An objective measure of motivation to achieve for preschool children called Gumpgookies is described. It is an objective-projective technique that requires choice between two alternate types of behavior portrayed in pictures and accompanying verbal descriptions. Gumpgookies are amoeba-like creatures who behave in ways intended to show differences…

Nine indices of response pattern appropriateness were compared, based on item response theory, with respect to their relation to the total test score and their effectiveness in detecting unusual response patterns. The ability to differentiate between three groups was compared: cooperative examinees, uncooperative examinees, and randomly generated…

A validation study used 136 college students to test 37 specific hypotheses. Three general conclusions include: (1) validity was supported; (2) significant differences were found in faculty ratings according to racial composition and student scores; and (3) significant associations exist between the scores and variables such as age and educational…

The results obtained by three test administration modes were examined with a focus upon systematic bias due to lack of standardization of test administration procedures. The My Class Inventory was administered to ninety classrooms of fifth grade students in a large suburban school district. The 45 items on the inventory are distributed over five…

Contrary to popular opinion, it is very difficult to find any objective evidence of culture bias that could account for social class and racial differences in performance on current standard tests of intelligence, even those like the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test (PPVT), which give the appearance of being highly culture-loaded. They may be…

The Tennessee Self Concept Scale (TSCS) contains 100 items and 12 scales designed to assess self concept in three areas: total self esteem, self-criticism, and self-consistency. One hundred and seventeen females and three males, 75% of whom were black, attending a Work Incentive training program were administered the TSCS to examine its construct…

The Matching Familiar Figures Test is a measure of the response style "reflection-impulsivity." The version of the test used in the longitudinal study test battery consists of two practice and 18 test items. On each item, the child is shown one standard and four comparison figures. Figures are simple line drawings done in black on a…

This brief review explains some alternate scoring procedures to the classical method of summing correct responses. The novel procedures attempt in some way to retrieve and use even the information in the wrong responses. (Author)

The extent of inaccuracy in student coding of race on Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) forms and the effect of inaccurate coding and non-coding on results for the Montgomery County (Maryland) Public Schools are assessed. The County maintains a database that includes each student's race as designated by the student's parent on the school registration…

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)…

Adults' responses to a survey of television viewing were investigated to examine the premise that respondents assume that the range of precoded response alternatives reflects the researcher's knowledge of the distribution of opinions or behaviors in the population. Responses are, therefore, a function of the response alternatives provided.…

This pamphlet reprints three papers and an invited discussion of them, read at a Division 5 Symposium at the 1975 American Psychological Association Convention. The first paper describes a Bayesian tailored testing process and shows how it demonstrates the importance of using test items with high discrimination, low guessing probability, and a…

Cultural differences between the American (dominant) and Hispanic (minority) cultures and inadequate mastery of the English language are the most salient problems in measuring psychological adjustment among Hispanics in the United States. Some dimensions of psychological adjustment (perception of reality, anxiety, self-esteem, depression,…

A student's choice of an answer to a test question is a coarse measure of his knowledge about the subject matter of the question. Much finer measurement might be achieved if the student were asked to estimate, for each possible answer, the probability that it is the correct one. Such a procedure could yield two classes of benefits: (a) students…

A set of tests that might be reasonably used as provisional criterion measures in research on scientific thinking, particularly creative thinking, were developed and an assessment was made of the suitability of these tests as criterion variables from the standpoint of their psychometric properties. The Tests of Scientific Thinking are performance…