Indiscriminate (i.e., carless, random, insufficient effort) responses, commonly believed to weaken effect sizes and produce Type II errors, can inflate effect sizes and potentially produce Type I errors where a supposedly significant result is actually artifactual. We demonstrate how indiscriminate responses can produce spuriously high…

The validity of student evaluation of teaching (SET) scores depends on minimum effect of extraneous response processes or biases. A bias may increase or decrease scores and change the relationship with other variables. In contrast, SET literature defines bias as an irrelevant variable correlated with SET scores, and among many, a relevant biasing…

To measure the response style of acquiescence, researchers recommend the use of at least 15 items with heterogeneous content. Such an approach is consistent with its theoretical definition and is a substantial improvement over traditional methods. Nevertheless, measurement of acquiescence can be enhanced by two additional considerations: first, to…

When memory is tested, researchers are often interested in the items that were correctly recalled or recognized, while ignoring or factoring out trials where one "recalls" or "recognizes" a nonstudied item. However, intrusions and false alarms are more than nuisance data and can provide key insights into the memory system. The…

Previous research has found the effects of acquiescence to be generally consistent across item "aggregates" within a single survey (i.e., essential tau-equivalence), but it is unknown whether this phenomenon is consistent at the" individual item" level. This article evaluated the often assumed but inadequately tested…