The Nisonger Child Behavior Rating Form (NCBRF) is a behavior rating scale designed for children and adolescents with mental retardation. The purpose of this study was to explore the psychometric properties of the NCBRF in a sample of 330 children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs). Parent and teacher ratings were independently…

The purpose of this study was to determine whether the Penn Interactive Peer Play Scale (PIPPS), a teacher-rating instrument of interactive play behaviors for early childhood, was valid for urban, low-income children in kindergarten. The PIPPS demonstrated construct validity, and yielded three dimensions of interactive peer play: Play Interaction,…

This paper presents results of a study attempting to identify the extent to which teacher effectiveness research and research into teacher interpersonal behavior can help us collect valid and reliable evaluative data from students about their teacher behavior. The major findings of teacher effectiveness research are outlined and the process that…

This article provides an analysis of the current knowledge base of social skills training (SST) with students with, or at risk for, Emotional and Behavioral Disorders (EBD). This knowledge base is evaluated with respect to issues regarding construct, internal, external, and social validity of the SST literature. Research syntheses investigating…

This proof-of-concept investigation describes a computer-based approach for deriving the knowledge structure of individuals and of groups from their written essays, and considers the convergent criterion-related validity of the computer-based scores relative to human rater essay scores and multiple-choice test scores. After completing a…

The current study findings refute the recent claim that marginality theory lacks construct validity. Cultural marginalization is significantly related to depressive symptoms in Korean American, Chinese American, and Japanese American parents and adolescents living in the United States. Correlational analyses indicate that adolescents' depressive…

Objective: To determine the extent to which the Youth Self-Report (YSR) can be used to assess emotional and behavioral problems in adolescents with intellectual disabilities (IDs). Method: In 2003, 281 11- to 18-year-olds with IDs (IQ greater than or equal to 48) completed the YSR in an interview, and in 1993, 1,047 non-ID adolescents completed…

Despite increasing interest in interlanguage pragmatics research, research on assessment of this crucial area of second language competence still lags behind assessment of other aspects of learners' developing second language (L2) competence. This study describes the development and validation of a 36-item web-based test of ESL pragmalinguistics,…

The relationship construct between physicians and patients was explored in the context of medical education and evaluation focusing on the clinical performance of third-year medical students. The Relationship Instrument, a performance-based assessment, was constructed to measure interpersonal and communication skills of the physician interacting…

Current research suggests that teacher development evolves in stages, and that teacher concerns as professionals are central to teacher development. The concerns theory suggests that teacher growth involves a gradual change from concerns about self, to concerns about the task at hand, to concerns about the connections and implications of self,…

This paper discusses the development of a Cultural Anxiety Scale (CAS) for Chinese students studying in the United States. One hundred items were developed using the anxiety research literature, a survey of research on stress and anxiety among college students, and Chinese cross-cultural studies. Face, construct, and content validity analysis were…

The construct validity of the Attitudes of Professional Autonomy (APA) as a proxy measure of professional orientation was studied. The sample consisted of all teachers in 94 schools in 6 districts in Louisiana, closely representing the statewide distribution of all schools by level and socioeconomic status. Usable data were received from 1,921…

Confirmatory factor analysis was used to examine the construct validity of a new instrument measuring perceptions toward classroom management: the Inventory of Classroom Management Style (ICMS). Classroom management was defined as a multifaceted process that includes three broad dimensions: (1) what teachers believe about students as persons; (2)…

Whether the construct of adaptive behavior, which has been developed and operationalized in western countries, could be successfully operationalized in a non-western country, Indonesia, was studied. Focus was on delineating procedures for cross-cultural adaptation and operationalization of the construct; creating an operationalization of the…

Science process skills are described as a set of broadly transferable abilities, appropriate to all of the science disciplines and reflective of the true behavior of scientists. While science process skills have gained wide acceptance as an integral part of the science curricula, the development of valid and reliable instruments to assess those…