Ch. 4 - Testing

Question 1

trait

Answer 1

any distinguishable, relatively enduring way in which one person varies from another

Question 2

state

Answer 2

distinguish one person from another, but less enduring than a trait

Question 3

construct

Answer 3

an informed, scientific concept developed or constructed to describe or explain behavior. we can’t directly see, hear, touch - we infer the existence based on overt behaviors

Question 4

overt behavior

Answer 4

observable action or the product of observable action, including test responses

Question 5

norms

Answer 5

the test performance data of a particular group (a sample) designed for use as a reference for evaluating or interpreting individual test scores

Question 6

norm-referenced testing

Answer 6

deriving meaning from test scores by evaluating an individual testtaker’s score and comparing it to scores of a group of testtakers in order to yield info about the testtaker’s standing or ranking relative to some comparison group

Question 7

criterion-referenced testing

Answer 7

compares test scores to a predetermined value or set of criterion (rather than the scores of a sample - like norm-referenced); method of evaluation and a way of deriving meaning from test scores by evaluating an individual’s score with reference to a set standard (e.g., state licensing test). AKA domain- or content-referenced AKA masterty test

Question 8

error is

Answer 8

expected. it is a part of the measuring process. the assumption that factors other than what a test attempts to measure will influence performance on the test

Question 9

error variance

Answer 9

the part of the test score that is due to factors other than the trait/state/ability being measured

Question 10

reliability

Answer 10

consistency; yielding the same measurement every time it measures the same thing under the same conditions

Question 11

validity

Answer 11

test is valid if it measures what it purports to measure

Question 12

normative sample

Answer 12

the group of people whose performance ona particular test is analyzed for reference in evaluating the performance of individual testtakers

Question 13

a good test is…

Answer 13

reliable, valid, useful, easy to administer, score, and interpret with minimal difficulty

Question 14

sample

Answer 14

a portion of the universe of people deemed to be representative of the whole population

Question 15

stratified sampling

Answer 15

selecting members of subgroups in proportion to the current occurence of these strata in the population

Question 16

random (stratified-random) sampling

Answer 16

every member of the population has an equal chance of being included in the sample

Question 17

incidence sample/convienence sample

Answer 17

a sample that is available and convenient. generalization from findings must be made with caution

Question 18

steps to developing norms for a standardized test

Answer 18

• obtains a sample
• administer test according to standard conditions and instructions
• test data is described with MCT and variability
• test developer describes the populations represented by any norms, dates data gathered, and the process used to sample the testtakers

Question 19

you can have a new X sample on a test that has already been Y.

Answer 19

you can have a new normative sample on a test that has already been standardized (with another normative sample). e.g., updated normative sample for a TX test has more Latinx testtakers

Question 20

the xth percentile =

Answer 20

the score at or below which x% of scores fall

Question 21

percentiles range from what, with what as the mean?

Answer 21

percentiles range from 0 to 100, with 50 as the mean

Question 22

don’t confuse percentiles with

Answer 22

percentage correct

Question 23

age-equivalent scores AKA age norms

Answer 23

indicate the average performance of different samples of testtakers who were at various ages at the time the test was administered

Question 24

standardizing

Answer 24

making or transforming something into something that can serve as a basis for comparison or judgment

Question 25

national norms

Answer 25

derived from a sample that was representative of a national population at the time the norming study was conducted

Question 26

national anchor norms

Answer 26

an equivalency table for scores on two or more tests, provide some stability to test scores by anchoring them to other scores

Question 27

local norms

Answer 27

provide normative info with respect to the local population’s performance on some test