Week 2 - Personality Assessment

Main Methods of Assessment

• observer ratings

• interviews (structured and unstructured)

• self reports

• implicit assessments

Observer Ratings

Evaluations made by another person, based on observation

structured interviews

Uses pre-set questions; yields more consistent data

unstructured interviews

Open-ended questions; allows for flexibility but less reliable

self-reports

Individuals report on their own behaviors, feelings, or thoughts

self-report formats

• True/False

• Multi-point rating scales

• Likert scales

• Observations

observations

Conducted in natural or classroom settings to assess real-time behavior

implicit assessments

• Techniques that do not directly ask about traits but infer them

• example: Thematic Apperception Test, Rorschach inkblots

subjective assessment

Based on interpretation; susceptible to bias. Individuals may try to appear objective

objective assessment

• Standardized; less interpretive, but not immune to misreading 

  • (e.g., "What's wrong?" "Nothing").

reliability

• Consistency of a Measurement

• The extent to which an assessment produces stable and consistent results.

internal consistency

Repeated items in a self-report should align if measuring the same trait.

inter-rater reliability

Different raters should produce similar scores when observing the same behavior.

stability across time

• A reliable assessment should give similar results when repeated over time.

• Personality is generally stable, but certain events can cause changes

validity

The degree to which a test measures what it claims to measure

types of validity

• Construct Validity

• Predictive/External Validity

• Convergent Validity

• Discriminant Validity

• Face Validity

Construct Validity

The measure reflects the theoretical trait (e.g., depression)

Predictive/External Validity

The measure predicts relevant outcomes (e.g., success, risk)

Convergent Validity

The measure is related to other measures of similar constructs

Discriminant Validity

The measure does not overlap with unrelated constructs

Face Validity

On the surface, the measure appears to assess what it is intended to

culture and assessment

• Cultural context affects interpretation of items and behaviors.

• Language differences and cultural norms must be considered.

• Avoid over-pathologizing (e.g., MMPI-2 vs. MMPI-RF in diverse populations).

types of bias in assessment

• Response Sets

• Acquiescence

• Social Desirability

• Malingering

Response Sets

Tendency to respond in a set way regardless of content.

Acquiescence

Tendency to agree with items

Social Desirability

Responding in a way that makes one look good

Malingering

Exaggerating or faking symptoms for secondary gain

types of empirical approaches

• Empirical Assessment

• Criterion Keying

Empirical Assessment

Based on data; helps classify individuals based on responses

Criterion Keying

Identifies items that differentiate between groups (e.g., MMPI items answered differently by clinical vs. non-clinical groups).