Measurements Final

Intelligence

Construct or group of related variables with some theoretical basis:

-Spearman

-Thurston

-Sternberg

-Gardner

etc.

What is intelligence testing used for?

- Determining giftedness

- Assessing intellectual disabilities

- Access intellectual ability following an accident

- As part of a personality assessment battery

- Admission to private schools

Most definitions stress:

1. Being about to adapt and adjust

2. Ability the learn (especially new information) 3. Ability to perform abstract concepts

3 main elements of intelligence are

1. Abstract thinking

2. Problem Solving

3. Capacity to acquire (new) knowledge

Spearman's Two Factor Theory

Proposed a general factor (g) of intelligence which influences all intellectual tasks and a specific factor (s) to account for performance on specific tasks

Thurston's Multifactor Approach

Unlike spearman, Thurston found no g component

- Used factor analysis to parse out seven different mental abilities

- Did not fully deny spearman since he found some commonality among the 7 factors

Thurston's 7 factors

1. Verbal comprehension

2. Word fluency

3. Numerical skills (computation)

4. Spatial visualization (Symbols and designs)

5. Perceptual speed (Recall of visual detail)

6. Inductive and deductive reasoning

7. Memory

Vernon's Model of Intelligence

Developed a hierarchical approach which is still widely used; 4 levels with each lower level contributing to the next level

Vernons Hierarchy Levels

Top level: Similar to spearman's g factor- Has the most variance

Second level: v:ed (verbal and educational abilities) and k:m (Mechanical spatial practical)

Third level: Minor group factors- ex: verbal and numerical ability

Fourth level: Specific factors- ex: dexterity, arithmetic, and spelling

Robert Sternberg Triarchic theory of intelligence

Novel view of intelligence based on the individual's capacity to use their talents, navigate, and adapt to new environments, involving 3 main components:

1. Analytical: Ability to learn how to do things, solve problems, and acquire knowledge

2. Creative: Ability to adjust to new tasks, use new concepts, and respond well in new situations

3. Practical: Ability to select contexts in which you can excel practically

Cattell's Fluid and Crystal Intelligence

Fluid (gf) Intelligence: Culture free intelligence that is inherent and unaffected by new learning

Crystalized (gc) intelligence: Acquired as we learn and affected by our experiences, schooling, and culture

Fluid Intelligence (gf)

More fixed than crystallized and heritability is about .92. Some examples are:

- mental operations and processes

- Matrices/block designs

- New learning capabilities

Crystallized Intelligence (gc)

Less fixed than fluid and its heavily influenced by experiences, culture, and schooling. Examples are:

- Acquired skills and knowledge

- Vocabulary and general information

Gardner's Multiple Intelligences

Not a hierarchical approach like most- Asserts that there are 8 or 9 intelligences (not based on factor analysis)

- Believed that eveyr person had some level of all 8/9

- All humans have different levels of each

- Manifested by how a person carries out actions to complete goals

- Can work independently from one another or together

Danial Golemans Theory of Emotional Intelligence (EIQ)

1. Knowing ones emotions

2. Managing those emotions

3. Using emotions to motivate themselves

Recognizing others emotions

Managing relationships

Nature vs. Nurture

Not the right question!

- Genotype sets the possible range of expression

- Environment determines where in the range a person ends up

How do the two interact?

Why are intelligence scores less stable for infants and toddlers, but more stable for disabled infants and toddlers?

- Infants and toddlers without disabilities are doing lots of learning during this rapidly changing developmental period unlike infants and toddlers with a disabilty

Reliability of intelligence tests

Not the best- Especially subtest reliability over time (test re-test)

- Pretty stable after age 5

- Different tests assess different aspects of intelligence so be cautious when retesting

Some Intelligences Tests are:

- Stanford Binet

- 3 Weschler Tests (WPPSI, WISC, WIAT)

- Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children

Nonverbal Tests:

- UNIT

- Weschler Nonverbal Scale of Ability (WNV)

Stanford- Binet 5th Edition

Measures verbal and nonverbal intelligence across five factors: Fluid reasoning, knowledge, quantitative reasoning, visual-spatial processing and working memory

- Yields full scale IQ

- Discrepancies among subtest scores and between verbal and nonverbal factors can be indicators of a learning disability

What are the three Weschler Scales of Intelligence

- WPPSI-IV: Preschool and Primary; Ages 2.6-7.25

- WISC-V: Scale for children; Ages 6-16

- WIAS- IV: Scale for adults; Ages 16-90

Weschler Scales of Intelligence Tests

Downward extension of one another:

