This study examined the effects of different types of computer-assisted feedback strategies (knowledge of correct response, knowledge of response, and elaborative) and different types of information (facts, concepts, and principles) on student achievement and response confidence. Findings indicated a positive correlation between achievement and…

Twenty-six graduate psychology students at 2 Midwestern public universities used a self-report questionnaire for an exploratory study to rate interactions with faculty based on mode of address. When students addressed faculty by first name, they rated faculty as more approachable and helpful, and they felt more valued and respected by faculty than…

Reliable Digit Span (RDS) is an indicator used to assess the validity of cognitive test performance. Scores of 7 or lower suggest poor effort or negative response bias. The possibility that RDS scores are also affected by pain has not been addressed thus potentially threatening RDS specificity. The current study used cold pressor-induced pain to…

To control for response bias in student ratings of college teachers, an index of rater error was used that was theoretically independent of actual performance. Partialing out the effects of this extraneous response bias enhanced validity, but partialing out overall effectiveness resulted in reduced convergent and discriminant validities.…

The random response technique was compared to a direct questionnaire, administered to college students, to investigate whether or not the responses predicted the social desirability of the item. Results suggest support for the hypothesis. A 33-item version of the Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale which was used is included. (GDC)

Sato's Caution Index is a method of analyzing item response patterns independently of total test score to provide diagnostic information about students. This research supports the validity of the diagnostic interpretations of the Index when compared to graduate students' self evaluation. (Author/BS)

Configural frequency analysis (CFA) is suggested as a technique for longitudinal research in developmental psychology. Stability and change in answers to multiple choice and yes-no item patterns obtained with repeated measurements are identified by CFA and illustrated by developmental analysis of an item from Gorham's Proverb Test. (Author/DWH)

Examined whether the Attitudes Toward Disabled Persons test could be faked by 38 physical therapy students who took the test once honestly and once faking positive attitudes. Results showed fake scores were significantly higher than honest scores, indicating that respondents were able to fake positive responses. (JAC)

Assessment test data from 1976-79 on California children in grade six were analyzed. Loglinear models were used to evaluate the consistency of response of each sex. A significant interaction between sex and choice of distractor occurred for a large majority of the items. (MNS)

A study investigated possible relationships between performance on the National Board of Medical Examiners Part I exam and personality types to identify learning styles that may predict difficulty with that kind of testing. Results show the tests are most difficult for the personality types most easily admitted to medical school. (MSE)

The response-shift phenomenon is demonstrated in a typical classroom setting. Retrospective pre-ratings in self-report instruments are shown to yield more accurate estimates of pre-instruction knowledge than simple pre-ratings. (Author/CM)

First-graders taught reading by phonics or language experience approach were compared on their ability to orally decode lists of words identified as either real or nonsense words. The two groups did not differ in overall correct responses, nor were their strategies influenced by the "real/nonsense" directions. (SJL)

This study indicated that the dimensions of the configuration provided by INDSCAL multidimensional scaling are psychologically relevant to learning the concept of artistic style and that sensitivity to these dimensions, as measured by INDSCAL subject weights, can predict important individual differences in responses to another group of stimuli.…

Finds that extraverted children did better than introverted children on both a nonverbal coding task and simple and complex verbal fluency tasks. Notes that anxiety influenced girls' performances on the more complex verbal fluency task, but did not alter boys' performances. Compares these findings to those of similar studies of adults. (RL)

Differences between signed and anonymous student evaluations of high school student teachers were investigated. Signed evaluations produced higher ratings. (JKS)