Examined relations between infant security of attachment, negative life events, and adolescent attachment classification in sample from the Family Lifestyles Project. Found that stability of attachment classification was 77 percent. Infant attachment classification predicted adolescent attachment classification. Found no differences between…

To determine the role that physical aspects of corporate adventure training played in the acquisition of trust, 75 employees from a New Zealand computer company were assigned to one of two groups with varying levels of physical activity or to a control group. Trust was enhanced in the two experimental groups but more so in the more active group.…

Two studies compared multidimensional self-concept measures in preadolescents. Findings indicated that the Self-Description Questionnaire and Self-Perception Profile for Children were highly correlated and comparable in reliability, stability, subscale interrelations, and associations with others' evaluations. Correspondence among various…

Medical students and their spouses (N = 724) served as participants to create norm-referenced vertical jump values for active, healthy people ages 21-30. All tests were conducted and measured by the same individual during a campus fitness evaluation using a Vertec[TM] apparatus. Jump height was measured to the nearest 0.5 in. Mean jump height was…

Context: Psychosocial exposures commonly show large variation over time and are usually assessed using multi-item Likert indices. A construct requiring a five-item Likert index could possibly be replaced by a single visual analogue scale (VAS). Objective: To: a) evaluate validity and relative reliability of a single VAS compared to previously…

Autism susceptibility genes likely have effects on continuously distributed autism-related traits, yet few measures of such traits exist. The Broader Phenotype Autism Symptom Scale (BPASS), developed for use with affected children and family members, measures social motivation, social expressiveness, conversational skills, and flexibility. Based…

This paper addresses the evaluation of the testing of writing of foreign languages and compares two evaluation methods: the analytical method and the holistic method. The analytical method focuses on the mechanics of writing where the writer is measured against a set of empirical standards and a composition is dissected for the critical points.…

Generalizability theory (G-theory) and many-facet Rasch measurement (Rasch) manage the variability inherent when raters rate examinees on test items. The purpose of G-theory is to estimate test reliability in a raw score metric. Unadjusted examinee raw scores are reported as measures. A variance component is estimated for the examinee…

Philosophy statements have been used in the National Debate Tournament (NDT) since the mid-1970s and the Cross Examination Debate Association (CEDA) National Tournament since its 1986 inception. The statements should help debaters adapt to critics' expressed preferences. Moreover, philosophy statements can guide the study of argumentation theory…

This study analyzed and tested the equivalence of Forms A and B of the California Critical Thinking Skills Test (CCTST). In designing the CCTST, Form A was composed of 34 items from a bank of 200. To develop a parallel measure, Form B was developed by rewriting 28 of the 34 items and rearranging their order. Study participants were all entering…

This study addresses the sample error and linking bias that occur with small and unrepresentative samples in a non-equivalent groups anchor test (NEAT) design. We propose a linking method called the "synthetic function," which is a weighted average of the identity function (the trivial equating function for forms that are known to be…

A sample of 212 urban, black mothers and their 8- through 12-year-old children responded to questionnaires about the frequency of potentially stressful life events experienced by the children and the feelings the children had when the events took place. A 49-item questionnaire addressed childen's concerns regarding the stress categories of home…

Seventy-five subjects (Naval F-14 and E-2C crew members) were administered computer-based and paper-based tests of threat-parameter knowledge represented as a semantic network in order to determine the relative reliabilities and validities of these two assessment modes. Estimates of internal consistencies, equivalences, and discriminant validities…

A series of research studies on the consistency of reading specialists' diagnoses of students with reading problems have indicated that clinical agreement has been astonishingly low. To investigate which factors seem to lead to consistency in clinical diagnosis, a study was conducted based on a theory of clinical problem solving called inquiry…

A study compared General Equivalency Development (GED) program completion and Adult Performance Level (APL) attainment in West Virginia. During the study, 97 GED program participants, who were not exposed to APL instruction or materials, completed the APL survey either just before or immediately after taking the GED examination. Seventy-seven of…