A didactic example is provided, using a Monte Carlo method, of how differential item functioning (DIF) can be eliminated (and thus better understood) when the complete latent space is used. The main source of DIF is that the matching single criterion used in some DIF procedures, Mantel Haenszel or Simultaneous Item Bias (SIBTEST), does not account…

One of the important underlying assumptions of all item response theory (IRT) models is that of local independence. This assumption requires that the response to an item on a test not be influenced by the response to any other items. This assumption is often taken for granted, with little or no scrutiny of the response process required to answer…