Response times (RTs) facilitate the quantification of underlying cognitive processes in problem-solving behavior. To provide more comprehensive diagnostic feedback on strategy selection and attribute profiles with multistrategy cognitive diagnosis model (CDM) and utilize additional information for item RTs, this study develops a multistrategy…

Using a sample of 497 college students, we measured test-taking emotions (anger, worry, pride, enjoyment) after the first third, second third, and last third of a low-stakes cognitive test of sociocultural knowledge. We examined the simultaneous change in emotions and whether change in emotions predicted subsequent test-taking effort and test…

Making the transition from university to employment is a challenging process for many students. One common method used by recruiters to sift through graduate applications is the use of psychometric tests which typically consist of numerical and verbal reasoning tasks. To explore how frequently these tests are used by graduate employers, an audit…

Since the turn of the century, an increasing number of low-stakes assessments (i.e., assessments without direct consequences for the test-takers) are being used to evaluate the quality of educational systems. Internationally, research has shown that low-stakes test results can be biased due to students' low test-taking motivation and that…

We investigated processes underlying performance decrements of highly test-anxious persons. Three experiments contrasted conditions that differed in the degree of activation of concepts related to failure. Participants memorized a list of words either containing words related to failure or containing no words related to failure in Experiment 1. In…

Incorporating observational procedures into an IQ testing situation, the study included behavioral indices as outcome measures of an educational intervention program. Program and control groups involved 40 low-income Mexican American children, ages 4-5. Given the testing situation, program children exhibited significantly more work and verbal…

Prior research with the Professional and Career Administrative Examination (PACE), a multiple abilities test battery for federal candidates, demonstrated practice effects (score gains) on alternate forms of the test parts within one administration of the battery. These effects were largest for those abilities including item types constructed…

This project examined the hypothesis that different background experiences associated with cultural grouping may lead to differences in test-taking strategies which result in score differences extraneous to the abilities the test is intended to measure. Its purposes were to confirm (or disconfirm) the cultural differences hypothesis and to provide…

The usefulness of studying thought processes in the construct validation of ability tests was examined using a sample consisting of 343 Canadian senior high school students. Four levels of probing were used by the interviewer to examine the students' thinking processes while taking the Test on Appraising Observations: (1) think aloud; (2)…