WHAT ARE PSYCHOLOGICAL TESTS Chapter 1 Learning Objectives

WHAT ARE PSYCHOLOGICAL TESTS? Chapter 1

Learning Objectives After completing study of Chapter 1, you should be able to u Define what a psychological test is and understand that psychological tests extend beyond personality and intelligence tests u Trace the history of psychological testing from Alfred Binet and intelligence testing to the tests of today u Describe the ways in which psychological tests can be similar to and different from one another u Describe three characteristics that are common to all psychological tests and understand that psychological tests can demonstrate these characteristics to various degrees u Describe the assumptions that must be made when using psychological tests u Describe the different ways that psychological tests can be classified u Describe the differences among four commonly used terms that students often confuse: psychological assessment, psychological tests, psychological measurement, and surveys u Identify and locate print and online resources that are available for obtaining Miller, Foundations of Psychological Testing 5 e, © 2015 SAGE Publications information about psychological tests

What are Psychological Tests? Similarities among Psychological Tests • All require a person to perform a behavior (an observable and measurable action) • Behavior used to make inferences about some psychological construct (an underlying, unobservable personal attribute, trait, or characteristic of an individual that is thought to be important in describing or understanding human behavior) Miller, Foundations of Psychological Testing 5 e, © 2015 SAGE Publications

What are Psychological Tests? Miller, Foundations of Psychological Testing 5 e, © 2015 SAGE

What are Psychological Tests? Differences among Psychological Tests • Behavior performed • Construct measured and outcome predicted • Content • Administration and format • Scoring and interpretation • Psychometric quality Miller, Foundations of Psychological Testing 5 e, © 2015 SAGE Publications

The History of Testing Late 19 th Century: Intelligence Tests • Alfred Binet and the Binet-Simon Scale • Lewis Terman and the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scales • David Weschler and the Weschler-Bellevue Intelligence Scale and the Weschler Adult Intelligence Scale Early 1900 s: Personality Tests • Robert Woodworth and the Personal Data Sheet • Carl Jung and the Rorschach Inkblot Test • Henry Murray and C. D. Morgan and the Thematic Apperception Test Early/mid-1900 s: Vocational Tests • U. S. Employment Service and the General Aptitude Test Battery Miller, Foundations of Psychological Testing 5 e, © 2015 SAGE Publications

The History of Testing Today u Testing is a part of the American culture u Multibillion dollar business u Thousands of commercially available and unpublished tests u Hundreds of test publishing companies u Significant spending on tests § $1. 7+ billion per year spent by schools nationwide § 91% of employers use or will use tests Miller, Foundations of Psychological Testing 5 e, © 2015 SAGE Publications

The Defining Characteristics of Psychological Tests 1 • Representative sample behaviors thought to measure an attribute or predict an outcome 2 • Include behavior samples obtained under standardized conditions 3 • Have results for scoring Miller, Foundations of Psychological Testing 5 e, © 2015 SAGE Publications

Assumptions of Psychological Tests 1 • Psychological tests measure what they purport to measure or predict what they are intended to predict 2 • An individual’s behavior, and therefore test scores, will typically remain stable over time 3 • Individuals understand test items the same way 4 • Individuals will report accurately about themselves 5 • Individuals will report honestly about their thoughts and feelings 6 • The test score an individual receives is equal to his or her true score plus some error Miller, Foundations of Psychological Testing 5 e, © 2015 SAGE Publications

Test Classification Methods 1 • Maximal performance 2 • Behavior observation 3 • Self-report 1 • Objective 2 • Projective 1 • Standardized 2 • Nonstandardized Dimensions Measured Achievement tests Aptitude tests Intelligenc e tests Interest inventories Personality tests Miller, Foundations of Psychological Testing 5 e, © 2015 SAGE Publications Subject tests

Psychological Assessment, Psychological Tests, Measurements, and Surveys Psychological Assessments Psychological Tests Evaluative methods for collecting important information about people Broader; involves multiple methods for gathering information Psychological Tests One tool in the assessment process Psychological Measurements Often the terms used interchangeably Tools or techniques for making inferences about Tools or techniques for assessing the size, human attributes, traits, or characteristics, or amount, or degree of an attribute using specific predicting future outcomes rules for transforming the attribute into numbers Psychological Tests Surveys Focus on individual outcomes Focus on group outcomes Results reported at overall derived score the question level or scaled scores Miller, Foundations of Psychological Testing 5 e, © 2015 SAGE Publications