Cut scores and testing: statistics, judgment, truth, and error
Article Abstract:
Cut scores are used in a wide variety of educational and psychological settings to divide a score scale or other set of data into two or more categories. This entails structured, documented and professional judgment, rather than lack of objectivity. Cut scores impose an artificial dichotomy on a continuous distribution of knowledge. However, true cut scores are nonexistent. Lowered use of cut scores by practitioners is mainly because of the lack of statistical sophistication in the methods used, and the fact that it is an interdisciplinary enterprise.
Publication Name: Psychological Assessment
Subject: Psychology and mental health
ISSN: 1040-3590
Year: 1996
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Unresolved issues in measurement validity: an autobiographical overview
Article Abstract:
A psychology professor reviews the unresolved validity issues in applying assessment to social issues. These issues include response sets, reactive measurement effects, content-irrelevant methods variance, population and content sampling restrictions, and validity-degrading effect of use in organization control. Error correction and irrelevant reliable variance in measures, and the shifting validity concepts in the interpretation of racial differences in achievement and ability measures are a few more validity issues.
Publication Name: Psychological Assessment
Subject: Psychology and mental health
ISSN: 1040-3590
Year: 1996
User Contributions:
Comment about this article or add new information about this topic:
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