Examines the reliability and validity of the Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI). Results based on 2,078 clients at 31 university counseling centers who completed the BSI at intake indicate that, although internal consistency for the subscales was high, factor analyses yielded a six-factor solution rather than a nine-factor one. (RJM)

A study examined the test-retest reliability of 30 student evaluations of tutors in a problem-based learning curriculum at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario. Results were used for the improvement of reliability of the instrument. (JOW)

Uses regression analysis on career development measures to examine whether career maturity indicators are predictive of interest consistency, differentiation, and score elevation. Results indicate that interest consistency and score elevation were weakly predicted by the measure; no relationship existed between the attitudinal and cognitive…

Describes a revised career grid procedure for assessing vocational constructs. Results based on a study of 146 college students indicate that the expressed method was not superior to the supplied method in choice consistency, integration, and differentiation. Also found no significant gender differences in cognitive complexity measures of the…

Presents results of an exploratory factor analysis of the mathematics self-efficacy scale. Results, based on 522 undergraduates from three different colleges, indicate that the scale is a multidimensional measure of math self-efficacy with reliable subscales. Four first-order factors were identified, suggesting that the scale taps different…

A study of 10 children (ages 3-6) with pervasive developmental disorders investigated the interrater reliability of the Psychoeducational Profile (PEP). Results show good interrater reliability for the developmental items, indicating that the PEP can be used to evaluate progress in development of children with pervasive developmental disorders.…

The reliability of scores from four forms of the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) was estimated using a hybrid item response theory model. It was found that there was very little difference between overall reliability when the testlet items were assumed to be independent and when their dependence was modeled. (Author/SLD)

Compared 34 infants of very low birth weight (VLBW) and 40 full-term infants, using Ainsworth's Strange Situation procedure and Waters' Attachment Q-Set. Found that, at 14 months, VLBW infants were more likely than full-term infants to be insecurely attached when rated using the Q-Set but not when using the Strange Situation. (MDM)

Validity of the Desire for Control on Examinations (DCE) scale, developed as a measure of an individual's desire for control in an examination context, was studied with 3 samples (total of 378 college students), using a 5-point Likert-type scale, a general 5-point scale, and the Desirability of Control (DC) scale. The DCE exhibited acceptable…

This study assessed the intra-rater and inter-rater reliability of the Motivation Assessment Scale as used with 20 adults with mental retardation, expanding the results of previous research by evaluating across additional time and administrations. Results from 19 raters indicated variable moderate-to-low intra-rater and inter-rater reliability.…

On the basis of data from 2 studies with counseling graduate students, the Multicultural Awareness, Knowledge, and Skills Survey--Counselor Edition was revised. The new 33-item instrument consists of 10-item Awareness, 13-item Knowledge, and 10-item Skills subscales. Evidence of reliability and validity are described. (Contains 35 references and 3…

Outlines the development of a new interest inventory based on the RIASEC (Realistic, Investigative, Artistic, Social, Enterprising, Conventional) model. Rigorous development procedures and outcomes of a large validation study attest to the inventory's validity and reliability; it was found to be psychometrically sound and systematically correlated…

A study evaluated and compared four methods of assessing reliability on one discourse analysis procedure--a modified version of Damico's Clinical Discourse Analysis. The methods were Pearson product-moment correlations; interobserver agreement; Cohen's kappa; and generalizability coefficients. The strengths and weaknesses of the methods are…

A preschool screening battery was presented to a sample of 198 children with and without mild learning problems. Cross-sample test validation was demonstrated when 81% of both groups were correctly classified. Interrater reliability of 80% or greater on all but one of the tasks was demonstrated. (Contains references.) (Author/PB)

Evaluated new self-report measure assessing children's strategies for preserving emotional security in context of interparental conflict. Factor analyses of the Security in the Interparental Subsystem (SIS) Scale supported a 7-factor solution. The SIS demonstrated satisfactory internal consistency and test-retest reliability. Support for test…