Assumptions About Psychological Testing & Assessment

Flashcards covering key vocabulary, assumptions, concepts, and sampling methods in psychological testing and assessment based on the lecture notes.

Trait

Any distinguishable, relatively enduring way in which one individual varies from another.

States

Characteristics that distinguish one person from another but are relatively less enduring than traits.

Construct

An informed, scientific concept developed or constructed to describe or explain behavior, inferred from overt behavior.

Overt behavior

An observable action or the product of an observable action, including test– or assessment-related responses.

Postdict

To aid in the understanding of behavior that has already taken place, typically in forensic matters.

Error

A component of the measurement process, referring to factors other than what a test attempts to measure that influence performance.

Error variance

The component of a test score attributable to sources other than the trait or ability measured.

Reliability

The consistency of the measuring tool; a perfectly reliable tool consistently measures in the same way.

Validity

The extent to which a test measures what it purports to measure.

Norm-referenced testing and assessment

A method of evaluation and a way of deriving meaning from test scores by evaluating an individual test taker's score and comparing it to scores of a group of test takers.

Norm (singular)

Behavior that is usual, average, normal, standard, expected, or typical.

Norms (plural)

Test data of a particular group of test takers that are designed for use as a reference when evaluating or interpreting individual test scores.

Normative sample

A group of people whose performance on a particular test is analyzed for reference in evaluating the performance of individual test takers.

Norming

The process of deriving norms.

Standardization

The process of administering a test to a representative sample of test takers for the purpose of establishing norms.

Population

The large group of interest to a researcher.

Sample

A small set of individuals who participate in a study, selected from a population and intended to represent that population.

Target population

A group defined by the researcher's specific interests, whose individuals typically share one characteristic.

Accessible population

The local participants that can be easily accessed by the researcher.

Representativeness

The extent to which the characteristics of the sample accurately reflect the characteristics of the population.

Representative sample

A sample with the same characteristics as the population.

Biased sample

A sample with different characteristics from those of the population.

Selection bias or sampling bias

Occurs when participants or subjects are selected in a manner that increases the probability of obtaining a biased sample.

Law of large numbers

In statistics, this states that the larger the sample size, the more likely it is that values obtained from the sample are similar to the actual values for the population.

Probability sampling

A sampling method that requires extensive knowledge of the population (listing individuals) and ensures each individual has a specified, unbiased probability of selection.

Simple Random Sampling

A probability sampling technique where each individual in the population has an equal chance of being selected, involving defining the population, listing members, and using a random process.

Sampling with replacement

A random sampling method where an individual selected for the sample is recorded and then returned to the population before the next selection, ensuring constant probability and independence.

Sampling without replacement

A random sampling method where each selected individual is removed from the population before the next selection, guaranteeing no individual appears more than once in a single sample.

Systematic Sampling

A type of probability sampling that begins by listing all individuals, randomly picking a starting point, and then selecting every nth name down the list.

Stratified Random Sampling

A probability sampling method used to ensure identifiable subgroups (strata) are adequately represented by selecting equal-sized random samples from each subgroup and combining them.

Cluster Sampling

A sampling method where individuals in the population are already clustered in pre-existing groups, and the researcher randomly selects entire groups instead of individuals.

Convenience Sampling

Also known as accidental or haphazard sampling, where researchers use individuals who are easy to get, based on their availability and willingness to respond.

Quota Sampling

A nonprobability sampling method that ensures subgroups are equally represented in a convenience sample by establishing numerical targets for the number of individuals to be selected from each subgroup.

Grade norms

Indicate the average test performance of test takers in a given school grade.

National norms

Derived from a normative sample that was nationally representative of the population at the time the norming study was conducted.

Subgroup norms

Normative information for a segment of a normative sample, based on criteria initially used in selecting subjects.

Local norms

Provide normative information with respect to a specific local population's performance on a test, applicable in work or school settings.

Criterion

A standard on which a judgment or decision may be based.

Criterion-referenced testing and assessment

A method of evaluation and a way of deriving meaning from test scores by evaluating an individual's score with reference to a set standard.