- Useful for assessing general cognitive functioning, ID, giftedness, and learning problems

- Overall high reliability for all 3 tests with some subtest dipping to low .70s

Educational Ability Assessment

Determine how students are doing in schools and make decisions about the future. Implications include:

- Detecting learning problems and/or giftedness

- Assess readiness for moving on

- College readiness, placement, and/or grad school acceptance

- Assess teacher effectiveness

- See if an individual has mastered content knowledge

Types of Achievement Tests:

What someone has learned:

1. Survey Battery

2. Diagnostic Tests

3. Readiness Tests

Survey Battery Tests

Paper and pencil test measuring broad knowledge content

- Often used to assess progress in schools

- NCLB and its insistence on test scores made survey battery tests more popular to use in schools

NAEP

National Assessment of Educational Progress

- How achievement testing is used to assess how each state is doing compared to others

- All states are required to participate in the math and reading, but other subjects are available

Iowa Test of Basic Skills (ITBS)

Oldest and best known achievement tests:

- Measures skills to make "satisfactory" progress in school: Grades k-8

- Group test administration

- Content validity and high reliability

Diagnostic Testing

Used to assess problem in learning; Individually administered

- Used in the development of an IEP

- Critical use for these tests to determine a learning disability since testing is required under IDEA

Diagnostic Tests

Woodcock Johnson III

KeyMath-3 DA

Weschler Individual Achievement Test (WIAT-III)

WIAT-III

Weschler Individual Achievement Test 3rd Edition

- Used for Pre-k-12th grade

- Purpose is to identify academic strengths and weaknesses and inform decisions regarding eligibility

- High internal and test re-test reliability

- Evidence of content and convergent validity

Readiness Test

Useful in deciding whether a child is ready to move onto the next level or not

- Usually given in kindergarten or 1st grade

- Least reliable and predictive validity is very low

Problems with Readiness tests

- Children's cognitive functioning changes a lot at this age

- Cross cultural bias for ELL students is present

- Predictive validity and reliability is low for these tests

Group vs. Individualized Adminstration

Achievement tests are generally administered in group settings while diagnostic tests are administered individually

Summative, Formative, and Diagnostic Assessments

- Summative: Grand sum of what you are measuring; Sum of what the students learned

- Formative: Helps us understand what is currently going on in terms of student profess

- Diagnostic: Assessment used by school psychs to make high stakes decisions about eligibility

Formative assessments

Assess student achievement during instruction

- Determine if program is effective

-If so, keep going, if not, stop and reevaluate

Curriculum Based Measruement

General outcome measures with key features such as:

- Short duration

- Routine and standardized administration instructions

- Sensitive to small improvements in student learning

How do CBMs help in decision making as general outcome measures?

These are formative tests, so they assess current student progress and are used to evaluate instructional strategies

- Used BEFORE and DURING instruction

Aptitude Tests

Used to assess potential or likely future performance

- Useful aptitude tests have predictive validity

- Accurately predict future outcomes

How to determine distinction between aptitude, achievement, and personality tests

Understanding what the test is being used for

- Predict future ability= Aptitude test

- Test current performance= Achievement test

2 broad types of Aptitude tests

1. Assessments of cognitive and academic potential

- SAT, GRE, etc.

2. Assessments of psychomotor, mechanical, and clerical aptitude

Career/Vocational Assessment

Help people better understand how their interests and personalities best match to employment opportunities

What are vocational tests meant to do?

Reveal information about a person's interests which help recommend some kind of vocation

- Focuses on things beyond test scores: Personality, values, and desires

Holland's Theory of Career Choice

Backbone of the SDS and Strong Interest Inventory

- People are one of 6 personality types which coincide with 6 types of work environments

- People of the same personality type tend to hand together

- People with like personalities create a work environment which fits their type

Holland's Occupational Themes

Realistic- Prefer practical, hands on activities (Equipment)

Investigative- Problem solving by manipulating ideas and symbols

Artistic- Enjoy self-expression and unstructured activities

Social- Like to help others, are nurturing and introspective

Enterprising- Prefer self-management activities, good persuasive skills, and leadership

Conventional- Like structure and order. Concrete tasks and following intructions

How are Holland's themes arranged

In a hexagon structure where adjacent themes are similar and opposite themes are not as similar

Which aptitude tests use Holland's codes?

