Criterion-keying of interest inventories involves selecting items which best distinguish a group of incumbents in a particular occupation from another group intended to represent the population of interest. This practice is questioned here and data are presented to support the author's contention. (Author/JKS)

The predictive validity of the Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) and the Miller Analogies Test (MAT) in a doctoral program in education was investigated. Results supported the use of the GRE but not the MAT. (Author/JKS)

Teachers' predictions of pupil success in elementary school were compared to pupil performance in terms of quartile placement on national test norms. Results indicated that teachers were able to predict reading achievement but had less predictive ability in other areas. (JKS)

Analysis of correlations between Verbal and Full Scale IQ scores for 231 high-IQ psychiatric outpatients indicated that Verbal IQ appears partially valid as a WAIS short form for this higher IQ group. Results are interpreted in terms of Resnick and Entin's short form validity criteria. (Editor/SJL)

Using the empirically based evidence that has resulted from the previous five Talent Searches of the Study of Mathematically Precocious Youth, the article develops the rationale and success behind the talent-search concept as a useful strategy for identifying the intellectually gifted. (Author)

Reports on an experiment, conducted on 63 students of English, which sought to determine whether certain students within heterogeneous population groups can be expected to make significantly more rapid gains than others, and whether scores on a standardized proficiency test can identify students who will make greater or lesser gains. (Author/AM)

Asserts that the continuing failure to consider women has critically weakened contemporary criminal deviance theory, examines the major paradigms in criminal deviance, argues that the inclusion of sex as a variable has more or less disastrous consequences for those paradigms, and argues that the primary purpose of labeling theory is to detect…

Links the theory of washback with the broader concept of impact in educational measurement and to the recent debate on construct validity associated with Messick. Notes that for many years it was asserted that language tests negatively impacted teaching and learning, an impact known as washback. (25 references) (Author/CK)

The Problem Recognition Questionnaire (PRQ), administered to 234 adolescents undergoing chemical dependency treatment, was examined with respect to its reliability, factor structure, and predictive validity. Results indicate that the PRQ (a measure of adolescent motivation to change substance-use behaviors) has acceptable reliability and potential…

The validity of the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB) in predicting mechanical job performance was studied with 891 automotive and 522 helicopter mechanics. The mechanical maintenance component of the ASVAB predicted hands-on performance, job knowledge, and training grades quite well, but experience was more predictive of…

A study involving 308 secondary school principals who had served at least 1 year was conducted to reexamine the validity of subjects' ratings by professional development centers. Results indicate a modest level of validity for use of assessment center evaluations in the prediction of principals' job performance. (TJH)

Findings from a 5-year follow-up study of 78 kindergartners suggest that while the Revised Denver Developmental Screening Test (RDDST) accurately predicts academic achievement and standardized test performance, it consistently misclassifies as normal the performance of a significant number of children who require special help in their early…

Compares the predictive validity of four indices of electoral conflict, three of which are based on the dissatisfaction theory of democracy. Uses a longitudinal study conducted in Washington. Results indicate that none of the formulas are predictors of school board incumbent defeat. (FMW)

A study was designed to predict student performance in the introductory accounting course, specifically the performance of nontraditional students. A predictive instrument to measure mathematical abilities was employed; outcomes were compared to individuals' final course grade. Results indicate that a brief math skills test can predict performance…

A study evaluated the use of the Kolb Learning Styles Inventory as a predictor of academic potential, for use in recruitment of optometry students. Although distinctive learning preferences were observed in low- and high-achieving students, correlations were not strong enough for predictive use. (Author/MSE)