Different forms of a vocabulary test were administered to college students. Results indicated that as the frequency of specific determiners increased, they formed increasingly strong but differential guessing response sets in high and low scoring groups; however, the magnitude of the effect was much stronger for position specific determiners.…

In order to assess the validity of the technique employed in selecting items for the Bem Sex Role Inventory (BSRI), 58 male and 62 female undergraduates took the BSRI under three different sets of instructions. The results support Bem's assertions that the scales are consistent with widely held sex-role stereotypes. (Author/CTM)

A model designed to account for major factors on personality questionnaires is proposed and evaluated using the Differential Personality Inventory. Two respondent processes are postulated: sensitivity to the underlying desirability of items, and threshold for responding desirably. (Author/JKS)

Consistency of gain from changing test answers was tested for students instructed about answer-changing research results, and composition of the gain was analyzed by examining the students' reasons for changing. Mean gain remained positive and consistent with gain for previously studied uninstructed groups; amount of change was also stable.…

One hundred and twenty-eight subjects responded to one of four differently labeled five-point Likert-type response scales. Although no significant differences in test means and in reliability estimates were found among response scales, the scales did differ on measures of variability. (Author/LMO)

This article investigates positional response bias, testwiseness, and guessing strategy as components of variance in test responses on multiple-choice tests. University students responded to two content exams, a testwiseness measure, and a guessing strategy measure. The proportion of variance in test scores accounted for by positional response…

The effect on test scores of changing answers to multiple-choice questions was studied and compared to earlier research. The current setting was a nationally administered, in-training, specialty examination for medical residents in obstetrics and gynecology. Both low and high scorers improved their scores when they changed answers. (SW)

Female college students were selected on the basis of their scores on the Manifest Anxiety Scale. The subjects worked either alone or in pairs. The experiment had a two x two x two design, with group type (nominal versus real), manifest anxiety (low versus high), and induces stress (low versus high) as the three variables. (Author)

Responses to various fixed test-response formats were examined for "reliability" due to systematic error; Cronbach's alphas up to .67 were obtained. Of formats tested, four-point Likert Scales were least affected while forms of lines and faces were most problematic. Possible modification in alpha to account for systematic bias is…

Evaluated techniques for identifying faking on the Personality Inventory for Children (PIC). Undergraduate students (N=70) completed PICs on their child either faking bad, faking good, or legitimate. Results were cross-validated against a clinical sample. Results indicated a clinician cannot be certain a PIC profile is valid. (JAC)

Examines relative merits of the "forced-choice" mode of response v the "undecided" or the "don't know" response categories. Observations are "spin-off" of a larger research project to be reported soon. Authors invite reader reaction to their conclusion that "forced choice" is less effective than…

At intervals during the reading of an article, college students were asked to stop and state how they were preparing to answer an unspecified question about the article. Those students who had attempted to discern the question had significantly superior performance to those who had not devised such a strategy. (JN)

Content-parallel questionnaire items in which response schemes varied in one of two ways--scale alternatives were all defined or only endpoints were defined, and alternatives were numbered or lettered--were investigated on a large sample of college freshmen. (Author/JKS)

Examined user reaction to computer-administered and paper-and-pencil-administered forms of the Strong Interest Inventory. Results indicate that user reactions to the two administration modes were reasonably similar in most areas. However, the computer group indicated more often that their version was easier to use and follow. (RJM)

When response set is present, instead of responding to the intent of the question, the subject appears to be responding to a variable emanating from some personal characteristic. This threat to measurement reliability and validity warrants investigation of the source of response set so that questionnaire designers can minimize its occurrence. This…