At the Educational Research Centre (S.C.O.) in Amsterdam, a study determined the applicability and construct validity of ratings of speaking performances by examining tape-recordings of subjects in four dimensions. Subjects were 200 pupils of 11 and 12 years of age, and performances on four different oral tasks were investigated. The rating…

Assessed validity of Holland's differentiation construct. Measures hypothesized to be related to the ability to make vocational decisions were differentiation indices, vocational identity scale, and Occupational Alternatives Question. Results indicated the traditional differentiation index is not a useful way of approaching the differentiation…

Addresses the theoretically important question of whether g is merely an artifact of the method of constructing psychometric tests and the mathematical operations of factor analysis or whether it has an authentic claim to represent some natural phenomenon that exists independently of psychometrics and factor analysis. (Author/ABB)

Holland's construct of differentiation was studied with measures of development, career decisiveness, and achievement. College freshmen completed either the Student Development Task Inventory (N=349) or the Career Decision Scale (N=51). All subjects completed the American College Testing Program's Interest Inventory. Results support Holland's…

Describes the development of a 20-item measure of irrational belief that asks only about irrational belief and not about anxiety reactions. Two studies of the scale produced evidence that it has good internal consistency and good test retest reliability. Three additional studies of the scale found evidence of validity. (Author/NB)

The twofold purpose of this study was to investigate the reliability and construct validity of scores on the Japanese version of an academic self-concept scale titled the Dimensions of Self-Concept (DOSC) Form H and ascertain any relationships between scores on the DOSC scale and selected demographic variables, including class, gender, and…

Describes the development and initial validation of the Encouragement Scale. Results from three studies support the internal consistency, test-retest stability, and validity of the scores. Use of the scale as a research tool to measure attitudes necessary for effective personal relationships is supported. (RJM)

Describes the adaptation--based on Roe's classification of occupations--of two interest inventories translated into English. In an analysis based on the responses of 181 participants, the items followed the six rules for interest inventory items formulated by Meir and Gati. Analysis supported the construct validity of the inventories. (RJM)

Using a multidimensional measure of pay satisfaction, the Pay Satisfaction Questionnaire (PSQ), this study assessed the discriminant validity between scores on a measure of distributive justice and the PSQ with 474 employees. Confirmatory factor analysis results indicate that items from both scales loaded on the hypothesized dimensions. (SLD)

Effectiveness of assessment centers for personal selection in banking was tested with 135 applicants. Results do not support literature findings of the construct and criterion validity of centers. An exercise effect was apparent: judgments made by assessors were interpretable in terms of the exercises used rather than dimensions related to the…

The Approaches to Study Inventory was completed by 316 of a sample of 473 Australian nursing students. Construct validation supported two orientations to study: meaning (deep learning) and reproducing (surface learning). Lack of change in orientation from the first to the third year suggests a need to nurture deep-level learning. (SK)

The construct validity of scores from the Bem Sex-Role Inventory was studied using confirmatory factor analysis methods on data from 791 subjects. Measurement characteristics of the long and short forms were studied, with the short form yielding more reliable scores, as has previously been indicated. (Author/SLD)

Uses both exploratory (EFA) and confirmatory factor analyses (CFA) to examine the factor structure of the WISC-III among White and Black students from the WISC-III standardization sample and a sample of 348 Black students referred for psychological evaluation. Results of the EFA provided evidence of a large first principal factor as well as the…

Reports the results of the first joint confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) of the Cognitive Assessment System (CAS) and the Woodcock-Johnson Tests of Cognitive Abilities-3rd Edition (WJ III). Results of these analyses do not support the construct validity of the CAS as a measure of the PASS (planning, attention, simultaneous, and sequential)…

Ninety-four college students were administered the General Ability Measure for Adults (GAMA) and Kaufman Adolescent and Adult Intelligence Test (KAIT). GAMA IQs were significantly and moderately correlated with KAIT Fluid, Crystallized and Composite IQs, supporting the convergent validity of this instrument. Although significant correlations…