Lecture 1-8

Question 1

What is the primary goal of measurement in the social sciences?

Answer 1

To develop and evaluate tools (scales or tests) to measure intangible constructs such as attitudes, abilities, personality traits, and perceptions.

Question 2

What is the first crucial step in measuring a construct?

Answer 2

Defining the Construct: having a clear and precise conceptual definition of the construct.

Question 3

What does operationalisation involve?

Answer 3

Defining how the construct will be observed and measured in the real world.

Question 4

What are the guidelines for developing scale items?

Answer 4

• Clarity and Simplicity
• Relevance
• Range of Content
• Reverse-Phrased Items
• Avoid Obvious Evaluative Nature

Question 5

What is reliability in the context of measurement?

Answer 5

The consistency and stability of the measurement.

Question 6

What does test-retest reliability assess?

Answer 6

The stability of scores over time by administering the same scale to the same individuals on two different occasions.

Question 7

What is internal consistency reliability?

Answer 7

The extent to which the items within a scale are measuring the same underlying construct.

Question 8

What is Cronbach’s Alpha (α)?

Answer 8

A commonly used measure of internal consistency that represents the average of all possible split-half reliabilities.

Question 9

What is the range of values for Cronbach’s Alpha?

Answer 9

Typically ranges from 0 to 1, with higher values indicating greater internal consistency.

Question 10

What is content validity?

Answer 10

Assesses whether the content of the scale adequately represents the full domain of the construct.

Question 11

What is criterion-related validity?

Answer 11

Assesses the extent to which scores on the scale are related to some external criterion.

Question 12

What are the two types of criterion-related validity?

Answer 12

• Concurrent Validity
• Predictive Validity

Question 13

What is construct validity?

Answer 13

Assesses the extent to which the scale measures the theoretical construct it is supposed to measure.

Question 14

What is item analysis?

Answer 14

Involves evaluating the performance of individual items within the scale to identify and potentially remove problematic items.

Question 15

What is the Item-Difficulty Index (IDI)?

Answer 15

Indicates the proportion of respondents who answered the item correctly for tests with correct/incorrect answers.

Question 16

What does the Item-Discrimination Index (IDsI) indicate?

Answer 16

The extent to which an item differentiates between respondents who score high and low on the overall scale.

Question 17

What is norming in the context of measurement scales?

Answer 17

Administering the scale to a large, representative sample to establish norms or average scores for different groups.

Question 18

What is standardisation in measurement?

Answer 18

Establishing standard procedures for administering and scoring the scale to ensure consistency.

Question 19

What is the purpose of Cronbach’s alpha?

Answer 19

To estimate the internal reliability or consistency of a scale.

Question 20

What does a high Cronbach’s alpha value indicate?

Answer 20

A high value indicates greater reliability, ideally above 0.7.

Question 21

What are some factors that can influence the value of Cronbach’s alpha?

Answer 21

• Number of Items
• Variability of the Test Sample
• Extraneous Variables and Testing Situations
• Quality and Contribution of Individual Items
• Measurement Error
• Response Format and Number of Scale Points
• Response Sets
• Sample Size
• Unidimensionality

Question 22

Fill in the blank: Reliability is inversely related to the amount of _______.

Answer 22

measurement error.

Question 23

True or False: Cronbach’s alpha is valid for multi-dimensional scales.

Answer 23

False.

Question 24

What is McDonald’s omega?

Answer 24

An alternative to Cronbach’s alpha that relaxes some assumptions related to true score variance.

Question 25

What is Cronbach's alpha?

Answer 25

A measure of reliability for a set of items that assess a single underlying construct. ## Footnote It estimates the consistency with which items measure the same latent construct.

Question 26

What does validity refer to in social science research?

Answer 26

Whether a scale or test measures what it claims to measure. ## Footnote Validity is essential for making meaningful and useful inferences.

Question 27

What is the relationship between reliability and validity?

Answer 27

A reliable scale may or may not be valid, but a scale that is not reliable can never be valid. ## Footnote Reliability is necessary but not sufficient for validity.

Question 28

What are the three main types of validity?

Answer 28

* Content Validity * Criterion-Related Validity * Construct Validity

Question 29

What is content validity?

Answer 29

How well the test or scale items represent the domain of the construct being measured. ## Footnote For example, a stress scale lacking physical effects has poor content validity.

Question 30

What is face validity?

Answer 30

The degree to which the content of the items appears to reflect the construct of interest. ## Footnote It affects participants' perception of the test's authenticity.

Question 31

How is content validity quantitatively assessed?

Answer 31

By calculating the proportion of items agreed upon as strongly relevant by expert judges. ## Footnote Formula: Content validity = x / n, where x is the number of strongly relevant items and n is the total number.

Question 32

What is criterion-related validity?

Answer 32

How well the scale or test anticipates a criterion behavior or outcome. ## Footnote It includes concurrent and predictive validity.

Question 33

What is concurrent validity?

Answer 33

Assesses how well the test predicts a criterion behavior at the present time. ## Footnote It is evaluated by correlating scores from the new scale with an established test.

Question 34

What is predictive validity?

Answer 34

Assesses how well the test predicts a criterion behavior in the future. ## Footnote Often used in achievement or ability tests.

Question 35

What does construct validity attempt to establish?

Answer 35

Whether the scale measures the intangible 'construct' it claims to. ## Footnote It is considered the most difficult type of validity to determine.

Question 36

What is factor analysis used for in construct validity?

Answer 36

To investigate whether items relate to the constructs they are intended to measure and assess unidimensionality. ## Footnote Includes exploratory (EFA) and confirmatory (CFA) factor analysis.

Question 37

What is convergent validity?

Answer 37

Demonstrated by a strong correlation between the scale and a sound measure of an allied construct. ## Footnote Example: Correlation between hedonism and marijuana scale scores.

Question 38

What is discriminant validity?

Answer 38

Demonstrated by a strong negative correlation with a measure of an opposing construct. ## Footnote Example: Negative correlation between authoritarianism and marijuana legalization attitudes.

Question 39

What is criterion-groups validity?

Answer 39

Assessed by determining if groups expected to differ on the construct score significantly differently. ## Footnote Example: Comparing scores of marijuana users vs. non-users.

Question 40

What is the purpose of a standardization sample?

Answer 40

To evaluate the quality of items and the scale's reliability and validity. ## Footnote It should be representative of the target population.

Question 41

What is cross-validation in regression analysis?

Answer 41

Used to estimate how valid the regression weights are for different datasets. ## Footnote It assesses shrinkage and the similarity of weights across split samples.

Question 42

What factors can affect the validity of conclusions drawn from statistical tests?

Answer 42

* Sound measurement * High-quality evidence * Choice of statistical procedures * Researcher's reasoning ability

Question 43

What is the significance of ANOVA in validity?

Answer 43

It is a robust procedure that can yield valid results despite violations of assumptions. ## Footnote ANOVA can tolerate issues like homogeneity of variance.

Question 44

What does validity ultimately concern in measurement?

Answer 44

The meaning and usefulness of scores and the inferences drawn from them.