Examines Jones's and Nisbett's (1971, 1972) hypothesis that people generally attribute the actions of others to stable trait dispositions but see their own behavior as relatively more influenced by specific environmental circumstances. Discusses methodological problems in studies examining this hypothesis, suggesting ways they might be overcome.…

Proposes that, while there may be real sex differences in vocational interests, Gottfredson's reanalysis of Self-Directed Search predictive data provides no support for the counseling use of sex-divergent raw interest scores. (RC)

A paper-and-pencil test of seven of Inhelder and Piaget's formal operational schemes was developed. Multitrait-multimethod cross-validation procedures indicated that the objective test is a valid and reliable measure. It has the advantage of use in a large group setting without the need for trained clinical interviewers. (Author/PN)

The McCarthy Scales of Children's Abilities (MSCA) appears to be an effective predictor of school achievement for 31 English-speaking second-grade Mexican-American children. High Pearson product-moment correlations were obtained between MSCA and the Comprehensive Tests of Basic Skills. (Author/PN)

Underlying concepts and current issues in communicative testing are described, and several promising approaches to developing communicative tests are outlined. It is suggested that appropriate testing is likely to have dramatic effects on the format and content of foreign language curricula and on student motivation because of increased relevance.…

A problem-based, criterion-referenced examination of clinical competence was developed in order to positively influence students' learning in the direction of the faculty's clinical objectives. High satisfaction and high perceived relevance among students accompanied high reliability and validity. (MSE)

A validation study in the development of empirical measures of teacher stress is presented. Role-related, task-based, and environmental stress measures demonstrated internal consistency and provided reliable and valid multivariate assessment of teacher stress. (PN)

Outlines the benefits associated with true-false and multiple-choice tests and sets forth rules for writing effective items for such tests. (FL)

Reconceptualizes the diagnosis of reading problems, suggesting that a focus on process, prior experience, and observation during assessment will permit a more valid evaluation of readers' abilities. (FL)

A three-year study compared entry-level and junior-level clinically oriented reading and writing skills of 231 medical students. Entry-level skills were found to be the best predictors of clinical skills. Inclusion of communication skills training in admission criteria and/or medical curriculum are recommended. (Author/MSE)

A study investigated possible relationships between performance on the National Board of Medical Examiners Part I exam and personality types to identify learning styles that may predict difficulty with that kind of testing. Results show the tests are most difficult for the personality types most easily admitted to medical school. (MSE)

In a two-way analysis of variance and Bonferroni-type follow-up to detect biased items on Forms A and B of the test found that bias-in-item difficulty occurred for the Mexican-American and White groups. The need to examine the issue and reconsider popular conceptualizations of bias in testing is shown. (Author/CM)

In discriminant analyses of student performance on medical science certifying examinations developed by the faculties at a parent campus and regional campus, curriculum bias in examination items was shown to exist. Test construction procedures and exchange and review by faculties were found inadequate to prevent curriculum dependence. (Author/CM)

Found that particular college of undergraduate degree was a predictor of problems in orientation, academics, social-personal living-dining, student-activities and placement areas for Nigerian students. Except in the area of finance, undergraduate respondents reported more problems than graduate respondents. (Author)

Results of this study demonstrate student-instructor agreement on evaluations of teaching effectiveness, support the validity of student ratings for both graduate and undergraduate courses, and emphasize the importance of using multifactor rating scales that are derived through the application of factor analysis. (Author/AL)