assessed using data submitted to the GRE Validity Study Service between March 1983 and November 1984. All selected students had data for the three General Test measures…

When two different forms of a particular test are given to different groups of candidates, it is often necessary to make the test results for the two tests or groups as comparable as possible; the statistical process used for this purpose is termed equating. Two different methods of equating Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) Advanced Tests were…

Students (N=22,923) who took the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) and Graduate Record Examination (GRE) General Test were classified by the four general undergraduate fields of study and by gender. Analyses were performed of the impact of gender and field of study on GRE scores after controlling for SAT scores. (TJH)

The decline in standardized test scores during the 1960s and 1970s is well documented and is seen in both aptitude and achievement test scores. This paper describes and analyzes the test score trends over the 1960s, 1970s and early 1980s for five aptitude tests: (1) the Scholastic Aptitude Test; (2) the American College Test; (3) the Preliminary…

Many factors influence prospective graduate students' choice of a graduate school, including the chances of gaining admission. This study examines the perceptions of a representative sample of Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) test takers who were asked to indicate their views of the importance of eight widely considered factors in graduate…

In an attempt to provide some indication as to whether the recent employment trends among scientists is resulting in a drop of the ability of students entering scientific fields, GRE files were used to construct a history of aptitude test statistics for 1966-67, 1967-68, 1970-71, and 1971-72. For the latter three years, students were classified by…

For a sample of masters in education students, a moderate correlation was found between Graduate Record Examinations aptitude test scores and graduate grade point average. Results are discussed and conclusions are drawn. (JKS)

This study focused on gender differences in examining the extent to which Graduate Record Examination (GRE) scores predicted subsequent achievement. Data on 275 graduate students in professional psychology programs at a large midwestern university were collected and analyzed. Two methods for the identification of prediction bias were used and…

The data presented in this report summarize the background characteristics of 234,796 college students who took the Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) Aptitude Test during 1975-1976 and who responded to at least one of the thirteen background questions. Response data are presented for the following questions: (1) whether or not GRE tests have been…

The three papers provided here were presented at the GRE Board Research Seminar: (1) "Background, Purpose, and Scope of the GRE Board Research Program" by Bryce Crawford, Jr.; (2) "Predicting Success in Graduate Education" by Warren W. Willingham; and (3) "Research on Testing and the Minority Student" by Ronald L.…

Using a model followed in earlier research, graduate and professional school grades are predicted from undergraduate grades and standardized aptitude measures. Results indicate that first year grades in graduate school are more predictable than senior grades. (Author/JKS)

This study investigated Black racial identity attitudes as a moderator of intellectual performance in potentially stereotype threatening situations. Ninety-eight African American students were randomly assigned to one of three stereotype threatening conditions: low threat, medium threat, or high threat. Analyses confirmed a stereotype threat…