A stepwise regression technique was used to analyze assessment data while taking differences in nonschool variables across districts into account. The primary purpose of this investigation was to determine whether the inclusion of quadratic and/or interaction terms in a regression model would improve the prediction of school district average…

Multiple sources of complications in the analysis of multilevel educational data are described with emphasis on the determination of a method of analysis that will provide accurate estimates of teacher/class effects even when there are systematic differences in within-class regressions of outcome on input associated with teacher/class…

THIS STUDY ATTEMPTS TO DEMONSTRATE THAT PATH ANALYSIS IS A VALUABLE TOOL FOR INTERPRETING CORRELATIONS IN A CAUSAL SENSE. PATH ANALYSIS IS APPLIED TO A NONEXPERIMENTAL, PANEL SURVEY IN AN EFFORT TO DETERMINE WHETHER THE MORE SELECTIVE OR LESS SELECTIVE COLLEGES HAD A DIFFERENTIAL IMPACT ON THE EDUCATIONAL PLANS OF THEIR STUDENTS. THE PROBLEM IS TO…

A search for better predictors of incomes of high school and college graduates is described. The accuracy of the prediction, implicit in the work of John R. Walsh of Harvard University, that the income differences in a given year are good indicators of income differences in future years, was tested by applying standard statistical procedures to…

An explanation is given of what is meant by "sample-free" item calibration and by "item-free" person measurement as these terms are applied to the one-parameter logistic test theory model of Georg Rasch. When the difficulty of an item is calibrated separately for two different samples the results may differ; but, according the…

Despite advances in common factor analysis, a review of 89 studies published in four selected journals between 1963 and 1976 indicated that behavioral scientists preferred principal components analysis, followed by varimax or orthogonal rotation. Resultant row sums of squares of factor matrices from principal component analyses of real data sets…

The question of whether test factor structure is indicative of the test item hierarchy was examined. Data from 1,000 subjects on two sets of five bivalued Law School Admission Test items, which were analyzed with latent trait methods of Bock and Lieberman and of Christoffersson in Psychometrika, were analyzed with an ordering-theoretic method to…

Contents of this book include: an introductory preface by C. Loring Brace; "Introduction to Jensenism," C. Loring Brace; "Can we and should we study race differences?" Arthur R. Jensen; "Intelligence in Black and White," Alexander Alland, Jr.; "Whose is the failure?" Vera John; "The influence of…

Examines the definition of journal coverage overlap in abstracting and indexing services during the past 30 years of research and expands the definition using a matrix of dissimilarity values. Multidimensional scaling analysis is applied to graphically demonstrate this definition and a naive secondary tool selection algorithm is presented. (43…

A generalized Rasch model is presented for measuring attitudes; it is based on the concepts of Thurstone's method of successive intervals. Benefits of the model are illustrated with a study of students' (N=4,035 fifth through ninth graders) interest in physics. (SLD)

The specification and estimation of school effects, the variability of effects across schools, and the proportion of variation in student outcomes attributable to differences in school context and practice are considered. A statistical model is presented that defines school effects for parents choosing a school and for agencies evaluating school…

Describes advances in capture-recapture modeling, including the biologically motivated emphasis on model-based hypothesis testing and the development of models for spatially stratified populations. Discusses the severe problems associated with count statistics reflecting unknown sampling fractions. (67 references) (KR)

Included are probability models for various strategies that contestants on the television game show, "Let's-Make-a-Deal," might use when given the option to stick with their original choice of three unopened doors or switch to the unopened door after one of the other two doors has been opened. (JJK)

Develops an empirical model for heterogeneous human capital investment decisions, using survey data from a cohort of Dutch workers. Applies the model to investment in three forms of enterprise-related training: technical, economic-administrative, and other. Results show that technical training yields the lowest wage gain, while other…

This paper deals with test fairness regarding a test consisting of two parts: (1) a "common" section, taken by all students; and (2) a "variable" section, in which some students may answer a different set of questions from other students. For example, a test taken by several thousand students each year contains a common multiple-choice portion and…