PSYC 3020

Psychometrics

field of development and vetting of educational and psychological assessments

Construct

abstract, unobserved or unobservable “thing” that we want to measure

Test or measure

A tool used to quantify constructs

Item

A specific stimulus to which a person responds; a component of a test or measure

Measurement

the act or result of assigning a value or quantity to an observation

Score

Aggregate of all item responses in a measure

Reliability

degree to which a measure produces consistent scores when measuring a stable construct

Validity

degree to which the measure captures what it proposes to measure

Achievement tests

assess an individual’s level of knowledge in a particular domain; example: the midterm history test is an achievement test.

Aptitude tests

measure an individual’s potential to succeed in an activity requiring a particular skill or set of skills and can predict the future; example: a test for assessing the potential of an individual as a salesperson.

Ability or intelligence tests

assess one’s level of skill or competence in a wide variety of areas; viewed as measures of ability.

Personality tests: assess an individual’s unique and stable set of characteristics, traits, or attitudes; example: an inventory that determines the level of introversion or extraversion.

Neuropsychological tests

assess the functioning of the brain as it relates to everyday behaviors, including emotions and thinking.

Vocational or career tests

assess an individual’s interests and help classify those interests as they relate to particular jobs and careers. For example: a vocational test can assess one’s interest in healthcare or in the culinary art.

Levels of measurement

Nominal

Ordinal

Interval

Ratio