Strong Interest Inventory, Self Directed Search, and Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery

Strong Interest Inventory

Compares responses of participants on various occupations, areas of study, personality types, and leisure activities to responses of people already in vocational roles

- People coming back from war used it to determine what they should do

- Did not originally use Holland's codes

Areas of the Strong Interest Inventory (SII)

Uses a likert scale to have participants rate themselves in six broad areas:

- Occupations

- Subject areas

- activities

- Leisure

- People

- Characteristics

Self-Directed Search (SDS)

Self administered vocational assessment which assigns a 3 letter code to the subject based on Hollands Six codes

- 720 personality patterns

- SDS code match to occupations is empirically supported

What does the report of the SDS give you?

- Description of each RIASEC type

- List of correlated occupations and fields of study

- List of leisure activities and appropriate next steps

Multiple Aptitude Testing

Measure several abilities at same time

- Used to predict how someone might perform in their job

- Factory analysis is often used to assure the purity of the subtests (Differences and similarities between abilities measured)

Armed Services Multiple Aptitude Battery (ASVAB)

Most widely used multiple aptitude test consisting of three components:

1. ASVAB aptitude test

2. Find your interest inventory

3. OCCU- Find career exploration tool

Career direction depends on...

Personality, values, interests, and other factors working together

Clinical Assessment

Process of assessing a clients functioning through multiple methods including:

- Clinical interview

- Administration of informal assessment techniques

- Administration of objective and projective personality tests

Personality Tests

Measure types of characteristics and the traits:

- Attitudes

- Values

- Interpretations

- Styles and ind. characteristics

Are personality traits and types the same?

No!

Traits: Enduring quantitative differences of individuals along a continuum

- ex: Shy to outgoing continuum

Types: Cluster of characteristics qualitative differences

- ex: Type A vs. Type B

Myers Briggs Type Indicator

Most widely used personality assessment based on Jungs derived types:

Extroverted vs. introverted

Sensing vs. intuiting

Thinking vs. feeling

- Myers and Briggs added judging

How is the evidence of validity for the Myers Briggs?

Very weak evidence for validity- When people retake the assessment, the results are almost always different

- Theres something in there for everyone: Barnum effect

- Vague description of results which cannot be interpreted negatively

Two types of personality tests

Projective: Ambiguous, unclear stimuli where the examiner must determine the meaning

- Examinee is meant to project their subconscious onto the assessment

Objective: Clear, unambiguous questions for measuring personality

- Items leave no doubt as to how someone should respond

Rorschach inkblot test

Given in a battery of clinical assessments

- Rorschach believed that images on the inkblots allowed one to express their unconscious

- Serious questions about reliability and validity

- Requires extensive training and practice to use and interpret

Objective Personality tests

Use content and theory to help in the prediction of behaviors that certain personality types engage in

Type of answer format for objective tests

1. Dichotomous two choice scales

- True or False

2. Likert type rating scales

- 1 is not at all, 5 is all the time

3. Checklists

4. Forced choice scales

- Would you rather do this, or this?

What are response sets?

Pattern of participant response to questions that is not related to what is being asked

- Socially desirable responses: Answering how you think you should, not how you actually feel

- Acquiescent: Lacksidascial responding

- Reactant: Responding based on mood

How can response sets be reduced

- Reverse item scoring

- infrequency (lie) scaled

- Anonymity assurance

- Crowe-Marlow Social Desirability scale

Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2

Most widely used personality test

- Interpretation required grad testing and psychopathology courses

- 6th grad reading level, so it is accessible to most people

- Divergent and convergent validity

Million Clinical Multiaxial Inventory 4th edition

Second most widely used personality assessment tool

- Designed to assess personality disorders and clinical symptomology

- True/false questions to limit social desirability

- Normed on psychiatric patients

- Decent reliability that ranges

- Evidence of predictive validity

Behavior Assessment System for Children III (BASC-III)

Most widely used clinical scales for children

- Very strong validity and reliability for most scales

- Forms for parents, teachers, and students

Informal Assessments

Crucial for school psychologists because every single evaluation will have some record of informal data

- Permeates everything that we do

- BEST USED IN COMBINATIONS

Types of informal assessments

- Observations

- Rating scales

- Classification methods

- Environmental assessments

- Records and personal documents

- Performance based assessment

Why should informal assessments be used in combination with one another?

Techniques are subjective and "home grown" meaning there is not direct way to do them

- Reliability and validity may not be able to be established

- Cros cultural studies are often lacking in this area

What are pros to informal assessments

Add to total assessment process and allow for gathering of specific information

- Little to no cost and easy to gather/ administer (Nonintrusive); Different from formal assessments

- Interpretation takes training and experience, Similar to formal assessments

Types of Observations

- Depends on the type of behavior being observed: High frequency/low intensity or Low frequency/high intensity

Narrative

Event sampling

Time sampling

Duration recording

Latency recording