Foundations of Psychological Testing : A Practical Approach

by Leslie A. Miller

• ISBN13: 9781412976398
• ISBN10: 1412976391
• Edition: 3rd
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2010-10-05
• Publisher: SAGE Publications, Inc

Summary

The Third Edition of this text offers a straight forward and clear introduction to the basics of psychological testing as well as to psychometrics and statistics for students new to the field. The authors focus on relating core ideas to practical situations that students will recognize and relate to. They provide a variety of pedagogical tools that promote student understanding of the underlying concepts required to interpret and to use test scores. Primarily concerned with preparing students to become informed consumers and users of tests, the text also features a final section focusing on how tests are utilized in three important settings: education, clinical and counseling practice, and organizations. New and Proven Features Instructs using an effective conversational tone, such as in the discussion of true scores and error in classical test theory-concepts with which students typically struggle *new* Incorporates more discussion of specific tests in response to reviewer feedback, with direct examples from published tests and more details of tests featured in 'œTest Spotlights' *new* Provides new material on using validity generalization strategies in pre-employment testing and on traditional versus authentic assessment *new* Includes updates for all relevant chapters to reflect how the APA Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing treats validity as a unitary concept rather than discussing different types of validity *new* focuses on validity as the appropriateness of the inferences made from test scores rather than whether a test measures what it was designed to measure *new* Offers even more discussion questions, useful for guiding classroom learning Features rich pedagogical tools, such as chapter-opening narratives; 'œFor Your Information' boxes highlighting interesting related material; 'œIn the News' boxes featuring testing stories from the news (such as the 2009 Supreme Court decision in Ricci v DeStefano on reverse discrimination) and 'œOn the Web' boxes offering useful web resources (such as the names and URLs for test publishers and how to interpret a Mental Measurements Yearbook entry); summary sections throughout chapters; and chapter-ending 'œEngaging in the Learning Process' sections with interactive learning activities and self-test questionsInstructor ResourcesPassword-protected instructor resources at www.sagepub.com/miller3 include a wide range of test questions, teaching activities, and learning aids. Intended Audience: This is a scholarly, informative, applicable, and appropriate undergraduate and graduate textbook ideal for introductory courses such as Psychological Testing, Psychological Tests & Measures, and Testing & Measurement in departments of psychology and education; and graduate programs in psychology, industrial / organizational psychology, and counseling.

Table of Contents

Overview of Psychological Testing

What Are Psychological Tests?

Why Should You Care About Psychological Testing?

What Are Psychological Tests?

The History of Psychological Testing

Testing Today

The Defining Characteristics of Psychological Tests

Assumptions of Psychological Tests

Test Classification Methods

Psychological Assessment, Psychological Tests, Measurements, and Surveys

Locating Information About Tests

Why Is Psychological Testing Important?

The Importance of Psychological Testing

Who Uses Psychological Tests and for What Reasons?

The Social and Legal Implications of Psychological Testing

Is There a Right or Wrong Way to Use Psychological Tests?

Ethical Standards for Psychological Testing

Appropriate Use of Psychological Tests

Testing Special Populations

How Does Computerized Testing Work?

Computerized Testing

Computerized Adaptive Testing

Web-Based Assessment

Implications for the Future

Psychometric Principles

How Do Test Users Interpret Test Scores?

Levels of Measurement

Procedures for Interpreting Test Scores

Standard Scores

The Role of Norms

What Is Test Reliability?

What Is Reliability?

Three Types of Reliability

Classical Test Theory

The Reliability Coefficient

Using Computer Software to Calculate Reliability

Interpreting Reliability Coefficients

Factors That Influence Reliability

Generalizability Theory

How Do We Gather Evidence of Validity Based the Content of a Test?

Different Sources of Evidence for Validity

The Appropriate Use of Various Validation Strategies

Evidence Based on Test Content / Content Validity

Face Validity

How Do We Gather Evidence of Validity Based a Test's Relationships with External Criteria

What Is Evidence for Validity Based on Test-Criteria Relationships?

Methods for Providing Evidence of Validity Based on Test-Criteria Relationships

Selecting a Criterion

Does the Criterion Measure What It Is Supposed to Measure?

Calculating and Evaluating Validity Coefficients

Using Validity Information to Make Predictions

Ethical Issues Associated With Test Validation

How do we Gather Evidence of Validity Based on a Test's Relationship with Constructs?

Construct Validity

Gathering Evidence of Construct Validity

Factor Analysis

Developing and Piloting Surveys and Psychological Tests

How Do We Construct, Administer, and Use Survey Data?

What Are Surveys?

Knowledge Acquisition and the Scientific Method

The Survey Research Method

Survey Reliability and Validity

How Do You Develop a Test?

Why Develop a New Test?

Defining the Testing Universe, Audience, and Purpose

Developing a Test Plan

Composing the Test Items

Writing Effective Items

Writing the Instructions for the New Test

How Do We Assess the Psychometric Quality of a Test?

The Pilot Test

Quantitative Item Analysis

Qualitative Item Analysis

Revising the Test

Conducting the Validation Study

Developing Norms and Identifying Cut Scores

Developing the Test Manual

Using Tests in Different Settings

How Are Tests Used in Educational Settings?

Decision Making in the Educational Setting

Educators as Test Users

Psychological Test Use in Educational Settings

Norm-Referenced, Criterion-Referenced, and Authentic Assessment of Achievement

How Are Tests Used in Clinical and Counseling Settings?

Models of Psychological Assessment

Tests Used for Diagnosis and Intervention

Neuropsychological Tests

Specialized Tests for Clinical Disorders

How Do Organizations Use Psychological Tests?

A Short History of Employment Testing

Preemployment Testing

Performance Appraisal

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